Costume Design Blog

Common Sense Time Management for Artists

I was reading a blog entry by JD over at Get Rich Slowly and started realizing how bad I am at budgeting personal finances.  This is surprising only because I am incredibly good with a show budget, and with budgeting my time so that everything gets done.

The article over at Get Rich Slowly is excellent for helping manage personal money for those of us who are full-time freelancing and don’t have a steady income.  I highly recommend heading over that way once you’ve read this!

Budgeting: It’s Not Just About Money

Budgeting for a show comes down to a few key items: knowing what your final design is, knowing when it’s better build or to buy, and knowing where to find the costume pieces inexpensively.  I’ve talked about this before.

Budgeting time, or time management, is a bit more tricky.

For whatever reason, I have always been particularly good with time.  In school, I usually had assignments done before they were due (I remember one particularly bad all-nighter that sealed my resolve to never do it again), and I’m often amazed when other designers talk about not having any time to do personal activities because they are working too hard.

I work hard too, but I still have time for family and friends.  Why is that?

I think that I have unconsciously figured out how to determine when to do each task that needs to be done. (Trust me, this wasn’t something I sat down and figured out; it’s a quirk of who I am.)

When I’m working at my desk or sewing table, I’m focused and completely engaged in the work.  I get it done, and go out to the yard to clip the grass, or pull weeds, or watch the fish … but I’m still working.

I’m using that time to let ideas settle.  Percolate.  Work themselves into fuller manifestations (if you will).

An Example

I just finished a first round of rough sketches for Hamlet.  It took me almost three weeks from the first meeting with the director and rest of the design team; not because I couldn’t draw faster, or I was “having bad drawing days”, or I was procrastinating.

I was letting the images from the research “settle”.

I knew that I wanted to have the roughs done by a certain day, but I wanted to know what I was going to draw before I got out the paper.  I wanted to really know my characters when I picked up the pencil. I think I ended up physically drawing for a total of 10 hours.  Not a straight 10 hour shot, but 10 hours accumulated, which comes out to roughly a half hour per sketch.

And they were done and “handed in” before the deadline.  This does not mean, by the way, that they are finished, or perfect, or that I won’t revise them as the process continues.

So some ideas on how to better manage time:

1 – Know when you are the most productive.  Personally, I work my best two hours after I get up and with (at least) three cups of tea in me.  And I can work pretty much straight through for five hours without needing a break.  After that, I really need to work on things that require less mental attention – the more “mundane” tasks of costume designing.

2 – Don’t let yourself get distracted during those key work hours!  I enjoy having some sort of noise in the room if I’m not actually reading a play.  I’ll put on Hulu in the afternoons to listen while I’m sketching or putting together a garment.  But I only have music or the radio on if I need to focus on a draping project, or putting together a tricky look for a character.

3 – If you aren’t actively working on your show, do something else and let your brain process subconsciously for awhile.  I get pretty contemplative while I clean the dishes, or do the laundry.  In some cases this is procrastination, but I always come up with the solution to a problem if I attack it from the side like this, rather than stew over it at my drafting table.  It’s the best kind of multi-tasking!

4 – Get enough sleep.  And food.  Chemically, your brain does not function as well if you don’t take care of your body.  If you take the time to de-stress, I guarantee that you’ll be more productive.

5 – Take the time to get out of your personal world.  This is best done with someone else (and it means you’ll be spending time with your loved ones!)  If you are in a city, there is nothing more eye-opening than walking around a new neighborhood.  Going to a new museum.  Walking through the park.  But you need to be actively looking.  Not just wandering around with your nose in the ground.   If you live in a small town, or in the country, surf the internet!

So, there are only 24 hours in the day.  Use them well!  And get it all done.

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