How to Create a Routine to Keep Your Home Neat

Learn how to keep your home organized and neat with this technique. Life is busy, and it’s hard to find time to stay organized amidst the chaos. Join me as I discuss a method for the madness.

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Do you look around your home and feel like it’s always cluttered, with too many things that don’t belong anywhere? Even if they do belong somewhere, do you struggle to find the time and energy to put them all away and keep them there?

A cluttered, disorganized home can cause major stress. Think about it: you and/or your husband finally come home after a long, busy day. You open the door and the first thing you see is a dirty floor. The dining table is stacked high with mail and random items that don’t belong there. On top of that, the kitchen sink is full of dishes, the bed isn’t made, and there’s laundry that needs to be washed and folded. As you try to settle down for the day, the chaos of the house is stressful, and you can’t unplug or focus on any task at hand.

Besides, who wants to stay up late doing chores you wish were done earlier? Plus, if you enjoy hosting at your home, you probably feel like you have to deep clean before even thinking about having people over.

Read on if you’re looking to get out of this vicious cycle.

Here’s what you can do: Create a routine. Yes, it’s that simple!

Create a routine:

Start by carving out 5, 10, or 15-minute slots in your day. Ten minutes here, five minutes there. Trust me, it adds up to a lot. Here’s how it works: if you “schedule” yourself to wash dishes for ten minutes after breakfast, then you won’t have a sink full of dirty dishes to look at later. You’ll probably only have a partial sink of dirty dishes, which is much more manageable. Similarly, if you block out 5 minutes to make the bed and pick up laundry each morning after getting dressed, then you won’t have to do it later. You see? Baby steps are what will get you there.

I will add that there ARE some people that accomplish more by waiting to clean up the disaster until they can do it all at once. I know a couple of these people, and that’s how they work. If you’re reading this and you are that person, then you go girl! But for the rest (and the majority) of us, we don’t do well with this method. It’s too easy to wait, thinking we’ll clean up later, while the mess becomes overwhelming.

Regardless, do you really WANT to wait to do all the dishes until the end of your day when the entire counter and sink are full, and you’re tired? I’ll say it again: slow and steady wins the race.

Take a look at this overview of my own routine for a model:

• 5 Minutes to make the bed and pick up laundry after I’m ready for the day
• 10-15 minutes to load the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen after breakfast (on days that I’m crunched for time, I do the dishes after lunch or as I have time while fixing dinner)
• 10 minutes to wipe counters, straighten up the sofa, and tidy anything else in sight before I head out for the day
• 10 minutes to unpack my belongings from my day out (I drag a water bottle, packed lunch, sweaters, and lots of other things around with me during my workdays)
• 15-20 minutes to do the last of the dishes after dinner (yes, this will take longer if you don’t have a dishwasher!)
• 5 minutes to check the house and put things away before bed (I hate waking up to a messy house)

These are just a few examples of chores that I do on a daily basis. As you start to plan out your own routine, think about the things you need to do every day. Accounting for everything that needs to get done will help you build a routine that includes all of those things.

Get up if you fall:

Now I’m going to be honest, I don’t always get ALL of those chores done at the times I plan. If I’m not feeling well or I’m out late, I may not do the evening dishes or tidy up before bed. The reality is that even if you plan a detailed, all-inclusive “schedule” for cleaning and organizing, you WILL fail. And that’s ok, but the important part is that you don’t give up! I cannot stress this enough. Let’s say you didn’t do your dishes last night. You then avoid doing them for as long as long as possible today because they’re overwhelming. With that mindset, you would always be behind, dreading every mess you see because you don’t know how to manage it (or don’t want to). If you miss a chore, don’t stress! Just get up and do it as soon as you can.

NOTE: Being conscientious about cleaning up AS YOU GO makes a huge difference in the amount of mess you have to deal with. If you’re cooking, put away the ingredients as you finish using them. That way, you have a cleared counter instead of a messy kitchen when you’re done.

Other Items to Includes:

Remember to incorporate other tasks into your routine. Here are some examples:

• Take out the trash
• Wipe down countertops and tables
• Switch out kitchen and bathroom towels
• Move and fold the laundry
• Allow extra time to wash dishes by hand if you don’t have a dishwasher
• 10 minutes to clean up the bathroom sink and mirror every other morning
• 15 minutes to run a vacuum over your living room; then vacuum a different room the next day

A Word on Clutter:

Having extra “stuff” in your house that you don’t need will become detrimental to your routine. If you have lots of knick-knacks on your countertops, then it will take longer to wipe the counters down. If you have a lot of throw pillows on your furniture and beds, then you may exhaust yourself by moving, fluffing, and propping them up multiple times a day. There’s nothing wrong with having fun decor and sentimental trinkets around the home, but watch out in case it’s causing you extra work and stress.

Minimize the clutter, and you’ll minimize the cleanup!