I was always the reliable one.
The person who remembered birthdays.
The one who showed up with a binder.
The one who had the plan, the notes, the colour-coded tabs.
And while no one ever intended it unkindly, I was teased for it constantly.
“Of course Brenda has it organized.”
“We knew you’d remember.”
“You’ve got a spreadsheet for this, don’t you?”
At some point, I started to feel uncool about it.
Not because anyone explicitly told me it was a bad thing, but because it wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t creative in the way people celebrated. It didn’t draw attention. It didn’t feel impressive.
So I learned, quietly, to downplay that part of myself. I still did the organizing — I just didn’t talk about it much. I didn’t frame it as a skill.
It came so naturally to me that I didn’t yet recognize it as something other people found genuinely difficult.
And for a long time, that same perception followed organization as a whole.
When Organization Feels “Uncool”
Compared to creativity, big ideas, and bold visuals, organization has a reputation problem.
It’s often seen as:
- Basic
- Uninspiring
- Administrative
- Something you deal with after the “real” work
And yet, as I spent years teaching small business owners how to use Canva, I started noticing a very consistent pattern.
People were genuinely overwhelmed by Canva’s design features.
They didn’t know where to start.
They weren’t sure which tools mattered.
They felt like they *should* understand it faster than they did.
That’s why so much of my teaching focuses on simplifying Canva — breaking it down, removing unnecessary complexity, and helping people feel more confident using the design tools themselves.
But alongside that, something else kept showing up.
When Learning Canva Still Feels Harder Than It Should
Even after people started to understand Canva’s design features, many of them were still struggling.
Not because they weren’t capable.
Not because Canva “wasn’t for them.”
They were struggling because *working* in Canva felt harder than it should.
“I know I made this before.”
“I’m sure I uploaded this already.”
“I can’t find anything.”
“I spend more time searching than actually creating.”
The overwhelm wasn’t just about learning new tools — it was about not being able to easily return to their work once it existed.
What looked like a design confidence issue was often paired with a Canva navigation and organization problem.
What felt like a Canva learning gap was frequently a systems gap.
That’s when the reframe clicked.
This wasn’t about choosing organization instead of teaching Canva.
It was about recognizing that without organization, everything else becomes harder to sustain.
Canva Isn’t Just a Creative Tool — It’s a Work Environment
Canva is an incredibly capable platform. The creative possibilities are huge.
But Canva isn’t just a place people visit for inspiration — it’s a platform many small business owners use daily to create and manage content.
They’re there on tight timelines.
They’re there between meetings.
They’re there while juggling client work, content schedules, launches, and daily life.
In those moments, what people want isn’t novelty.
They want:
- To know where their files are
- To trust that yesterday’s work is easy to find
- To open Canva without immediately feeling friction
- To spend their energy creating, not searching
That’s where the so-called “boring” parts matter.
Folders.
Structure.
Naming.
Navigation.
Maintenance.
They don’t sparkle, but they support everything else.
The Quiet Work Behind Canva’s Biggest Features
At major Canva launches like Canva Create or the Canva World Tour, the spotlight naturally shines on the features that demo beautifully on a big stage.
And that makes sense. Those moments are exciting.
But the work that makes Canva easier to navigate…
Easier to find things in…
Easier to maintain over time…
That work rarely gets applause.
And yet, it’s the reason people can actually use all the exciting features long after the keynote ends.
Without strong content navigation and organizational foundations, even the most impressive tools become harder to access, harder to return to, and harder to build on.
It’s quiet work.
It’s foundational work.
And it matters far more than it gets credit for.
Why I Focus on the “Boring” Parts of Canva
I teach Canva organization on purpose.
Not because creativity isn’t important, and not because learning Canva’s design tools doesn’t matter.
It absolutely does.
But creativity struggles when everything else feels chaotic, especially inside a tool you rely on every day.
Flashy features can inspire you.
Reliable systems are what sustain you.
And especially in a world that feels increasingly unpredictable, there’s something deeply reassuring about tools that behave the way you expect them to.
Predictable doesn’t mean uninspired. It means supported.
Reclaiming “Boring” as a Strength
These days, I don’t hide the binder.
I show up with it on purpose.
Because over time, I’ve learned something important: the quiet, dependable work is often the reason things actually come together.
It’s not the most visible contribution.
It doesn’t get much attention.
But when details are remembered, systems are clear, and everything has a place, the experience is easier for everyone involved.
The same is true in Canva.
The “boring” work (organizing, naming, and maintaining your Canva files) is what allows everything else to flow more smoothly. It’s what makes it possible to return to your work without friction, to build on what you’ve already created, and to use Canva with more ease over time.
If Canva has ever felt harder than it should…
If you’ve ever thought, I know this tool can do more, I just want it to feel easier…
There’s a good chance it’s not about learning more features.
It’s about finally giving the quiet, unglamorous parts the attention they deserve.
Want to Make Canva Feel Easier to Work In?
If this resonated, you don’t need to overhaul everything at once.
Start small. Start practical. Start with the parts that quietly support everything else.
Throughout this site, you’ll find video tutorials, guides, and articles focused on helping you use Canva more confidently — from understanding the design tools to organizing your files so your work is easier to find and maintain over time.
And if you ever decide you want more structured, start-to-finish support, Clean Up My Canva walks through a calm, practical system for organizing your Canva designs, uploads, and templates in a way that holds up as your business grows.
No pressure to jump ahead. Everything here is designed to meet you where you are.
