Tip 1: Put On Some Music:
There are many proven benefits of music for stress relief, and music is even used to promote wellness in the form of music therapy. Music can actually calm you down or energize you, depending on what type of music you choose. You can harness the stress relieving and energy-inducing powers of music to help your cleaning efforts, so that you’re actually less stressed (or at least no more stressed and tired) when you’re finished, plus you’ll get a boost from the great feelings you get from your cleaner space.
Tip 2: Pare Down and Organize:
Toss or donate everything that you don’t need or love. Find a place for everything that’s left, so it’ll be easier to clean up. And don’t buy new things unless you absolutely need them. These simple guidelines will leave you with less stuff to clutter up your space, and make cleaning quicker and easier.
Tip 3: Make Small, Consistent Goals:
When creating new habits of any type, it’s good to make realistic goals, work toward them consistently, and reward yourself for even the smallest progress. This is also true with cleaning. If you set small, doable cleaning goals, such as 30 Second Chores, or the Daily Cleaning List that I’ll tell you about in a minute, you won’t get overwhelmed by the work.
Tip 4: Enjoy Your Results:
Clean a little bit every day, and you just may have the magic formula for a cleaner, stress-free living environment. Further your rewards and keep your motivation up by enjoying your home when your work is done! If you clean your bathroom, give yourself a regular home spa experience so you can really appreciate all of your hard work. Enjoy a candlelit dinner in your kitchen, burn essential oils to enjoy aromatherapy, and decorate in a way that really makes your heart smile. Once you get used to having your home as a sanctuary from stress instead of another cause of it, you’ll probably be hooked!While these general guidelines can help you make cleaning less of a stressful experience, I’ve found some very useful and intelligent resources on About’s Housekeeping Site as well. Let me share these housekeeping tips with you so you can learn how to clean specific areas in your house more quickly and easily, know what to clean for maximum order every day, and find more resources to create a space that will continually soothe you from the stresses of daily life.
- 30 Thirty Second Chores:
Here are 30 chores you can do in 30 seconds, a handy list to be aware of if you’re left on hold, are waiting for something, or just want to get a sense of accomplishment toward the goal of a simple, organized home on days when you’re exhausted. (Or, for a real sense of accomplishment, go through the whole list and feel like you’ve gotten tons done in only 15 minutes!) Some are more relevant to an organized living environment (toss junk mail, clean out the fridge, declutter a small area) than others (dust the t.v.), but this resource has many suggestions to help you keep your home clean with minimal effort. - 10 Shortcuts for Household Chores:
Cleaning your house may seem like mindless work, but here are 10 smart ways you can make the work less consuming. - 15 Minute Clean-Ups for Every Room:
You want to spend the least amount of time cleaning as is humanly possible, right? That’s what these articles are all about. Find quicker, more efficient ways to clean bedrooms, bathrooms, living areas and (especially) the kitchen, and find yourself less drained by clutter and find your time less drained as well! - Daily Chore List:
The daily cleaning list is probably the most important offering from the Housekeeping Site, as it tells you what needs to be done daily for your house to remain clean and uncluttered, explains why these things need to be done on a daily basis, and even offers additional resources to help, if you want them. (See also: the Weekly, Monthly, and Seasonal Chore lists, which offer similar resources for items that need to be cleaned. I find them useful, but not as vital for stressed-out and busy people as the Daily Cleaning List.)
