Spring has sprung for most of us around the country, and that generally means one thing – spring cleaning!
That phrase probably brought one of two reactions out of you: giddy excitement or a heavy sigh of resignation. If you found yourself dreading the idea, we don’t blame you – it can be a lot of work, right? But the rewarding feeling of having a nice clean house can be worth a lot, and it can be easy to get yourself motivated to clean if you try! Here’s a few tips to get started:
Set Your Goals
Sure, in an ideal world nobody has to sleep and has unlimited free time, which would mean you can make your house as absolutely flawless and spotless as possible. However, this isn’t the world we live in, which means you need to keep your goals realistic. Take some time to figure out what “clean enough” could mean for you – do you really need to whiten the toilet bowl, or can you just live with a clean sink? Does the entire kitchen need to be reorganized, or do you just want to make more space for your dishes and silverware? Keeping your cleaning goals realistic may help remove that sinking feeling you get when you think about spring cleaning.
Figure Out What You Need
Next, try to make a list of whatever cleaning supplies you need to accomplish those goals. This will help you keep focused on the tasks at hand and prevent any unwelcome surprises when you get caught short-handed during the cleaning. Do you need extra window or tile cleaner? Should you get any extra wire shelves or storage bins to help reorganize or hang onto anything? Making a list of supplies (and getting them) will help make your task list feel that much more achievable.
…And What You Don’t Need
Before your spring cleaning can begin in earnest, you might want to go through and start purging everything you know you don’t want to keep. Clothes, items around the house, even other cleaning supplies you haven’t touched in years. Throwing things out or donating them will both contribute to spring cleaning and making your workload seem that much lighter when it comes time to get down and scrub everything.
Finally, Remember To Keep It Simple
A fast way to lose motivation for spring cleaning is to have too much on your plate at one time. Whatever your spring cleaning goals are, remember to keep it simple, don’t overwhelm yourself, and if you feel yourself getting stressed, take a break – it’ll be there when you get back, and you won’t do yourself any good by getting mad at an uncooperative stain on the wall.