Saving a little while washing dishes

Okay, so I don't always do the dishes like right after a meal. When I do get around to doing them, I fill the sink and soak the dishes for a few minutes. When I'm loading the dishwasher I don't turn the water back on. I just use the water already in the sink to scrub and rinse the dishes. I use the same water to clean my counters. So instead of letting the water run and pouring soap on a sponge repeatedly, I only use one sink full of water, and just the small amount of soap that went in it.