Learn how to regain house cleaning motivation, set up a cleaning plan, and minimize distractions.
I bet you have some preconceived ideas that my house must be impeccably spotless and I have all the house cleaning motivation I’ll ever need, right?
You’d be wrong.
I hate house cleaning as much as you do, but I didn’t start to feel better about it just because I had to. What I needed were some simple new tools and habits to clean purposefully, and once you have those, you can sweep away procrastination in as much time as you decided to not dust your desk today.
1. You Don’t Have A Schedule
Having a cleaning schedule is a game changer! It tells you what you need to do and when, so you aren’t stuck doing everything on the weekend and losing your entire day off to play Cleaning Lady.
Here’s my best tips on creating a cleaning schedule you can actually stick to, plus a printable schedule you can post on your fridge to help you nail down the habit.
2. You Don’t Know How
Here’s the truth, you aren’t born knowing how to clean correctly. Unless you’ve been taught, you may not even know what the heck you’re supposed to do! Sure, you understand the dynamics of a broom and dustpan, and you know how Clorox wipes work, but there are so many great cleaning hacks out there!
Take some time on Pinterest one Sunday afternoon and find some good cleaning tips to teach you how to clean faster and more effectively. You can browse all my favorite cleaning tips in this Pin board.
3. You Wait Too Long
This one goes hand-in-hand with having a schedule. You probably hate cleaning because of the amount of time it takes to do it. Which makes sense if you only clean the house once a week or biweekly.
By cleaning more frequently, dust and grime won’t be able to pile up, so quick swipes of a microfiber cloth is all you’ll ever have to do.
4. You Do It All Yourself
Ouch, did that one hit a nerve? If you despise cleaning the house because your hubster and kiddos stare at their phones while you’re breaking a sweat, things need to change, Sista!
Get your spouse involved and split up the cleaning duties, and give the kids daily chores to take some of the workload off your shoulders.
5. You Don’t Have The Right Tools
You wouldn’t even attempt to build a bookshelf without the right tools, so cleaning your house is no different. You need the right cleaners for the various materials in your house, and the right tools for different spots.
Get yourself a vacuum with lots of attachment options, and replace that feather duster for a microfiber cloth. By using more efficient tools and supplies, your home will stay cleaner longer.
6. You’re Not Good With Time Management
It’s totally ok to admit this. Sometimes I’m not good with it either. Procrastination is a hard thing to overcome, and unless you’re able to overcome it, you’ll never get better with managing your time.
Next time you clean an area of your house, set a timer and see how long it takes to do that task without any distractions. By knowing the amount of time it actually takes you to clean the bathroom will help you factor that time into your schedule next week.
7. You Don’t Have The Right Storage Solutions
I’ve said this to so many clients before…you can’t clean up a room unless everything a place to be. It just can’t happen. The only way you’ll actually get your kids’ room clean is when everything in there has a designated spot.
Without a home for everything you own, you’re not really cleaning, you’re just moving things around. Invest in storage solutions and consider decluttering and purging the homeless items you don’t need or want anymore.
8. You Don’t Have Routines
If you’ve been to my blog before, you know how strongly I feel about routines. They keep you in check every single day and help you run like clockwork. Whether you already have routines or you’re just starting to build some, try adding in a few that will help keep your home neater.
For me, I fill the dishwasher and run it every night before bed, and unload it every morning before I go to work. I also straighten up the house at night and put away any out of place items. This ensures that it’s always semi-presentable when I come home from work so I can relax a bit before jumping into the madness of the after-school mom life.
You can get my tips on building routines here, and grab this worksheet to help you nail down your own.
9. You’re Not Consistent
Maybe you hard-core dust one week but the next week you just swipe over the main surfaces with a Swiffer duster. Or maybe you cleaned the baseboards that one time back in the spring and now it’s fall and you just happened to look down at caked-on dirt.
Consistency is what makes you hate cleaning a little less. If you always clean areas the same way every time, you won’t be tempted to cut corners and let things slide. Having a clean home is all about holding yourself accountable, and consistency is the best way to do that.
10. You’re Not Having Fun
Did I just say the word “fun” in a post about cleaning? Guess what, having fun while cleaning IS possible, and it’s not just basketball hoop laundry baskets and robot vacuums.
Next time you’re dragging your feet about starting your cleaning routines, try to add a little oomph to the process. Crank up some nostalgic music from your childhood, mix up a cocktail, close the blinds and do your best dance moves, use a timer and race a family member, or pop in your earbuds and listen to your favorite podcast.
Also, plan a fun reward for finishing the job. It always helps me to put a new magazine on the coffee table to motivate me to do my “chores.” When I finish, I can read it, but until I do, it just sits there staring at me saying “hurry up, hurry up!”
Need More Motivation?
Head over to my Instagram page here to watch the Stories I recorded all about getting motivated to do stuff you don’t want to do. You’ll get the gentle nudge to get started in my stern Southern accent. Haha!
And grab all my cleaning worksheets, printables, and inspiration in the Freebie Library here on the blog. Signing up is free and you’ll get instant access to everything I’ve created to help you be more Organized-ish!
Great tips. These suggestions as to why cleaning doesn’t happen and how to combat those tendencies are great! Consistency and routines are great, but I liked how you suggested to make it fun…let’s face it, most people don’t feel like it’s fun to clean, but to reward yourself more than just a shiny kitchen or spotless bedroom or whatever it is can be a great motivator!! Thank you Lela!
You’re welcome, Nathan! We don’t love cleaning, but we can dance like nobody’s watching all day long. I’m glad we could help you out too.
Wow… cleaning the home is something I procrastinate on all the time… the planning though is helping to get the things done is less time as I use to do it before, but I need to learn other stuff to tackle thanks for sharing the tip, I would be applying it!