Use of Space

Getting Organized Column
BackStage, November 2006
topic: use of space

Space, the Wise Frontier
By Kristine Oller

This is the fourth year you’ve spent in your apartment, and it just doesn’t feel good anymore. The office you set up in the spare room has devolved into a storage area because you work in your brightly lit dining room most of the time. As your career has grown, paperwork generated by the increased activity has filled your file boxes and overflowed into piles and stacks you must maneuver around. Your home, which seemed to have ample room when you moved in, has become stifling. What now?

Most actors, especially at the start of their careers, live in very small spaces. Whether you have a house, an apartment, or merely a room to call your own, your habitat should not be undermining your efforts to reach the next level in your lifestyle and your career. As you evolve, your surroundings should also change to accurately reflect and fully support your life.

Often, the root cause of an organizational problem is that your life and the configuration of your home don’t match. Every year or two, it is important to step back and examine the layout of your living environment to make sure you haven’t become spatially stuck.

Problem: You are forgetting your home is an important tool.

Unless you are already living the life of your dreams, think of your abode as a tool to help you get where you want to go. The more your current home enables and encourages you to work on and succeed in your pursuits, the quicker you will be able to move into a bigger, better space. I am not advocating that your environment be completely utilitarian. I am suggesting you identify frustrations that can be alleviated with reprioritizations of space. If your closet is minuscule and you hate that your audition wardrobe always has wrinkles from being crushed, you might consider temporarily putting some of your books or memorabilia into deeper storage—maybe under your bed—and letting go of one of your bookcases to make room for an extra clothing rack.

Problem: You are taking a traditional approach.

It is completely natural and logical to set up your living space according to tradition: “A dining room must have a dining table, and the coat closet is for storing coats.” I, however, am an advocate of nontraditional use of space. Years ago, when we were living in a one-bedroom apartment, we made the bedroom into an office and put our bed in the living room. Our friends joked about it, but we knew that the office was the engine of our lives, and sticking it in a cramped corner of the living room would never have worked for us. Let yourself think outside the norm: Turn a utility closet into a media library, or a dining room buffet into a headshot mailing center.

Problem: You are living in the future.

A peaceful, productive dwelling is a balanced one, with room to work and relax. A balanced dwelling is one that supports your current life—not your ideal life, not the life you expect to have in a few years, but the life you have right now. Eventually you will be hosting formal dinner parties and keeping a cozy room for overnight guests. But if that is not your current reality, perhaps there is a better use for the space taken up by your large dining room table or spare queen-size bed. Carefully consider the items you are holding on to because you may “need them/use them/have a place to put them someday.” Make sure they are not taking up a disproportionate amount of room and impeding the flow of your daily life.

Problem: You are avoiding the space.

When you first moved in, that spare room, loft, or garage seemed ideal for a home office, gym, or crafting area. If, however, the space is too dark, too hot, too cold, too noisy, too cramped, or too isolated, you won’t use it. You will always gravitate to where it feels best to work. Give in to that urge. Create a portable home office so you can work in your bed or outside. Turn your dining room into an edit bay. The happier you are in your environment, the more productive you will be.

Problem: You are ignoring your growth.

In the beginning, you may have been able to manage your budding career with a desk the size of a postage stamp, but is that still working for you? Not giving your career the physical space it requires can stunt its growth. A couple that was fine sharing an office for several years may find that now each needs his or her own space. Perhaps your voiceover career is picking up steam, and now you need a dedicated recording area. When moving to a larger place is not an option, a judicious reconfiguring of your current space is required.

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© 2005-2007 Kristine Oller, all rights reserved. You are free to use material from these columns in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read:

“By Kristine Oller of Personalized Organization. Please visit Kristine’s web site at http://www.kristineoller.com for additional information and resources on organizing and career strategy for creative people.”

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