How to find motivation for a home cleaning session

It’s summer and everybody wants to relax, enjoy a movie or go out. Nobody wants to clean or do stuff around the house. Cleaning has been a challenge to most people, and perhaps it was the last item in the list of everyday activities that you had to execute at the age of fifteen. Twenty years down the line, the scope of work has doubled because you have a house, or at least more than one room. Does this sound like a familiar situation? Well, finding the motivation to clean your home is an art which you learn with time.

Do you understand some of the basic reasons as to why you should live in a clean environment? Besides showing off to friends and relatives, a clean environment prevents some of the health issues that are associated with a clattered, dusty and generally unhygienic environment. This article treats you to some of the tips and suggestions that will psyche you up all through the cleaning session. Here are my top advice points:

1. Invite a new person over

As weird as it may sound, having a new person in or around your home will motivate you to start and finish up your clean up sessions perfectly an in good time. Inviting someone to your place works to your advantage in two ways. No one expects a friend or a relative to find their house in a mess. The impression that you create is very important and will greatly influence how people look at you.

When making the invitation, let it be something special such as a dinner date or a lunchtime interaction. Timing is very essential when inviting someone to serve as a motivation. Schedule it towards the weekend when you have enough time to do all the necessary cleaning, declutter the house and organize everything as expected. Similarly, avoid someone who seems so casual to you because you may not see the need to organize your house. It is also important to note that this is not a tip that will serve you for a lifetime. Inviting someone new will only work on one or two occasions depending on whom you invite. This should be used to develop a routine where you will, henceforth, be motivated naturally once you are used to the event.

2. Listen to inspiring music

Regardless of the source, music is one of the most exciting additions to your cleaning exercise. Whether it is a radio, an MP3 player or a playlist from your desktop, listening to your favorite music as you clean will carry you in a wave of excitement that you actually forget the burden of the task at hand no matter how involving it may seem.

When it comes to choice, settle for upbeat music because it will treat you to the right pace. If it is interesting enough, some light moves will be inevitable and as a result, you will not only benefit from the inspiring nature of the music but it will also serve as a light exercise.

3. Set a cleaning deadline

Do you sometimes ask yourself why productivity is very high in organizations and working environments where there are strict deadlines and very high standards of supervision? The answer is simple; having a time limit for a particular job will push you to execute it before the deadline expires. This principle also applies to cleaning. Even so, give yourself enough time to complete all the cleaning chores, but again be careful not to enjoy the luxury of time because it may prompt you to rest and in so doing, your motivation will be get severed.

In setting deadlines, ensure that cleaning is followed by a more important activity such as reading for exams or preparing for dinner. This way, you will be pushed to wind up the cleaning early enough so that you don’t eat into time meant for the next important activity.

4. Develop a cleaning plan

Do you find cleaning so overwhelming most of the time? It could be so because you don’t even understand where to start and finish. In every event, planning should be the first step. It gives you a logical sequence that you should follow until all the tasks are completed. The next time you embark on cleaning, therefore, walk through your house first and look at it with an entirely new perspective.

Pay attention to the little details and determine some of the miniature areas that you have ignored for some time. As you assess places and items, establish whether there are any which you must touch on before finishing the cleaning exercise. Set up a priority list that will delineate the most important cleaning events from the rest. Start with the most important and presumably most involving as you narrow down. It is not childish to mark through the list as you do the cleaning. This is a guide that will remind you of the things that need to be done and at the end you will successfully touch on all essential areas.

5. Have a collection of the right tools

Human labor will only be effective when there is a back up of the right tools, equipment and machinery. Just like any industry, janitorial jobs also require some tools. Before starting the cleaning exercise, ensure you have all it takes to carry out a particular job to completion. Tools will significantly break up the cleaning exercise and you will not feel much of the burden.

If there are tools that you have been eyeing at the store, therefore, make an informed purchase and ensure they are used diligently. Perhaps kitchen cleaning has been the most difficult task for you. Buy the best vacuum cleaner that you know of, which can make your cleaning easy. Collect such and all other tools such as window cleaning equipment and brooms. Having the right assortment of tools is an assurance that your cleaning will be easier and quicker. This is perhaps the biggest motivation you will ever get when cleaning your home.

6. Motivate yourself with a housekeeping article or book

Reading is not confined to office work alone. One of the simple activities that will make your cleaning easier is proper knowledge of the cleaning procedures. It is quite fine that you have a vacuum cleaner. But do you really understand how to use it effectively? Do you need the motivation to get started? Housekeeping articles and books take into consideration the overwhelming nature of cleaning and will therefore offer some proven tips and step-by-step guidelines regarding how you will start and run the cleaning job to completion.

