Let me be honest- I hate cleaning. With a passion.
Back when I quit my job to stay home with the kids, I knew that there would be some priority shifting. Work productivity goals were replaced by kids’ reading goals. Team meetings became parent teacher conferences. And maintaining my workspace went from a desk to an entire house. Since home was my job now, I needed to figure out a workable game plan for dealing with my most hated tasks.
[Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. Please see below for more details]
Getting Help. I hired a cleaning lady. I had never done this before and was always envious of the people that did. But with finances tight it seemed like such an extravagance. But I found a great deal on Groupon for a four hour cleaning. It was awesome. She took care of the things I was dreading (have you ever tried to degrease a cooktop after letting it go? It’s a beast).
While I played with the kids and read a book, she cleaned my house for a decent price. And it was worth every cent. Now that the house was freshly cleaned, it was easier for me to do the upkeep. I was starting fresh. And that made it more palatable for me to get to work. Though greeting the task with joy was still a struggle..
Changing my Attitude. Half the battle is how you think of something. If I kept approaching my kitchen with a Clorox wipe and a bad mood, things were not going to get any better. So I stopped thinking of cleaning as something I was forced to do. I took the petty resentment of every mess made by a family member, the annoyance at having to spend time on something so yucky and menial, and the plain old disgust of getting down and dirty with, well, dirt and put it away.
I chose to switch my perspective to something that was more positive. I was serving my family. By keeping the house clean it was safe for my kids to play. No more freaking out when someone ate a Cheerio off the floor (okay, minor freak out, but at least I now knew it was only an hour old as opposed to 2 days old). I knew that their hands weren’t covered in dust when they ran them over the shelves. And that the carpet was freshly vacuumed when they were having a good pout and planking on the upstairs hallway.
I created a relaxing place for my husband to come home to. He loves to cook and the counters were now clear and clean for him to create. The house smelled nice when he walked in and there were no toys to dodge from the front door to the living room. (Most days. Life happens, you know?).
And I was being a good steward of our home. Things break less when they’re cared for. When you keep up on the little things, they keep from turning into big things. I know after letting the laundry slide for a few weeks, tackling that was a pain (literally!). I spent so many hours leaning over as I sorted, folded, and put away clothes that I wanted to cry. Preferably for a masseuse.
Create a Schedule. In the past I would have one dreaded day a week where I would try to accomplish every task on my list. It was not fun. So I decided to try breaking it up each day. At first I had doubts since now I would be cleaning every day which was surely going to put a damper on my entire week.
But it turned out to work really well for me. I broke up the basic tasks, like cleaning the kitchen, the bathrooms, mopping, laundry, and vacuuming, and divided them between the days of the week. By spreading it out, I knew that once that mop was put away or the kitchen was clean I was now done for the day. And knowing that it was one and done, I felt both accomplished and relieved.
I created a cleaning calendar that you might find helpful. Obviously what you need to do and on what day will be specific to your home and family. I, for instance, needed to do laundry on Saturdays so there would be clean clothes for my husband and kids at the beginning of their work and school weeks. And remember to factor in a day off. I always left Sunday and Monday free of cleaning. Sunday was my rest day and Monday was just a nice bonus so I could start the week with a smile.
Do the Worst First. Maybe you’ve read the book by Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!: 21 Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time. It helped reshape the way I prioritize my day. The title is based off a quote from Mark Twain, basically saying that if the first thing you do in the morning is eat a frog, chances are that’s as bad as it’s going to get.
With that in mind, I tackle my cleaning as early in the day as I can. While the kids eat breakfast before school, I’ll work on the kitchen. If I have extra time during my morning routine before the kids get up, I’ll take care of the mopping. By lunch, the worst part of my day is done and I can look forward to it getting better from there. It really helped my outlook and enthusiasm to take care of this least favorite task first.
Don’t get me wrong, I still don’t like cleaning. But by breaking it up into manageable pieces, getting it done early on, and approaching it with a positive attitude, I’m able to take care of the household chores with some grace. And who knows, with the kids getting older, I may soon be able to confidently delegate some of these tasks to my little cleaning apprentices. Yay, motherhood!
What are some of your greatest cleaning struggles? Do you have any useful tips and tricks to add? Let me know in the comments!
Need to turn inspiration into action? Ready, Set, Go!
1. Assess what needs to be done and whether you can realistically get it done. If not, seek help from the rest of the family or a professional.
2. Put on the rubber gloves and take the chip off your shoulder. If negative feelings are dragging you down, find a more positive outlook to frame the service that you are providing to your loved ones and yourself.
3. Set up a schedule that you can live with and stick to so that the work you’ve gotten done so far isn’t just a flash in the pan.
4. Do the hardest stuff first if you can so that the rest is less intimidating. And maybe reward yourself after getting the worst part done. You deserve it!
[Disclaimer: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a commission, at no additional cost to you. All opinions are my own and I never recommend anything I haven’t used myself and loved.]
Leave a Reply