Author: Veronica Booth
Edited By: Julia Fisher
If the new episode of Survivor or the comfort of your couch keeps you from hanging up your coat and wiping off the counter, we have some tips.
Let’s be honest here: cleaning and putting things away is not hard. Children can do those things. The difficult part is motivating yourself to do them. Ultimately, we often let mental blocks keep us from having a neat, clean home.
Luckily, we can use mental tricks and clever hacks to keep our homes tidy without feeling like cleaning is our full-time job. Let’s trick our brains into thinking we’re not really cleaning when we are. Consider this your guide to keeping your home clean as an admittedly lazy human (just like us).
Drink Lots of Water
How could being hydrated possibly make your home tidy? I know this seems weird, but trust me, it can work. If you drink tons of water throughout the day, you’ll have to head to the restroom more.
Every time you get up to use the bathroom, take something out of place with you and put it away. If clutter is your main issue, this trick can do wonders to tidy your house without you noticing. If you put one item back in the proper place every time you head to the toilet and do so ten times a day, your home will be sparkling clean in no time.
Never Leave a Room Empty-Handed
This rule goes hand in hand with drinking lots of water. When there is clutter throughout your home, every time you move from one room to another, it’s a chance to reduce the clutter.
Are you going into your bedroom to grab your book? Bring the hoodie lying on the couch back to your closet. Are you going to the kitchen to grab a snack? Bring the water glass that’s been by your bed. You get the idea, and it won’t feel like you’re actively cleaning.
Just Do One Thing
Many people feel overwhelmed by all the decluttering and cleaning they have to do. You might freeze when you realize it would take hours, if not days, to do everything on your cleaning list.
The solution to this is to do one thing. Come on, you can do one thing, right? If you have a list, do the first thing on it, no matter what it is. Tomorrow, do the second thing. Take it one chore at a time, one day at a time, and it won’t be so daunting. You might even wind up doing two things — can you imagine?
Stay in Motion
A body in motion stays in motion, so we recommend decluttering and cleaning when you’re already up and about. When you get home from work, you probably flit around the house, greeting your dog, putting your bag down, changing your clothes, and whatnot.
Instead of plopping onto the couch after all that, take on one of your chores. To harken back to our previous advice, just do one thing before you sit down. Trust us, the odds of you getting up to clean after hunkering down are low.
Make Your Bed Every Morning
It’s frustrating when your house always feels messy — not dirty, just messy. A cluttered home is distracting and stifling. It’s scientifically proven that untidy spaces block our focus and mental comfort.
That’s probably why you’re here looking for easier ways to declutter. Your bed is likely one of the largest pieces of furniture in your home, so an unmade bed is glaring. Unless you have a mountain of throw pillows and three layers of sheets, making your bed should take less than 60 seconds and make the space feel substantially tidier.
Never Wear Outdoor Shoes Inside
Just don’t do it, please. Make taking your shoes off at the front door a strict habit. You wouldn’t stroll through your kitchen in those shoes if you stepped in dog waste. Well, that’s basically what you’re doing when you leave outdoor shoes on.
Leave shoes at the door, preferably on a designated mat or shoe rack, to keep your home cleaner and healthier. This will reduce bacteria, dirt, sand, and more, keeping your floors inherently cleaner.
Clean the Shower With Your Towel
To be fully transparent, we borrowed this idea from Martha Stewart, so you know it’s clever. After every shower or bath, use your bath towel to wipe down the tub and shower. Wiping it while wet prevents water stains and mildew, so you won’t have to clean those things later.
You can do the same thing with your sink. When you finish brushing your teeth or washing your face, use the hand towel to wipe down your sink and the surfaces around it. Doesn’t this mean more laundry? Yes, but that’s a good thing, and we’ll get to why soon.
Don’t Create Clutter
The best way to have a clutter-free home is to avoid creating clutter in the first place. This means you should avoid lazily putting things down in random places. We know this one is tough, but it makes a world of difference when it comes time to clean.
