admin If a messy house, stresses you out then you need to start implementing some habits/routines into your life. As you might know by now, I follow the Flylady cleaning method which makes sure that you have routines in place, so that you can do zone cleaning method.
However, if zone cleaning is not your style and possibly prefer to clean your house once a week, I recommend that you have these habits/routines in place, so you can concentrate more on cleaning then on tidying up.
- Make Your Bed
Always make your bed….no exceptions. This makes your bedroom look clean and tidy. It will only take 2 minutes to make your bed…..so just do it.
2. Have a place for everything
Every household has a hot spot where the family leaves it’s keys, backpacks, mail etc. Designate an area, in your house where to place these items. Place some hooks to hang backpacks, a pretty baskets to place keys and bits and pieces and shoe rack. This will avoid having clutter running around the house.
3. Deal with paper clutter immediately
In the mail we can receive a lot of magazine, mail which end up as paper clutter. Deal with it immediately….as soon as you get your mail, recycle any junk mail and any mail that needs to be dealt with in a designated area.
4. Shine you Sink
This is the Flylady first step before starting zone cleaning. Always go to bed with a clean sink whether you wash dishes by hand or whether you have a dishwasher. If you have a dishwashes, put your dishes throughout the day and before going to bed run the dishwasher. If you don’t have a dishwasher, wash your dishes and put them in place. Waking up the next morning to a clean kitchen is so much better. Have your family help in putting their plate into the sink or dishwasher.
5. Clean as you go along
Whilst preparing your food, having a small bag so you can put food scraps in. As you go along in your food preparation, put your knives and dishes in the sink or dishwasher. Whilst the food is cooking start washing the items used and clean your countertops.
6. Do a laundry schedule depending on your family needs
Depending on your family needs, do laundry whether it is once a day or once every other day, this keeps you on top on your laundry and makes it manageable. Start folding the clothes immediately and avoid leaving a pile of clothes to be folded. The only pile allowed are for those clothes that need to be ironed.
7. Clean the bathrooms on a daily basis
I am not talking about deep cleaning, but using a wipe to quickly clean the bathroom surfaces. Put the products you use immediately after done, this avoid being left on the countertops. When leave things out, the bathroom will look untidy. The best way is to have a one touch system….avoid piling things on top of each other but just place them with one movement of the arm.
8. Clean after yourself
If you take something out, put it back in place when ready. If it takes less then a minute to put it away, then just do it. Your future self will thank you for it.
9. Have a cleaning routine
Whatever your cleaning style…….have a cleaning routine in place. Establish your routines according to your lifestyle. If you work outside the home and in the morning you are always rushing out of the door, do not put tons of things to do in your routine. A simple morning routine can be like this:
- Make bed;
- Take out trash;
- Put away breakfast dishes / empty dishwasher.
10. Never Leave a room empty handed
In whichever room you are, pick up one item that needs to be thrown away, or needs to be relocated. This will help putting things where they belong.
Things need not be perfect…..but better then they were before. It’s ok to have those off days where you don’t feel like doing anything, make sure to catch up on the following days.
Love
Strugglingmum xxx
