Originally Published February 13th, 2019

“How do you fix the world? Start by cleaning your room.”

Jordan Peterson, one of my favorite intellectuals, has this saying— “Clean Your Room“.

In the literal sense—yeah, if you’re a slob like me, clean your room.

But there’s a deeper meaning.

“My sense is that if you want to change the world, you start from yourself and work outward, because you build your competence that way.” —Peterson

Don’t go around trying to help others when you’re a hot mess.

It’s like the oxygen masks on a plane, you have to put your own mask on before helping other people.

It’s come to my attention that I am indeed a slob and I need to put some work into sorting out the chaos.

So I’ve began the exhaustive task of organizing my creative space.

Here are a few reasons why cleaning your room is a good idea.

Control

Cleaning your room is one of the simplest ways to gain control over your life.

No matter your situation—you can take control of your surroundings.

Maybe your garage was featured in an episode of Hoarders. Maybe you just have some clutter sitting around on your desk.

Start small—clean one corner of one room. Go from there.

Purpose

When you put your room in order, not only do you start gaining control over your life—you give a purpose to your surroundings.

Let’s say I take the time to clean off my desk and put things in order. I simplify and delete as much clutter as possible. I erase all distractions. I set up the space for a purpose—writing.

Now when I’m at my desk—I can write.

Once I have a space that’s specifically for writing—I can learn how to write, when to write, what to write—etc.

The snowball begins to roll.

Discipline

“Discipline equals freedom.” —Jocko Willink

Cleaning your room requires discipline. It asks something of you. You must learn how to eliminate clutter, let go of things, arrange your belongings so that they become functional. Otherwise you’ll be out of alignment—you won’t be happy.

As you practice discipline one room at a time, it will begin permeating other areas of your life. You’ll have more discipline at your job, with your diet, at the gym—etc.

“Having discipline and creating restraints on yourself is another way to spur on creativity.”

I find that with fewer tools, i.e. camera lenses—I’m forced to think more creatively.

Change the world gang—clean you room.

Thanks for reading.

-Tim

For more info check out this video: Jordan Peterson—Clean Your Room.