Organize by pre-bussing

Today's organizational thoughts have grown out of the restaurant industry. Being a restaurant manager, I have learned a lot about how people work, or try to get out of work.

Pre-bus: When people are eating at a restaurant, the servers are supposed to remove dishes that are no longer needed while the customer is still there. That is referred to as pre-bussing. When the main dish is brought out, the salad plates and soup bowls should be removed provided the customer is finished with them. When dessert is served, the plates used for the meal are to be removed, again as long as the customer is finished. That gives the customers more room as they talk and finish their drinks and get the kids ready to go. Plus it means most of the work of cleaning off the table is already done, saving valuable time later when we need the table for the next customers.

Here's the problem. Most of the servers will try to avoid this part of their job by saying they don't have time to pre-bus. At the same time, they will walk past their tables to the kitchen ten times with empty trays. If they just picked up one item on each trip, the job would be done with no extra steps or effort. They are already going that way anyway.

So, I'm going to apply this pre-bus option to staying organized at work or at home. When leaving your desk, check to see if there is a pop can, coffee cup, or book that you will no longer be using. Take it along with you and you will be one step closer to a cleaner desk without any extra effort. Heading out to the garage? Grab the tool that is out of place and take it along. Coming in from the car? Bring along anything that shouldn't stay in the car and you won't have to wonder where it is later. Going to the kitchen after eating a "couch potato" snack? Put the dishes or glasses in the dish washer rather than on the counter where it constitutes clutter. These are restaurant pre-bussing techniques which can help keep us organized at home or at the office. As we say at the restaurant, "It is easier to keep up than to catch up!"

It wasn't my table! Another way servers will try to avoid work is to say, "That wasn't my table." Their section doesn't have any clean tables, so they can't get sat to make more money. Yet they don't want to clean off a table that is available because it wasn't theirs originally. Meanwhile, the original server is busy in a new section and can't get it cleaned off. As I look at it, they are being lazy and losing money. It doesn't make any difference whose table it was. It needs to be cleaned. The sooner the better. It is called turnover. The quicker the turnover, the more money they make.

So at home or at the office. It doesn't make any difference who put it there. If it doesn't belong there it should be moved, put away, or tossed in the trash. It's your office, your home, your car, your desk. It doesn't matter who put something there, you can take care of it.

Don't wait for the bus! As managers, one of our responsibilities is to watch labor. We are allowed so many labor hours for so many customers. When the customer count begins to die down, we have to start cutting workers to keep the labor hours in line with the customer count. We are constantly being told, "You cannot wait for the bus." In other words, don't keep a lot of workers on the clock just in case a bus load of people show up.

In our case at home, or at the office, don't wait until it will take a bus to cart off all the mess. Keep at it continually and it will never build up to an unsightly mess. It takes a little ongoing effort, but in the long run will save time. It takes a while to fill the bus when it gets that messy. It takes a while to find something when you have to sort through a bunch of things that shouldn't be there. Don't wait until you need a bus.

Don't put it where it doesn't belong! The best clutter-prevention is don't put something where it doesn't belong in the first place. Of course, when you are having a cup of coffee, you need the coffee cup there. But when you are done, don't leave it where it shouldn't be. Don't put it on the counter where it doesn't belong. Put it in the dishwasher, or wash it and hang it up, or whatever you need to do at the office.

You'll be glad you did! In the long run, you'll appreciate the little extra effort you put in along the way. When you come back to your desk, or back to the kitchen, you'll like the way it looks. You'll be able to get at your next task without having to clean up first. You won't have to worry about someone seeing it looking like a mess.

It is not that I am a neat freak. That would be closer to a description for my wife. But I appreciate that about her. I have loved her that way for 38 years next month. She's not going to change now, and I wouldn't want her to.

We used to play golf with some other couples. Afterwards we would go to one of our houses for cards. We usually took turns, but often the others would say, "We have to go home and clean up first." We would have to wait and come later, or volunteer our house. People could/can walk into our house any time and find it neat and clean. That is a good feeling. It is simply because my wife follows the procedures I'm talking about. She wants everything put back where it belongs, picked up as we go, and put away when we're done. I like the end result.