
Summary – Seiton : A place for everything
You are late for work, and to make things worse, you forget where you left your key. You spent about 5 minutes just trying to figure the whereabout. Now that’s 5 minutes a day, in a year you lose about 30 hours just trying to figure out where exactly that damn key.
now imagine you forget other things 🙂
There is one tool established by the Japanese that has been used all over the world. People pay hundreds just to learn about it. Seriously, I’ve seen seminars highlighting the tools as their key points. But fear not my friends, I’m going to spill it here for you guys FOC
The tool is called 5S. I’m very sure most of you are already familiar with it. Basically the 5S consists of Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu and Shitsuke. Google them for more info.
But I’m more interested to illustrate how Seiton works. Seiton is roughly translated to Orderliness which basically means “Everything must have its own place”
Look on your table now. There should be a pencil in left side of the table, several pens on the other side. If there is also a cup of evaporated coffee there, you are beyond help 🙂 (kidding). Anyway, abiding to the principle of Seiton means that you should have a proper place for the pencils and pen. All pens must be put in there, no exception. If you have finished your work, put the pen back there. This way, when you’re looking for a pen, you know exactly where to find it. No other place. That’s Seiton.
Apply that to the important things in your life. You can’t categorize everything, if not, your home will be changed immediately to a warehouse. Just the important things like documents, clothes, small change. and maybe remote control.
Remember there are only two rules to Seiton
- One place for it.. No other place
- Put it back there when you’re done
– I wonder –
Do you have a specific place for your things?
———– Personal Note ————
The reason I come up with this topic is because yesterday, I asked the clerk to find me a document. And guess what they took almost 30 minutes just to locate it.
Previously I had advised them on how to be organized particularly document wise, but I think old habit is very hard to die 🙂