Make Your Bed, Son! It’s Good for You!

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Remember when we were kids, and our parents would say things like “I’m asking you to do this because it’s good for you. You may not understand it now, but someday you will.” And as kids, we’d come up with ridiculous things to say, only to find out that our parents are right as we were growing up. (Talk about how kids hated naps and sleeps, only to miss them when they grow older!)

One habit that our parents were trying to forge into our system as kids is the habit of making one’s beds. It’s not just because they wanted to teach you responsibilities, or just so that house looks tidy. They may not know this but there are additional benefits to enforcing the simple habit of making one’s bed, even for grown-ups.    

So, son (or daughter), why is it good for you to make your bed? Continue reading to find out!

Image by: Alan KO

1. It’s About the Feels

We wake up either on the good side of the bed or the bad side of it. Either way, we have a decision to make. Are we going to be dragged by how we are feeling or are we going to take charge? Take control, son! There is a sense of truth to the poem “Invictus”

Our feelings may have a strong hold on us. It’s easier to go with the natural flow of our emotions, but we don’t have to. The psalmist who wrotePsalm 119:112 got the gist of this nature within us. You don’t incline your heart to something that’s natural to you a.k.a. your feelings.

“I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes always, even unto the end.” 

How can we conquer our feelings to better manage ourselves? One simple yet effective way to get started is the habit of making one’s bed. Little, simple steps at a time. You won’t get to a million dollars without first making a dollar. A war is won by winning battles.

The simple task of making your bed gives you a sense of achievement and a sense of pride. Conquer this first task in the morning and see how it makes you feel.

According toPsychology Today, Hunch.com surveyed 68,000 people on the topic of bed and psychology. The results show that 27% of the correspondents made their bed, and 71% of those people can say that they are happy with their lives. As for the people who don’t make their beds, a disturbing 62% of them admitted to being unhappy. Wouldn't it be a good idea to add up to that 71% of the 27% who are happy and has the habit of making their beds?

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 2. It's about the Chain Reaction

Now that we know that making your bed gives you a seemingly small sense of achievement at first, you can expect its impact on your next tasks. You know how when you play games and you got a perfect score for 2-3 times, you get your score multiplied? Yes, it activates a multiplier! And when it gets activated, oh the thrill!  You feel good and are encouraged to do better along the way (until you forget to breathe out of pressure!).

Start building your achievement multiplier by making your bed. The seemingly small sense of achievement that takes about 2 minutes every morning can be multiplied as you go about your day. Don’t forget to breathe to keep the streak, though!

As we have written on the previous post, Admiral William McRaven said something similar on his commemorative speech at the University of Texas last 2014.

Image by: Constantine Dyadyun

3. It's About De-stressing

While seeing your bed all made up after doing so can give you a sense of achievement, seeing it when you return home can give you a sense of reward. You’ve gone through your day. Battles have been won. Challenges have been overtaken. Victory is almost beyond reach! Or not?

Whatever the case is, going home to a made up bed gives you some good vibes. You know how when you step inside your hotel room when you take a vacation, you feel this welcoming vibe? The bed is all made up, it’s tidy, it’s uncluttered, like the rest of the room, and it makes your feel great overall.

Here is what Andrew Mellen advised on Huffingtonpost.com on the correlation of stress and clutter:

It feels great seeing order. Our hearts are set on perfection. One crooked line and we comment about it. One stain on a white cloth (or on one’s personality) and we comment about it too. Seeing something off can give us a sense of unease. Imagine walking to a cluttered room. Even if it’s your room, the room that you sleep in every single day, the room that you see and return to each and every day, if it’s cluttered, there’s some sense of unease. If you feel the pressures and stress of life, and your room is as chaotic as you see your life, then you might be wanting to dwell in chaos. But you don’t have to!  

Take down this stressor: a cluttered bed. Sometimes, you just need a grip on yourself. Start by having a grip on your room. It’s where you physically take refuge to recharge.

You won’t believe what best-selling author and happiness researcher, Gretchen Rubin found out:

“When I was researching my book on happiness, this (making one’s bed) was the number one most impactful change that people brought up over and over,”

How about we beat stress at the end of the day with a made up bed and a smile so that we can wake up refreshed the next day?

We hope these points gave you insights to consider making your bed (and decluttering too) every morning! Now, make your beds, sons and daughters of the world because it’s good for you!

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