If you can avoid tossing your rain jacket on the couch and just hang it up in the closet, it’s one less thing to deal with tomorrow. This goes for everything else in your home, from the book you just finished to the chapstick on the coffee table.
Clean (And Soak) as You Cook
If dishes are your Mt. Everest of cleaning, don’t let them pile up. If something needs to bake or simmer for more than a few minutes, take that time to tackle the accrued dishes. Even if you don’t finish them all, one is better than nothing.
Furthermore, we recommend filling all dishes with soap and water the second they go into the sink. This reduces the time and effort it takes to scrub them clean.
Do Daily 10-Minute Clean-Ups
Some people have hour or day-long cleaning sessions, but that’s not for everyone. If the idea of cleaning for hours is what stops you from starting, then just do 10 minutes every day. However, the key is to do it every day.
If you can manage the daily 10 minutes, you’ll rack up over an hour of cleaning time each week. Best of all, once you start, you’ll likely wind up doing more than ten minutes.
Do Laundry Every Other Day
This rule is somewhat flexible, but the goal is to do small loads of laundry as often as possible. Some people recommend daily laundry, but we’ll let you decide the best strategy based on your household size.
This makes folding clean laundry less overwhelming, and you’ll never run out of your favorite clothes. Since your washer won’t be loaded to the brim with clothes, that leaves room to wash other items, like bath towels, bath mats, hand towels, kitchen towels, dog collars, and other often-forgotten linens.
Buy Easy-To-Clean Furniture
Set yourself up for success by buying furniture and other products that are easy to clean. Materials like plastic, laminate, porcelain tile, marble, resin, and quartz are among the easiest, while hardwood and glass are among the hardest.
Choosing surfaces that naturally look cleaner and easier to clean will reduce your workload considerably. There will be less stains, spots, grime, and dust. You also won’t need to worry about damaging easy-to-clean surfaces with your cleaning solutions.
Clean Your Floors Daily
Cleaning your floors every day probably sounds like way more work than doing it once a week, but it’s actually not. A brisk sweep or sloppy vacuum once a day will keep the floors clean at all times.
When you clean your floors promptly, there’s less time for all the dirt and debris to move throughout the house as you walk around. Plus, you won’t need to commit to long, effortful floor-cleaning sessions.
Wipe Surfaces After Each Us
Like cleaning your floors daily, wiping surfaces after every use means less thorough cleaning down the line. While we recommend using a wipe or paper towel, you can be lazy and just wipe breadcrumbs and other dry messes away with your hands.
For example, if you spill tomato juice on the counter, it will take three seconds to wipe it up if you do it immediately. If you wait, it will dry, and you’ll need a strong cleaning solution and more elbow grease to remove the stain.
Store Cleaning Supplies Strategically
If you have to walk down two flights of stairs to get the disinfectant for the upstairs bathroom, you’re less likely to get the job done. Make your life easier by storing cleaning supplies in the areas where you’re most likely to use them.
There’s no reason all your cleaning supplies need to be in the same cabinet. Keep cleaning supplies in bathrooms, the kitchen, your bedroom closet, your desk drawer, and anywhere else that makes sense. Also, don’t be afraid to buy multiples of the same product to store in various spots.
Fill Empty Time With Cleaning
If you can clean during those awkward pauses in your life, you can get an impressive amount of work done. Do a little cleaning during commercial breaks, while you wait for the kettle to whistle, while your dog spends time in the backyard, or while your video game loads.
Whenever you find yourself twiddling your thumbs for a minute, find a small cleaning task you can complete. It could be as simple as straightening your shoes by the door or hanging up your jacket.
Utilize Easy Storage Solutions
If you make storing things easier, it’ll cut down on clutter. While we love an organized drawer and neat closet, haphazardly stuffing things into these areas is better than leaving them out on the counter.
Instead of intricate and inconvenient storage solutions, get big hampers, spacious baskets, and large bins you can toss things into. Is this the most elegant solution? No. Is it effective? Very.
