How Adding a Little Order Can Improve Your Home

Feeling overwhelmed with your home? Try adding a little order to improve your surroundings.

Messes have an undeniably uncanny way of getting under my skin.

When my home is in utter disarray, I physically feel different:

I’m on edge.

I’m snappy with myself, my family, and our dog.

Everything, from a simple text notification to a phone call to noisy car driving down the street puts me on edge.

Life is too short to let a messy home get in the way of a person’s mental well-being.

If you’re like me and you notice a home that’s all out of sorts adds to your stress, I have good news for you: the solution is a pretty simple one.

5 Simple Steps to Adding Order to Your Home

As soon as I start to feel my blood pressure rise when I see my kitchen sink filled with dirty dishes or clutter starting to pile all around my living room, I stop absolutely everything and do these five things:

I open a window for fresh air. Even when it’s cold out, I need something fresh to help clear my brain and add a little calm. I also drink a glass of water in case I need some hydration.
I find the messiest spot that seems to be adding the most anxiety to my life.
I dig right in, working from top to bottom, left to right. Very quickly, I do whatever chores need to be done.
While I work, I remind myself to inhale and exhale. As I slow my breathing down, I also take time to pray and ask God to help me with my overwhelm and all that’s bothering me.
After I finish that first task, I move on, clockwise, to whatever is next in the same room. My goal is to work quickly and make one space or one room as tidy as possible.

Usually those five steps are all that it takes to get a room in my home under control and my frustrations and stress managed. If I have time and energy, I’ll move on to another room in my home, but usually just one is all that’s needed.

Is an Orderly Home Perfect?

Keep in mind that an orderly home does not mean you’re maintaining a home that looks and feels perfectly clean. This picked up home is, for now, good enough. And it truly is good enough because it’s better than it was before you started working.

If you only have time to work on picking up or cleaning one space, that is OK. That area will be so much better because of your effort. The next free moment you find, simply work on another problem area.

No matter how much or how little you end up tending to problem spots around your home, you can breathe a sigh of relief. Once you begin adding a little order to your home, you’ll notice you’re also adding a lot of peace to your life and your day.

When it comes to adding a little order to your home, what are some of the easiest ways you like to do this?

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Hilary

Hilary Bernstein is a Christ follower, wife, homeschooling mama, and writer who helps women experience God's perfect peace in messy, imperfect life. She's happiest when she's hosting friends and family for dinner, going on date nights with her husband, singing along to the radio, traveling with her family, and spending cozy nights at home. The author of fifteen books,Hilary also is Women's Ministry Director at The Chapel in Green, Ohio.