You’ve probably heard this famous quote:

“In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” -Benjamin Franklin

I think he left out a couple of things. Here’s my revised version:

“In this world, nothing is certain but death, taxes, and dirty dishes.” – Jill Fischer

And I would even revise that to:

 “In this world, nothing is certain but death, taxes, dirty dishes, and clothes that need putting away.”

Clutter Culprits

Taxes have to be done only once a year. Death happens only once in a lifetime.

But dishes get dirty and clothing gets taken off every single day. Sometimes two, three, or more times a day!

That means that several times every single day, dishes need to be washed and clothing needs to be put away–or not.

Dishes and clothing are two of the biggest Clutter Culprits. And they keep popping up like the moles in a whack-a-mole game.

I find myself resenting them.

Why? I think it’s because the satisfaction I get from cleaning up the kitchen after a meal, for example, is so fleeting. In just a few short hours, the next round of dishes is there waiting for me once again.

Same with putting my clothes away. Every evening before bed, I take off the clothes I’ve worn that day. Sometimes I have to change my clothes two or even three times a day, depending on what I’m doing.

It seems like every time I turn around, there are more clothes to be put away. It’s boring! It’s tedious!

It’s just so repetitive. And it doesn’t go away. Wherever I am, there they are.

I’m secretly waiting for the Declutter Fairy to arrive.

I’ve realized that my resentment about attending to these things comes in part from some vague fantasy that the Declutter Fairy will swoop in and do it. She keeps ghosting me. But I keep hoping, despite all evidence to the contrary.

A slow-growing habit

I have slowly come to recognize that dirty dishes and clothes that need putting away are two facts of life. They aren’t going away. The Declutter Fairy isn’t coming. I have come to accept that they actually fall in the category of brushing my teeth.

Somewhere along the way, I decided that brushing my teeth was not a task to be questioned. I do it regardless of whether I feel like it. Why? I don’t like the pain of getting a cavity filled. I also don’t like the fuzzy feeling on my teeth when I don’t brush them. And I don’t want to have bad breath.

I don’t think about these reasons anymore, but they are definitely what led to developing the habit of brushing them without question, which has become such a part of my daily routine that I can’t not do it. I don’t even consider not doing it.

Clothing, dishes, and brushing my teeth

My solution to my resistance around my dishes and clothing problem is this: I have put them in the category of brushing my teeth. They just have to be done.

What are my incentives?

I really, really don’t like it when I come into my kitchen, and there are dirty dishes or pots and pans sitting around. I really, really don’t like it when my clothes pile up in my bedroom.

So I try to remember vividly how much I dislike that experience when facing my resistance to putting my clothes away. I also try to remember how good it feels to walk into the room when it is clothing free.

And finally, I think to myself, this takes just a couple of minutes. What’s the big deal?

These are my ways of nudging myself to take the extra couple of minutes to take care of them—fold the clothes, put them away; wash the dishes, clean the counter.

And really, this is a relatively small output of energy relative to the pleasure I get when it’s done.

I cut myself some slack.

Unlike brushing my teeth, which I never miss, I occasionally don’t put my clothes away. I also occasionally leave dirty dishes in the sink or pots soaking if I’m running short on time. I’m not as strict with myself about these things as I am with my teeth. Maybe it’s because there’s no physical pain involved with the consequence of not doing it.

But it’s also because I don’t want to be so uptight about this habit that I drive myself crazy. I like to cut myself some slack sometimes, even if only to remind myself that I do have a choice. I don’t want to be over-driven by my need for tidiness to the point where it makes me miserable or tense.

Most-of-the-time-with-a-few-exceptions habit

After much observation of my experience around these parts of my daily life, I have cultivated a most-of-the-time-with-a-few-exceptions habit that supports both my need for a decluttered space as well as my need to relax and not be too rigid about it.

Finding what works for you, given who you are and what you have going on in your life, is the key. I encourage you to find yours.