Why You Can Clear Your Head By Making Your Bed

When I was younger I never really understood why my parents were so adamant about me making my bed and cleaning my room. And it was definitely not something I ever got good at before leaving home at 17.

As far as I was concerned it was just organised chaos, I knew where everything was and it also acted as an obstacle course in case anyone tried to attack me in my room (I wasn’t a Jiu Jitsu white belt back then). 

Then I remember watching Admiral McRaven’s famous graduation speech where he said: “If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.”

He mentioned how making your bed first thing in the morning means you start the day by already achieving something.

And small actions like this build momentum and lead to you achieving more throughout the day.

This really worked for me but other than just making me more productive, I also noticed that I would fall asleep so much better when my bed was made and room tidy.

Having a clean room made it easier to study, work from home and even read books. 

It’s like my mind was clearer and I didn’t have so many thoughts in my head. 

When has your external environment had a big impact on your state of mind?

Maybe your messy desk at work added to your overwhelm… maybe your dirty dishes at home distracted you during a team meeting… or maybe your flatmate’s clothes all over the apartment gave you anxiety…

Our external environments can play such a huge role when it comes to our well being. A clean environment can reduce stress, increase productivity, make you sleep better and can even boost your relationships.  

This is especially relevant in our current times, where so many of us are working from home within our own environments.

When our well being is low, we often go straight to thinking that something is wrong inside of us and forget to even consider what we could change on the outside. 

Jordan Peterson puts it very well: “Place your attention on the environment and not only does your environment improve, so do you.” 

So if you want to have a clearer state of mind, be more productive or even just sleep better, one of the first things you can do is get rid of the clutter in your external environment.

Next time you are feeling overwhelmed or stressed, start by making your bed, cleaning your room or your apartment. Tidy up your work space, do the dishes before your meeting, start looking for a new flatmate 😉 

Tidy house = tidy mind.

What’s the one thing you're going to tidy up this week that has been cluttering your mind?