It can be challenging to keep up with the cleaning at home if you have a busy schedule, even more so if you also have to work. Kids, especially younger and rambunctious ones, can further complicate matters when you’re trying to focus on your job.
Fortunately, it’s not all that complicated to maintain cleanliness at home. With some strategising combined with the straightforward tips listed below, you can keep things spotless and orderly.
Clean Room-By-Room
Take the cue from commercial cleaning companies and do your job one room at a time instead of one task at a time. This makes things more efficient; it can even make you feel more accomplished—“I’ve cleaned the bedroom” certainly sounds better than “I’ve only swept the floor.”
For even more efficiency, prioritise cleaning based on how much or how often the room is used. Whether that’s the living room, home office, or kitchen, make sure it’s spick and span before you move on to the next space.
Classify Daily, Weekly, and Monthly Tasks
Sometimes, cleaning can feel like a literal chore simply because you’re trying to do everything in a single session. The thing is, you don’t have to and shouldn’t even attempt to accomplish all your tasks in one go. It’s inefficient and practically impossible to do a good job this way.
Instead, you need to learn how to classify your cleaning into daily, weekly, and monthly tasks. Some things absolutely have to be done daily: making the bed, doing the dishes, picking up clutter. Meanwhile, mopping the floor and scrubbing the toilet can be done weekly. Deep-cleaning tasks should be scheduled every one to two months, depending on how dirty things get.
For weekly tasks, assign a specific day for them and endeavour to accomplish on that day. What’s more, remember not to assign multiple weekly tasks in one day. Divide them throughout the week so they’re more manageable.
Put Things Back Where You Got Them ASAP
One of the biggest reasons your home looks messy is the abundance of clutter. Indeed, even things you actually need and use can be considered clutter if they’re not in the right place. Thus, make it a habit to put things away as soon as you’re done using them. Even something as simple as placing a pen back into the holder can have a big effect on the amount of tidying up you’ll have to do later on.
For the best results, get everyone in the family to participate. You can also make things easier by placing “put away” containers in accessible areas. Then, at the end of the day, you can work together and return the items in these containers back to their original locations.
Keep Your Cleaning Tools Within Reach
Cleaning takes a lot of time. If you don’t know where your cleaning tools and supplies are, then it would take even longer. For higher efficiency, it’s a good idea to store all your cleaning needs within easy reach and in the area they’re supposed to be used. Toilet brushes and cleaners should be inside the bathroom, while dishwashing soap should be placed on the sink.
In the same way, you should stow cleaning appliances where you need them the most. Do you have more carpets on the second floor of your home? Then it’s best to keep the vacuum cleaner there. By keeping things more accessible, you’ll save not just time but also energy.
Assign Your Kids Some Tasks
Even the smallest child can make a big mess. While some may be more complicated for them to handle on their own (e.g., wiping off spills), you can certainly teach and ask them to help. There are also simple chores that they can do independently, such as putting away toys and books.
Early on, you may have to assist them in doing these simple tasks. However, these are easy enough to learn and your kids will master them pretty soon. Remember the positive reinforcement so you can encourage positive behaviour.
“Clean Enough” Can Be Good Enough
There are times when you simply don’t have the energy to do things after a busy day doing your job, and that’s perfectly fine. You can’t keep your home 100% dust- and clutter-free all the time, so be more forgiving of yourself. If all you were able to do is sweep the floor and straighten your shelves, don’t feel bad and simply reschedule some of your tasks.
The key here is to do even just a little at a time. This way, the cleaning jobs don’t pile up and seem even more intimidating or complicated to do.
Of course, if you have the money to do so, you can also hire professional cleaners (as long as there are no restrictions in place). Just make sure that they’re properly vetted, and have the tools and experience to do the job right.
If you’d rather do things yourself, however, the above-mentioned tips can help you manage your time and keep a clean house with minimum effort.