How to Be Tidy when You Work Full-Time

4 Simple Strategies That Really Work

We all have to do it. Keeping things tidy or simply staying on top of the cleaning at home is likely always near the top of your ongoing to-do list, even though you’d rather is wasn’t.

You’re already exhausted when you get home from work every night, and then you likely still have to cook dinner- if not for your spouse and/or kids, at least probably for yourself.

Your head hurts, your brain is tired, your feet are throbbing- and the last thing you want to think about is doing anything more than maybe finding clean clothes for you and everyone else in the house to wear the next day.

Do you feel powerless? Do you feel trapped in this never ending cycle of barely making it through each day with a small sense of sanity?

You’re are not alone! Today I’m sharing the simple strategy that I’ve adopted that really helps me as I work a full-time job, along with having 2 online businesses, a husband who can’t walk, and as very active member of my Church. (No kids yet!)

There’s always ways to improve things in your life. The key is to stop and start thinking about what is really feasible for you? What can you start that you can keep doing? What is really important to you or causing you the most distress? Then start with that first…

Here’s what I do:

#1 – One Chore a Day

I work on one bigger chore every day, so it doesn’t keep building up and get overwhelming. This could be cleaning one room, starting and/or finishing one load of laundry, loading and/or unloading the dishwasher, vacuuming, dusting, going through the mail and etc.

I keep a list on my refrigerator with all the chores I want to get done that week and I check them off each day. I might have to switch which day I do them, depending on what else is going on in the evening, I just try to make sure each one gets done at some point that week.

The main point is that I don’t beat myself up if I don’t get something done one night. Sometimes you really are too tired to tidy. Or maybe you only have a little time to work on your business.

Guess what? That’s okay!! Don’t feel bad about yourself, don’t think that you’ve “failed” or any other crap like that. Just do what you can.

#2 – Clean Counter-Tops

Another habit that is truly effective for me, and that impacts how I feel about the condition of my home, is to make sure all the counter-tops are cleaned off every evening.

That includes keeping the bathroom, the kitchen counters and table, nightstands and coffee tables tidy too. This keeps everyone’s messes to a minimum, and helps things get put away and taken care of every day.

Even if it’s just to move items to another place in the house where they should be. Like moving mail to the desk or your office, or moving things on your nightstand to the bathroom cabinet.

It’s a small thing, but I’m telling you when you start the next morning by seeing clean counter tops, it seriously does something positive psychologically. Even if I know that I’ve got 3 more loads of laundry to do, 2 dress orders to sew, floors to sweep, or whatever else, it helps you start your day feeling just a little more put together.

#3 – Minimize Whenever Possible

This might be a little more general, but one way to improve the way you maintain cleanliness and neatness would be to try to minimize the stuff you have to begin with. I’m really into the KondoMari method as of late. (Check out Marie Kondo’s show on Netflix about de-cluttering your life!) And I’ve found that minimizing my belongings has been a spectacular help in maintaining a clean home.

Less stuff = less to clean and mange. It’s truly worked wonders- read more about that here.

I keep a bag either in my closet, a corner of a room, or even in my trunk, that’s always on deck to be dropped off at Goodwill or another thrift store.

The rule of one in and one out really can help things tidy. So, if you bring something new in your home, you’ve got to get rid of something else as a compromise.

It’s a continual process that will get easier over time as you start to let go of the clutter that’s really weighing you down.

#4 – Keep Trying

But my best advice about keeping your home. Keep working on something every day, or else you’ll get overwhelmed with everything you have to do.

If you have children, assign them chores to help. And of course my husband helps me with tasks too, as much as he can in his current condition. It helps to make it a joint effort.

But again, as mentioned above, you just can’t beat yourself up about missing a day, or a week, or even a few weeks or months! You just don’t give up. You can recommit and start again every day if you need to.

The only way you fail is if you quit, love!

What are your secrets to keeping your home clean? Drop a note in the comments section below to share! We can all always use a new tip!

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