It does sound dramatic, doesn’t it? “HOW CLEANING MY KITCHEN CHANGED MY LIFE!!” I know, I get it. Over the top. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

Follow me on this little journey… Once upon a time, I was not nearly as organized, calm or fabulous as I now am. Okay, to be fair, until just a few months ago I was disorganized, stressed and basically a hot mess. Truth be told, I’ve been that way most of my life. BUT I digress. So, back to our story.

Once upon a time … I decided that things needed to change. In a big way.

My husband and I agree on most things in life. I always wanted to work for myself, and after some serious discussions, we agreed that we would work toward making my dream a reality… Self-Employed. Blogger. For money. HOO-RAY!

We knew that it would be a huge financial adjustment and we started looking at the standard massive overhauls required to temporarily live off of one salary. To help me conquer my goals, I started a personal journey with a life coach.

After working with my coach, I decided that I would focus on making sure the kitchen was clean every night before I went to bed.

Trust me, I grumbled like mad the first few days (weeks), but one Wednesday evening I suddenly realized that when I went into the kitchen at 9:00 p.m. to make my evening sweep, the room was clean! Say what?!? I had subconsciously started cleaning every time I entered the space.

The ripple effect

Because we could see the counters, I found that we started cooking at home more! We had space to work, and it didn’t seem like such a chore to clean up as we created. When we started cooking at home more often, we had leftovers for lunches the next day. Leftovers for lunch led to less spending … do you see where we are going with this?

Because I had such success by making these simple changes, I wanted to share my top tips with you!

They’ll help you keep your kitchen clean and your life in control.

Tidy as you go.

If you leave a mess from breakfast, the day is pretty much shot. Making lunch becomes a chore, because you have to clean first, which is a total pain. It’s very difficult to whip up a yummy salad when all the cutting boards and knives are dirty.

Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty (or clean, actually).

I was a dishwasher-using gal when I started this little experiment. Turns out, that was part of the problem.

Believe it or not, emptying the dishwasher is one chore that most people don’t want to do. It’s like folding the clothes in the dryer. You feel relieved when you’re done because the counters and dishes are clean, but then you remember – there’s still more work.

If this is you, try keeping a sink of dishwater ready throughout the day, and wash, rinse and dry as you go.

Consider minimizing the number of tools and gadgets in your kitchen.

The less you have cluttering your kitchen, the better off you’ll feel. It can be struggle at first… because everyone needs three potato mashers stuffed into a drawer, that you had no idea were there in the first place, right? Oops, is that just me?

Once you reduce the number of utensils, bowls, glasses and gadgets to only what you actually need, you’ll breathe a sigh of relief. Open space is a beautiful sight to behold. Bonus: You get to feel good about donating your extras.

Do a clean sweep after dinner.

Each night, finish cleaning up the dinner dishes, take out the garbage and then sweep the floor (we love using this Dyson Vacuum). Just do it. You’ll thank me later. It really doesn’t seem like a huge thing, but trust me, sometimes a little goes a long way.

If you have small kids, encourage them to get involved! Isla has been using this toy version of mommy’s Dyson vacuum since she was old enough to walk. Any time I vacuum, she joyfully grabs hers and joins in on the fun.