My military dad raised me with this simple European approach to organizing – it instantly made cooking in my tiny kitchen easier

In my small rental home, when the organization goes sideways in my small kitchen, functionality is quickly lost. Recently in need of a better system, I recalled the German concept of Ordnung Muss Sein, which I learned about as a child through my military dad.

This famous phrase, translating to ‘there must be order’ though now somewhat of a cultural cliche, speaks to the strict adherence to rules that many Germans live by, including my parents when they lived in Berlin.

Having grown up with this famous phrase, I have realized that it is, inadvertently, one of the best decluttering methods – and after using it, I found it instantly made my tiny, cluttered kitchen a fun and functional space once more.

What is Ordnung Muss Sein?

Dated back to the mid-19th-century, nowadays the proverbial saying Ordnung Muss Sein (there must be order) relates to order in one’s private life, relating to hard work, fulfilling obligations, and honesty.

It has become so ingrained in German culture that where we would ask if someone is okay, the Germans ask “Alles in Ordnung?” – Is everything in order?

How I use it in my home

While my ex-military father previously applied these values to my school work and academic career, I have found that it is a fantastic question to ask yourself for home organizing, becoming one of my favorite unconventional organizing methods to ensure that my home is practically perfect when it needs a deep reset.

Unlike the French L’art de Ranger, which is more akin to slow decluttering, Ordnung Muss Sein allows me to be more ruthless when decluttering, making it especially useful for practical spaces such as organizing a small kitchen.

Following in the footsteps of the trademark precision of the Germans, I decluttered a small kitchen by setting myself a strict list of rules to establish what ‘order’ in this space would look like:

1. Anything that is not used for six months needs to go
2. There is no time to be sentimental in the kitchen
3. Everything must be easy to grab in under 30 seconds

Sticking strictly to these decluttering golden rules made the process of clearing out and organizing a kitchen ten times easier. Every time I picked up an object, be it my blender or a spatula, I was forced to assess it based on its ‘Ordnung’ (order) in my space.

For example, when decluttering my utensil drawer, I came across several things I had not used since I put them in the drawer over 12 months ago, and so I was able to declutter without a second thought. The result was a drawer half-full of essential items that I could quickly get things out of in under 10 seconds, achieving two of my rules.

There is no denying that this ordered approach takes a great deal of self-discipline to follow, especially when it comes to decluttering sentimental items. For instance, I have a framed photo on my kitchen counter that started off as a joke in my second student house and has followed me to my current home.

However, one of my rules was that there was no space for sentimentality, and it served no purpose other than getting in the way of the outlets. So, into the decluttering pile it went.

Establishing what order looks like to you is an essential part of this Ordnung Muss Sein organizing method. As Lisa Harris, professional home organizer and owner of Organzie with Lisa, explains, ‘I see every day with our clients how overwhelming it can feel to live in a cluttered, disorganized space.

'Order, to me, means a space(s) where the individual feels at ease knowing everything is in its 'home.' It's a sense of satisfaction and a confidence that they are in control of their space and that this space is not in control of them, which is often the case.

'Establishing order in a home is important because, as busy families and individuals, when there are systems in place, the daily activities in a home are more efficient, smooth, and stress-free. Time isn't wasted looking for things, and oftentimes repurchasing the item they can't find.'

Using Ordnung Muss Sein around the house

I haven’t only used this method in my kitchen, either. It has also come in handy when decluttering a bathroom and an attic at my parents' house. For each space, I set a different set of rules, although they often follow a similar pattern.

I established that ‘order’ in an attic would involve everything having to be in labeled storage, with items not used in the last 12 months a contender for decluttering. In the bathroom, products that I hadn’t used in the last three months had to go, while linens had to pass a ‘scratchiness’ test before being put back into drawers. It is a perfectly customizable system.

It is worth noting that nowadays, the phrase is only one side of a proverbial coin. “Ordnung ist das halbe Leben. Unordnung die andere Hälfte.” (Order is half of life. And disorder is the other half).

So, while order is particularly important to a tidy, easy-to-maintain home, it is important to remember that you cannot have one without the other, especially in a house that is actually lived in and used regularly.

The full phrase reminds me that it is okay to let things slip on occasion – for mugs to pile up by the sink or for counters to become obscured by the weekly grocery shop waiting to be put away – so long as order comes back around in time.

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Meet the expert

Lisa Harris

Lisa is a professional home organizer, public speaker, and member of NAPO (The National Association of Productivity & Organizing).

Following this disciplined approach to decluttering is a great way to make letting go of stuff easier if you are stuck in a decluttering rut and are desperate to get out of it.

I would suggest it for people more accustomed to decluttering, however, as the ruthlessness can be tricky when you are tidying when feeling overwhelmed.