How to Create Simple Home Systems for Lasting Order

It's like Ritalin, only for your house

Simplicity is key, especially in the kitchen

I have long obsessed over finding ways to do things with great efficiency. My doc refers to it as Generalized Anxiety Disorder but what evs. Blame it on required reading in 5th grade, Cheaper by the Dozen. In this true-life story, the dad was an efficiency expert. I was smitten. Challenge accepted!

In the past few newsletters, I focused on two common hot spots, namely underneath the kitchen sink and fridge (minus any fridgescaping). Today, let’s talk household management using basic-emphasis on BASIC-systems. Because if it’s not simple, it won’t be sustainable.

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Next to decluttering and committing to bringing less into your home, systems are a foundational need for maintaining and organized and tidy home.

Organizing in the kitchen

Let’s start in the kitchen. So, it’s time to get your 50s era apron and pearls ala June Cleaver on ladies! SCREEEEEEEECH! FULL STOP. Let’s stop that bovine scattology (BS for short) right there. And please, include your partner in on this as well. If they join in your efforts, all the better.

Kitchens, for most people, are hands-down the most used room in the house. Which means it is also the most challenging area, especially if you, er, I mean, your house, has ADHD. In which case, there is a high likelihood that meal prep turns into a culinary Rube-Goldberg process. (Starting with the wrestling match of opening the utensil drawer with the potato masher.)

The frustration can hamstring the best of your intentions to cook more healthfully.

The other reason for prioritizing the kitchen, uh, well, that’s where we make coffee. And coffee is important. Very important.

The kitchen is the nerve center of the home for most people for many other tasks as well. Your kitchen table may be the place where you pay bills or the kids do homework. Because there is so much activity in this room, it’s especially important to have order and an efficient use of space and work flow.

First, take stock of what takes place in your kitchen. I already mentioned bill paying or kids doing homework. Is this where you catch up on Facebook? A lot of meditation can take place in kitchens as well, such as the Open the Fridge Door and Wonder What’s There to Eat meditation.  (Hopefully this meditation goes better since you’ve sorted out the fridge.)

What are your cooking habits? Are you a food prepper? (I’ll try not to hold it against you for making the rest of us look bad.) Do you bake regularly? Or are you a Trader Joe’s heat and eat sort of cook? (Love me some Trader Joes!)

Start with a command center and go from there

Next, depending on your activities, it’s time to set up “centers.” What do I mean by that?  If you take care of administrative tasks such as making appointments, bill payments, kids’ schedules, etc, set up a command center. You can even pretend it’s the helm of your very own ship, if that floats your boat. Or the Situation Room where you govern your very own small island nation.

Just remember simplicity is key. Start with keeping any files, pens, Post It pads and your calendar.  (Yes, I know I am old school; I keep a paper calendar still in addition to Google.) If you do these tasks at the kitchen table, I suggest using a basket to corral those items for easy retrieval. 

Ditto for the kids.  Keep their items in a basket as well.  And speaking of baskets, you can use the simple dishwashing basins or handled caddies from the Dollar Store (though now it is the $1.25 store now) to serve this purpose. Easy squeasy and inexpensive!

If you are a baker, like I was for many years, you’ve got your baking center on part of the counter. This is where you’re stand mixer goes if you have one. If there’s a drawer nearby, that’s where the spatulas and items like cookie scoops go. Baking ingredients go near here as well.

Is there a spot for food prep?  If not, I suggest setting up your cutting board by the sink, along with knifes. I keep a cutting board for meat and one for veggies or bread. (Helpful hint: I keep a small squeeze bottle of bleach underneath the sink to disinfect cutting boards after using the meat board. Remember to label it!)

Kale smoothies your thing?  Have a basket to hold your powders and mixes together, all parked by the blender.  (I do this myself (sans kale, bleck!) and can testify to the ease.)

Coffee gets a hallowed spot next to the sink, for obvious reasons. I keep coffee supplies and cups in the cabinet above the pot so everything. BTW- I also use that little bleach bottle to deal with coffee stains in the mugs when needed.

Your kitchen will thank you

By establishing systems and routines, your kitchen will run smoother. And if you’re not careful, you may find that even your life runs smoother!

More importantly, it will help provide a peaceful environment for you and your loved ones to gather together and focus on what’s most important: coffee relationships. 

Got any questions? Wanna share any helpful tips? Drop a comment!  And as usual, thanks for reading!

Here’s my Medium column. I cover topics related to infidelity and gray divorce recovery and forgiveness.

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