Follow a Minimalist Aesthetic
Even the prettiest decor can feel like clutter if there’s too much of it. If you have lots of knick-knacks, trinkets, and decorations, reducing your decor might make your home feel tidier.
Maximalism and rustic aesthetics are not ideal for people who dream of a crisp, clean-looking home. It’s not that they can’t be tidy, but they’re harder to keep neat. So, opt for minimalist decor and furniture styles to create that sleek look (without actually cleaning).
Spot-Clean ASAP
Time is of the essence when it comes to cleaning, so don’t put off stains and spills. We don’t care if it’s on your couch, sweater, or carpet; get to it immediately.
Most stains are easy to clean if you do it right away. However, if they sit and marinate on the fabric, they become stubborn and permanent. We recommend investing in a decent stain remover to make spot cleaning easier and more effective.
Give All Items a Home
How can we define clutter? It’s essentially items that are out of place. Clutter isn’t dirty or disgusting; it’s just items hanging out in limbo. You can avoid clutter by ensuring every belonging has a designated space to “live” when not in use.
Whenever something new enters your home, whether a recently bought candle or a present from a friend, assign it a home as soon as possible. If something doesn’t have a home, consider getting rid of it.
Schedule a Weekly “Declutter Hour”
If keeping things in their proper place right away feels next to impossible, an alternative is to schedule a weekly decluttering hour. It should be a scheduled slot, such as Saturday at 10:00 AM or Sunday at 6:00 PM.
Choose a time when you don’t have anything going on, and commit the hour to returning everything to its home. You can stop when the hour is over, even if there is still clutter. The first week will be the worst, but over time, there will be less and less clutter to manage.
Have a Running Donation Bin
With so much waste in the world, we understand if you’re unwilling to throw away a perfectly good pair of jeans simply because you don’t like them anymore. If you like to donate these items, that’s great. It doesn’t mean they should become clutter, though.
Items on their way to the thrift store can also have a home. Designate a box, bin, basket, or bag for items you want to donate. Ideally, you should empty your donation bin once a week but no less than once a month.
Consolidate Clutter in Limbo
In a perfect world, all our houses would be clutter-free, and none of us would even know what clutter is. Sadly, we live in this world, so clutter happens. If you have belongings that don’t have a home and can’t find a home for them just yet, put them in “limbo.”
You can designate an area, such as a closet shelf or spare table, as your limbo space. This is where things go when you don’t know where they go. Instead of keeping these items throughout the house, they’ll all go to this place until you decide where they will live.
Sort Your Mail at the Mailbox
Paper clutter might be the most annoying clutter. You can avoid it by sorting your mail while standing at your mailbox. Rather than grabbing your stack of spam letters and dropping them on your counter, you can toss them out before they enter the house.
Sure, this means you have to stand outside for a minute or two, but that’s a minute or two you won’t spend decluttering later. Funny enough, we often find that every item is junk mail, so we get to enter the house blissfully empty-handed.
Invest in a Robot Vacuum
Step into the future and buy a robot vacuum that will keep your house clean for you. Most of us don’t have the budget for a housekeeper or weekly cleaner, and an automatic vacuum is probably the next best thing.
We won’t pretend these are cheap, but they’re worth it. A good one can be found for less than $200, and it could save you hours of vacuuming and sweeping over the course of a year. We think that’s a pretty good deal.
Run the Dishwasher Nightly
You’d think a dishwasher would use gallons upon gallons of water, but it doesn’t use as much as you might think. A dishwasher uses a fraction of the water a sink does to wash the same amount of dishes.
You can save water and effort by running your dishwasher every night or every other night, depending on your dish use. It’s even feasible to run it every night, use dishes straight from the machine, and never put a dish away again.
Clean While You Chill
Some people who struggle to clean recommend pairing a chore with a chill activity. For example, you can enjoy a beer while ironing your shirts. Maybe you watch your favorite TV show while folding clothes.
