I Started Treating My Closet Like A Fridge, And Now I Save So Much Time In The Morning
I have been meal prepping my lunches for years because I know it saves me from making bad food choices when I am hungry and tired in the morning. One day I was standing in my towel staring blankly at my clothes and I realized I had the exact same problem with my wardrobe. I was wasting so much mental energy every single morning trying to decide what to wear. I decided to apply that meal prep logic to my closet and it changed everything.
The Decision Fatigue Is Real
We all know that feeling of being stuck when we look at a full closet and feel like we have absolutely nothing to wear. It is exhausting to be creative and stylish at seven in the morning when you haven't even had your coffee yet. I realized I was losing twenty minutes of sleep just stressing about matching a top to a bottom every day. I wanted to start my day feeling calm instead of frantic and late.
Checking The Forecast First
My process now starts on Sunday evening by looking at the weather app for the whole week. There is nothing worse than picking out a great outfit in your head and realizing the next morning that it is pouring rain or freezing cold. I look at the temperature highs and lows for each day and let that guide me. It stops me from shivering at the bus stop or sweating through a sweater during a surprise warm spell.
Matching Clothes To Your Schedule
Once I know the weather, I look at my actual schedule. If I have a big presentation on Tuesday I know I need the blazer but if Friday is just paperwork I can wear my comfortable jeans. I realized that my outfit needs to support what I am actually doing that day and can make my day easier. Mapping my clothes to my specific activities means I never feel underdressed for a meeting or uncomfortable during a long day of running errands.
Don' Forget Accessories
This is the step where you have to be thorough to make it work. I do not just hang the shirt and pants together. I grab the specific underwear that works with those pants and the socks that match those shoes. I even drape the necklace or scarf I want to wear right over the hanger hook. If you leave out the accessories you will still end up scrambling in the morning to find the right earrings or watch.
Give It Its Place
You need a specific place to put these prepped outfits so they don’t get lost in the mix. I cleared out a small section at the very front of my closet just for my outfits for the week ahead. Some people use a valet hook on the door or a separate clothing rack in the bedroom. Having your outfits physically separated from the rest of your clothes creates a visual menu that makes it impossible to mess up in the morning.
The Freedom Of Grabbing And Going
The payoff was immediate and honestly kind of life changing. Now I wake up and I do not even have to think about what I want to wear. I just grab the hanger for Tuesday and put it on. That twenty minutes I used to spend panicking is now time I spend drinking coffee or actually eating breakfast. It removed a huge weight from my brain that I did not even realize I was carrying around.
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It might sound a little rigid to plan your outfits like a school lunch, but it is actually a form of self care. You are looking out for your future self by handling the hard work and decision making when you have the energy and time to do it. It makes the mornings feel smoother and lets you leave the house feeling put together. Give it a try next Sunday and enjoy hitting the snooze button one extra time on Monday morning.
Bliss Donahue-Power
