How to Apply 5S: Piano Area

Playing a musical instrument can be an amazing way to pass the time, but having a messy area can dampen the feeling. With your sheet music lying all over, it can be hard to find the piece you want when you want it; not to mention all the other things mixed in don’t make finding it any easier.

When you’re trying to learn a new piece (or learn how to play if you’re just beginning) having a mess lying in the forefront of your vision can be distracting.

Here’s how I applied 5S to my piano area, the latest in the How to Apply 5S series.

Before 5S

This was how my piano looked like before I applied 5S. The clutter on the top doesn’t make the area the most clean or organized place to play in.

Step 1: Sort

I sorted out a lot of the items I didn’t need off the top of the piano, such as figurines, pictures, posters, etc. These things were moved around to other areas of the house or hung up on the walls. I did keep a few of the smaller decorations for some aesthetic appeal, but most of the items besides the sheet music and piano books were taken away.

Step 2: Set In Order

I set in order the items that remained on the piano. I put all of the sheet music lying around into a single pile and put them into the stack of piano books on the side. Then I arranged the piano books into a stack from largest to smallest.The decorations I left behind were also moved to the sides of the piano to make the top portion less cluttered.

Step 3: Shine

Since the top of the piano and some of the decorations were dusty, I wiped them down with some Clorox wipes. I also wiped down the rest of the piano to really make it shine!

Step 4: Standardize

To make sure I didn’t shift the decorations out of place or scatter my music around again, I standardized the space by marking the positions of the decorations with tape and placing a piece of paper on the spot where I wanted to keep my stack of books and sheet music.

Step 5: Sustain

To sustain the level of organization, I check for dust on the instrument (especially on the top) every week and make sure that I’m putting things back in their places whenever I move them around.

With my area being more organized, I can focus on learning my music and feel less bothered when I’m playing. Applying 5S to other workspaces will also help me to maintain a mindset that is focused on the tasks I need to do.

Have you applied 5S at home or at work? Please share a photo in the comments below. We’d love to see how organized you are! And be sure to check out our 5S hub page—5S: An Easy Way to Eliminate Waste—for other great ways to apply 5S!