Okay…enough of the funny stuff.  Here are a couple of tips that might actually help:

1. Special spot for Glasses:

Make personalized coasters from 4″ tiles and place them near the sink. (Home Depot or Lowe’s have these) Teach your family to rinse thier glass and place it on thier coaster until the end of the day.  This strategy cuts down on the glass farm that can quickly grow out of control.  We have used the method for years and it works quite well.

Here’s the normal use for these useful items.

2. Use Your cabinets:

Who says the inside of your kitchen cabinets have to be unused space.  These days there are a variety of over-the-door type of bins and shelves for organizing. You can also install cork or paint the inside of a cabinet with blackboard paint for a handy spot for lists and those necessary, but annoying scraps of paper with important info on them.

Same product, different use–I like it!

3. Don’t overlook the Fridge:

Refrigerator magnets–I am okay with having the lived-in look on the side of my fridge, so I am a big fan of magnetized clips.  I like keeping the front   clean, but the side is up for grabs.  I store my bills to be paid, my grocery list, and my recipes for the week in this way.  I understand that this is a big no-no for some.  Out of sight is out of mind for me, so visibility is a plus for this girl.
4. Conquer Paperwork:  We are all familiar with these tips, yet I struggle to consistently follow good advice.

• Open mail at the recycle bin
• Take advantage of paperless options when possible
• Small plastic drawers are great for storing kid’s schoolwork
• Create an accessible and easy to use place for processing paperwork you can’t get to right away

• If you open it…shut it.
• If you drop it…pick it up.
• If you use it…put it away…NOW!  (The Swat-Method will work for this as well)

This method is very effective…if you can discipline yourself to be consistent.  There will be no pile clean up if you never resort to the ineffective pile-method to start with.  Ahh…there’s the rub, isn’t it? The discipline of consistency is so handy for many things in life isn’t it?  Maybe we will take a dive into that subject sometime.  It would be well worth a stop!

Good luck to all of you in your  battle of the kitchen counter!  Please chime in with other good ideas and websites. I know many of you have a few tricks up your sleeves that would be great to try!