Mr. Life Manager

Dinner's ready. There's nowhere to eat.

Six steps. Finish with a wiped table, a seat and a place set for everyone eating, and room to sit down together and eat.

The table and the seats you need. That's the job. Leave the rest of the house alone. You'll need a trash bag, a cloth, and enough baskets or boxes to hold the loose items.

There's nothing to sign up for.

At the table? Start with what's in front of you.

Not home yet? Pick a time before your next meal at home. It takes about ten minutes.

  1. Throw away the obvious trash.

    Take wrappers, empty packaging, and other obvious trash off the table and into a bag. Leave anything you need to think about for step four.

    Removing the easy things first makes room to handle what is left.

  2. Take the dishes to the kitchen.

    Put dishes in the dishwasher or by the sink. Leave the kitchen cleanup for after dinner. Come back to the table.

    Tonight's job is making somewhere to eat. Washing every dish would turn this into a different job.

  3. Return things with an obvious home.

    Put away only the things with known homes that you can return in one quick trip. If you need to choose a home, leave that item for the basket. Come straight back.

    Putting away what already has a place is useful. Designing a new storage system can wait until the meal is over.

  4. Put the rest in one basket.

    Gather the remaining loose items into a basket or box. Use another container if it fills; keep each light enough to carry. Put it somewhere accessible, off the table, off the eating chairs, and out of the walkway. Leave decisions about its contents for after dinner.

    The basket holds unfinished work. It gives you a place to eat now; it does not mean the organizing is finished.

  5. Wipe the table.

    Wipe the space you need for the meal. Lift anything staying on the table and wipe underneath it.

    You are making a usable eating surface. The rest of the room can wait.

  6. Clear the seats and set your places.

    Move belongings off the seats you need and into the basket. Pull the chairs out and set the places for the people eating. Sit down. This job is finished.

    Being able to eat together is the result. A clear tabletop with nowhere to sit would leave the job unfinished.

Eat first.

The table is usable and everyone has a seat. That's enough for this meal.

The table is ready. I'm done.

The basket is still unfinished.

You made space for dinner. Later, the things in the basket need real homes so the table does not become their storage again.

For now, eat. Sorting the basket is a separate job for later.

mrlifemanager.com/dinner.html — make room to sit down and eat.
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