Reading should help you organize your work, but take care not to be cooped up in books so much that you actually forget the real cleaning job. Again, you must be careful when selecting the housekeeping material to read. Credibility of the source will go a long way in enhancing your cleaning ventures.

7. Visit a home that you admire

You could be motivated to clean if you pay a visit to one of the homes that you admire most. Similarly, you may admire the photos of clean and elegant homes in a newspaper or magazine as a source of inspiration. The pictures may not necessarily be real but they are good enough to motivate you because then, you get a rough idea of what a clean home should look like. Although you may not get to the standards showcased in the pictures or in the model home, at least you will work you butt off to get halfway that standard.

8. Make it a family event

There is no rule of the thumb insisting that cleaning is an individual activity. On the contrary, carrying it out as a group makes it more interesting and a little convenient for everyone involved. Look for a day when most of the family members are free (especially on weekends) and agree to share some of the cleaning duties. Delegation of duties is and has been one of the best working mechanisms even in organizations. While one person is good at decluttering and arranging wardrobes, the other may fancy window cleaning. It even motivates you well when you are assigned a job that you love most. If you hate the bathroom tiles and walls for instance, allocate them to one of the members who have no issue with such.

When assigning tasks, be liberal so that no one will feel oppressed. Allow everyone some time to control the music so that they feel appreciated in the process. Similarly, allow some flexibility or the luxury of making choices so that they work on areas that they think will match their skills and preferences.

9. Reward yourself appropriately

I don’t know about you, but this tip really works for me. Psychology has always associated motivation with rewards, and this applies to every aspect of human life. Rewards are highly motivating because they make you feel appreciated. A reward may be something physical or a treat that you consider important. Set the reward before embarking on the cleaning exercise so that you are psyched to earn the reward. For example, you may buy yourself a snack or a book that you have coveted for so long. This should only happen once the cleaning exercise is complete.

After organizing the master closet, you may choose to treat yourself to the most enthralling comedy. This is also a reward. Once you have finished some of the chores that you fear most, rewarding yourself is one of the moves that will make cleaning an interesting venture in future sessions.

10. Eat well before cleaning

As simple as it may appear, cleaning actually consumes a lot of calories and unless these are plenty in supply, you will soon feel worn out and this drowns most if not all of your motivation. If you cannot take the heavy breakfast which is often recommended as a way to better health and weight control, at least do such to supply enough energy for the cleaning exercise. For a start, some yogurt, oatmeal and walnuts can give you the fuel needed to run a cleaning session at least until you are served with the next meal.

Prior to the cleaning day, it is also good to have sufficient rest. Sleep in this case is very essential. Rather than sitting up late, sleep for long enough so that you wake up replenished and psyched up to complete all the cleaning tasks in your list.

11. Change to the right clothing

The context in which you put your brain will determine how all the other body systems will function. If you start a cleaning session in your pajamas, there is a high possibility that your brain and ultimately all the other body systems will switch off after some time. This explains why you will begin with a lot of vigor, only for it to die down soon after arranging the master closet.

Dressing specifically for a cleaning exercise means doing away with your best clothing. Identify the right clothes that will keep your comfortable and light through the cleaning exercise. There is a lot of sweating that may be involved, so select shoes made of a fabric that will absorb the sweat and leave you feeling comfortable. The dress code will do a lot in convincing your mind to keep all systems alert for the cleaning exercise.

12. Try new products and visualize the end results

Cleaning products keep evolving and the moment you try new items, you will certainly find a new scent or flavor that excites you to clean the entire house. With such products ready, visualize yourself and your house, trying to imagine what it would look like once you have finished cleaning and arranging every corner.

Are you tempted to give up? Just remind yourself of how good your house will look if you persevere a little longer. Reflect on the model homes and photographs that you might have seen in magazines and draw some inspiration or energy from such. Similarly, think of the new visitors you are about to receive and be wary of the impression that your home will create should they find it in a mess. All these reflections will surely cheer you up to start and complete a cleaning exercise.

If you are a victim of the cleaning laze, be assured that it is not a disorder but rather a condition that everyone experiences at some point in life. However, this can be changed with a few tips that motivate you to start and finish a cleaning exercise. Remember, there is a possibility of this becoming a way of life unless you find motivation today. Take a bold step today by applying some of these tips and you will marvel at the ease and motivation with which you will handle the cleaning sessions.

Have other motivation tips? Please share them here, and let’s make our houses cleaner!

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Jason Roberts

Founder and executive reviewer at Vacuums Guide

I'm Jason Moe Roberts, an appliances expert and blogger. I've worked at Walmart for more than 15 years, in the house appliance department. I love to use home equipment and I spend a lot of time testing the best products and reviewing them. My family and friends also recommend me as a caring person, a great dad and a loving husband.