It should come at no surprise that raising kids in tandem with having a full time job is challenging. Like crazy challenging – but then again, if you are a parent you most likely already know this. Camille is quite the handful and a lot of the time, Jo & I struggle to maintain a clean and peaceful home. Camille is constantly exploring and since she doesn’t go to daycare, home is her playspace. There are many times that I snarkily say to Jo that everybody wants a clean house, but no one wants to clean it. I feel like it takes foreverrrrrrr to clean and it leaves little to no time to chill out and simply enjoy life. I’m permanently exhausted. At some point I just sat down and tried to suss out what is it that I’m missing? Why does it seem so impossible to have a tidy home with a toddler? What do efficient people know about cleaning up that I don’t? And here is what I found …
#1: Have a Vision
This might sound so extra, but take a moment and set a cleaning goal and determine how long you will work on the task. Having clarity about any task will improve your ability to clearly tackle it. Before you embark on the cleaning, know that not every cleaning task needs to be deep cleaned with each cleaning session. A couple of weeks ago, I created a post about deep cleaning as well as a spring-cleaning cheat-sheet for my email subscribers.
#2: Kondo-it
Y’all know how I feel about Marie Kondo. She’s my ace! To put it plainly, I greatly appreciate her methods because they are effective. I’m not suggesting that you engage on an entire tidying journey with each cleaning session, but before you start active cleaning, go around and pick up clutter. As you pick up the clutter, quickly decide if it is something that you should put away, toss, or donate. One thing I’ve learned is the less you have, the less you have to put away. Simple point, but true.
#3: Limit wasted time
If you are on a quest for cleaning efficiently, moving with a sense of urgency & purpose is imperative. One very manageable thing that you can do to reduce cleaning time is to gather all of your cleaning supplies in a cleaning caddy. You won’t waste time looking for products each time you need to use them. It’s also wise to carry a trash bag with you from room to room to quickly dispose of unwanted things.
#4: Monotask
It is well-known to scientists that it takes the human mind some time to properly adjust from task to task. When you monotask, you are giving more of your attention to one task as opposed to several. Aim to clean your entire home all at once. If you are dusting, dust all the rooms. If you are sweeping, sweep all the rooms. You get the gist of this. Monotasking is much more efficient than attempting to tackle room-by-room.
None of these suggestions are rocket-science, but they can be game-changers if you haven’t implemented them with fidelity before. Time is arguably our most valuable resource and you shouldn’t spend more time cleaning than need be. Cleaning efficiently is the way to go. Work smarter, not harder. You got this!
