What the kitchen taught me about organization

The Daily Drip

There's a French statement in cooking that refers to organization and purpose.

"Mise en place."

It basically means "everything in its place."

For many of us, organizing our life and work can be challenging--both the physical and the mental components.

For me, I tend to build and use systems to help me keep my work, life, and mind organized.

There are plenty of tools you already know about:

• Calendars.

• To-do lists.

• Reminders.

But for some reason, not everyone uses them.

There are also tools that you may have heard of, but that you might not think actually impact your productivity or life.

Here are some even lesser-used/considered tools for mise en place.

• Meditation.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

• Minimalism.

I bet you didn't see those coming.

Whether it's your physical stuff or your thoughts, there are times and places for them. It's up to you to be the owner of your space and your brain. Having less stuff and better control of letting go of thoughts should be an obvious benefit.

It's up to you to keep your kitchen in order. Else, you'll find waste, delay, and unnecessary frustration.

Consider setting up your life and your work with mise en place. Focusing on the essentials and letting go of what's not is part of this process.

It's Saturday and so for many of you, today is a great day to recalibrate and reset.

Go get 'em.