Earbuds! I just love earbuds! Since much of my prospecting, coaching, and negotiation work happens by phone, earbuds are an intimate part of my life. If you’ve ever purchased earbuds, you know that some kinds come with these cute little plastic things that fit the earbud perfectly in the ear. Like a kitten, nestled in a basket that’s just the right size. Only in the case of your ear, the basket is lined with ear wax. I guess that keeps the kitten’s fur nice and shiny?
When you get little earbud attachments, however, you only use one for right now. The rest, you save for later. And where do you save them? Right over there, on your desk, behind the stack of books. Or … somewhere
Earbuds come with earpieces. Drills, with replacement drill bits. Electric clipper have attachments to cut hair to different lengths. Dryers have an extra lint screen. Air conditioners come with extra window-sealing foam. Network routers come with an extra network cable. Designer pens and pencils have extra detachable fur coverings.
Frank Purdue, founder of Purdue Chicken Parts, used to do television commercials where he said “parts is parts.” He was referring to chicken parts. But the same principle applies. Parts is parts and you need to have a way to know what goes with what, and find stuff when you need it. Otherwise, you have parts coming out of your ears, and that’s not good; they might knock the kittens loose.
Organize your physical bits
When something you buy comes with spare physical bits like the earbuds, gather together all the bits and put them in a ziploc bag. Write on a small piece of paper what they belong to. “Spare earpieces for blue, waterproof Gizmo earplugs, purchased May 2017.”
The purchase date is relevant! If you love your blue Gizmo earplugs so much that you buy the latest model when it comes out, you need to know which bits go with which. Anyone who’s ever purchased an Apple product knows that the version 2 accessories may not work with the version 3 product.
Also jot down the model number. If you simply say “iPhone earpiece” when you stash the extra earbuds from your iPhone 7, then if you get another iPhone, you won’t be able to tell which one those earbuds belong with.
Put all your ziploc bags ’o bits in one location. When an accessory is needed, you can go straight to your “bits bin” and find the right ziploc bag.
Label AC adapters
Even though “parts is parts,” some parts can’t be stowed away. I’m talking about those evil, demonic, devices that twist and channel the world’s energy: AC adapters. Everything comes with one. And every adapter is different. And every instruction manual says “use the AC adapter that came with this device only. If you use the wrong one, it could explode, create a black hole, and suck the entire world into a vortex of ultraviolet radiation that’s pulled through a wormhole, and spewed out a microwave oven on planet Zod where the Zodians are trying to make popcorn at their equivalent of the Superbowl halftime performance.”
Your bits will no longer be clutter; they won't be naughty bits any longer.
So I’m sitting here looking at a pile of AC adapters, my out-of-power electric clippers, my out-of-power cell phone, my out-of-power camping headlamp, and a power strip. I’m terrified to touch anything because I really don’t want a one-way trip to planet Zod.
Every time you buy a device that takes an AC adapter, immediately grab a small piece of paper and write down the name of the device. Then use clear tape to tape the paper to the side of the AC adapter. Now when (not if, when) the AC adapter gets separated from the device, when you find it again, you’ll know what device it belongs to. You can plug it in to recharge your portable microwave just in time to melt some yummy Velveeta to make nachos at Earth’s Superbowl halftime.
Store manuals and warranties online
And lastly, every device comes with a manual and/or warranty. These are usually written in a dozen different languages, at long last filling the international community’s need to look up incomplete, poorly written directions for a product whose design makes it ambiguous, hard to use, and potentially fatal.
Grab your smartphone and scan your warranty into a PDF file. Then scan the instructions or go online and download the PDF manual.
Now create a folder whose name is the device. “DeWalt impact driver DCF885C1” Inside that folder, put the warranty and the manual. Name the files with the word “WARRANTY” or “MANUAL” and then the name of the device. When you want to find the documents for a device, just search for files that begin with WARRANTY or MANUAL. Store all of your manuals and warranties inside a top-level folder called EQUIPMENT that's inside your Dropbox. Then, simply having access to Dropbox will give you instant access to everything you need to deal with any of your equipment.
Congratulations! Your infrastructure is done. When you get something new that comes with lots of bits, they’ll no longer get everywhere, clutter up your life, and be naughty bits. Instead, you’ll put them in your “bits bin” neatly bagged and labeled. Your AC adapters will be labeled, so no accidental black holes for you. And your manuals and warranties will be just a mouse click away. You’ll be able to reclaim all the time you used to spend searching and matching and dealing with clutter, and you can use it to sit quietly by the window and pet your kitten. Whose fur is inexplicably covered in ear wax.
This is Stever Robbins. Follow GetItDoneGuy on Twitter and Facebook. I coach executives in leadership, general management, and communication skills. If you want to know more, visit http://ift.tt/1l2uWN6 .
Work Less, Do More, and have a Great Life!
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