How you implement this strategy depends on what you do to relax. The possibilities are plentiful. Get creative and pair as many relaxing activities with chores as possible, and soon, you might look forward to them.
Practice Simplicity
We mentioned curating a minimalist aesthetic to combat a cluttered appearance, but we also recommend practicing a minimalist lifestyle. This means you buy as few things as possible.
In this consumeristic country, practicing simplicity is not easy. However, it’s rewarding, good for the planet, and won’t strain your wallet. Do you really need a fourth pair of black sneakers? Do you need a new soap dispenser or just want one? Be strict with yourself when shopping.
Don’t Keep Broken Items
If you’re as lazy as you claim, then there’s no way you’ll glue that vase back together or take those shoes to be fixed. Rather than keeping that broken item on your kitchen table for six months, just say goodbye to it now.
We know it can be sad to let go of these things, but in many ways, it’s sadder to look at this broken belonging day after day. If you don’t want to throw it away, fix it immediately after reading this list or part with it.
Use High-Quality Cleaning Products
The better your cleaning products, the less effort you’ll have to put into cleaning. A top-notch stain remover will cut your scrubbing time in half. An excellent toilet cleaner will prevent water rings for longer. A decent wood cleaner will stop stains.
Even the brooms, mops, dusters, sponges, and scrubbers you use will impact the effort needed. Invest in top-quality cleaning supplies, and all your cleaning tasks will become a little less painful.
Use Convenient Cleaning Supplies
Don’t be afraid to take shortcuts with your cleaning supplies. If grabbing paper towels and disinfectant spray is too much, buy disinfectant wipes. If you never wring out your mophead, just get a Swiffer instead.
There’s no glory in making homemade cleaning products or using annoying devices. Take the convenient path, and don’t feel ashamed. Browse your local store’s cleaning aisle and see what clever inventions could help you.
Buy All Dishwasher-Safe Cookware
Running your dishwasher every night is a brilliant idea for those who loathe cleaning. However, most cookware, such as chef’s knives, cast iron pans, and stainless steel items, can’t go in the dishwasher.
The solution is to buy dishwasher-safe items exclusively. While you’re at it, we recommend only getting microwave-safe stuff. This means you can toss everything in the dishwasher and call it a day — it doesn’t get easier than that.
Clear Fridge Before Grocery Shopping
We’re guilty of letting tubs of sour cream sit at the back of our fridge for way too long. That wilted basil on the bottom shelf won’t magically get fresh again, so let’s just get rid of it.
The best time to clear your fridge is before grocery shopping. This ensures you keep your fridge free of expired, moldy products and also helps you make your grocery list. Make this a habit, and your fridge will always be organized.
Rewear Your Clothes Before Washing
Please, don’t wear the same shirt to hot yoga three times a week. We don’t want that, and neither does anyone in your yoga class. However, many clothes, like jeans, hoodies, and dresses, can be worn more than once.
If it’s not dirty, put it back in your closet or dresser. This trick will make your clothes last longer and lessen your laundry load. If your clothes last longer, it will also be easier to practice simplicity when shopping.
Have a Reward Ready
This trick works for people who need motivation to keep their homes clean. Set up a reward for yourself that can only come when you’re done cleaning, so not something like a glass of wine you could have without cleaning.
It could be lighting a new candle on your tidy coffee table or making a snack with all your clean dishes. It’s important you associate the reward with the cleaning, so make sure they’re connected. The reward can change every time, too.
Let Go of Perfection
One of the best ways to keep your home cleaner and neater is to let go of the idea that everything must be perfect. If you’re a perfectionist about every cleaning task, you won’t get as much done.
It’s okay to leave a few spots on the bathroom mirror or crumbs on the kitchen floor. Doing a cleaning or decluttering task with 50% effort is exponentially better than not doing anything at all because it won’t be “perfect.”
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This post was previously published on Wealth of Geeks.
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