My Trick For Staying On Task and Organized? Mise en Place Everything (Really. Everything.)

I was talking with a friend the other day, and she mentioned how hard it was for her to get in the habit of flossing. I floss every day without fail (brag), but I said I think that’s because I have a system where I take everything out of my medicine cabinet I’m going to need for my nighttime routine, then put it back as I use it. I have no idea when I started doing this, or if I did this because I was forgetting steps, or just because this is who I am, but after that conversation, i realized I use this method all the time. It is such a good way of remembering tasks, I have made it a practice in everything from cooking to skincare to refilling my pill case.

Everything laid out

Almost to the end

First, the nighttime routine. I initially thought this was my only example of the “take it all out, put it back as you use it” routine I have going. I have a medicine cabinet full of potions and elixirs, but I don’t use everything all the time. That’s probably why I started this method, so I could keep things straight and remember what else I needed to do. I have a small sink, so sometimes things get a little crowded, but I persevere. Everything pictured above is my nighttime routine, apart from the brown bottle (that’s hand soap). I put on eye cream, then snail slime, then CeraVe Moisture Cream (decanted in that blue bottle). Each gets put back in the cabinet when I’m done with it (the blue bottle stays so I can put lotion on my lips after I brush my teeth). Then I floss (back in the cabinet), brush my teeth (toothpaste back right away, brush back after brushing) and use mouthwash (yes, that gets put back too). Then I put a layer of CeraVe on my lips and while that soaks in I add some dry shampoo to my scalp. Then apply Aquaphor on my lips, around my eyes, nose, and sometimes chin. All that gets tucked back in the cabinet. The sink is cleared off, I’m ready for bed, and I didn’t miss a single step.

Your breakfast routine should have mood lighting

A big chunk of my morning routine is Metamucil, apparently

This morning I got up and realized I also use this little hack during my breakfast routine. I have the same breakfast every morning, and I take everything out and then work my way through the steps. I have a small amount of orange juice with Metamucil every morning (cannot recommend Metamucil enough. She’s the secret to my success), so that’s the OJ, glass, and the smaller container (I decant everything). All that gets put back where it belongs. The rectangular container has tea bags (TJ’s Irish Breakfast), and I put two of those in my mug of choice while my kettle boils (tea bags go back in the cabinet). I get out one or two breakfast balls and a protein bar, then once my tea has steeped, I take out the bags, add a bit of milk, put everything left away, and it’s breakfast time!

Nighttime on the left, morning on the right

This last example is maybe the most blatant, and I can’t believe I didn’t realize I was utilizing my “take it out, put it back” hack until NOW. I take a lot of pills, and I use a pill organizer. If you take both morning and night pills, this one is great, I have repurchased it twice (I dropped it and it broke). Every Sunday is refill day, where I grab my box of drugs and my pill organizer and sit down set up all my meds for the week. I take every container out of my drug bin and split them into nighttime and daytime, then I go through and refill each drug, putting the bottle back in the bin once I’m done. Some pills I take morning and night, so instead of putting that bottle back in the bin, I move it over to the morning side (I start my refill with night, I don’t know why!). The pill containers that are upside down in the bin are drugs I don’t take currently, or refills that I don’t need yet. It’s an easy way for me to know those don’t need to be taken out of the bin. I refill this container in just a few minutes, and it’s all because I have a virtually foolproof system.

You can utilise this system for so many more things. I will open new browser window and have a tab with each bill I need to pay, then work my way through each tab! I will take out all my makeup I want to wear and put it back as I use it. This is essentially mise en place, so of course it works for cooking! I don’t know if the “take it all out, put it away as you use it” method will work for you (or anyone!) but it is excellent for me. I stay on track, don’t forget any steps, and save tons of time and energy.