No Dishes in the Sink

The clean as you go technique from Leo Babauta is a method I started when working from home due to COVID-19.

The ultimate goal is no dishes in the sink. And you get there by cleaning dishes right after using them.

There's subconscious stress running in the background when you have unfinished work. Things can feel out of order when you have too much to do, with little time to do them.

Dishes tend to pile up faster than they get put away. So the clean bottom of a sink is at least one area of life that's in order.

Since I work from home, I can eat and clean dishes before getting back to work. House cleaning is unavoidable, so getting it done before it gets out of hand are micro-breaks. Clean as you go lets me pause while being productive.

If you don't work from home or feel pressed for time to clean as you go, another mental model you can use is the two-minute rule. Ask yourself, "Will this take less than two minutes?" If the answer is yes, take care of the task right then and there and move on to bigger projects.

After using this approach for a few days, you'll see yourself tackling the small stuff in life that builds up over time. Clean spaces give you enough room to put more things in order, one plate or step at a time.

(This post initially was written for Paths to Peace: 9 Short Ways to a Life of Lower Anxiety but ended up not making the cut. If you liked this post, consider downloading the free eBook now.)