Every time I clean my house, I ask myself HOW on earth I plan on making sure it’ll stay clean this time.  For my family, I’ve narrowed down the problem.  I wonder how many others have the same issue.

My husband and I are opposite kinds of cleaners.  He’s an “I’ll clean that later-er,” while my line of thinking is “just get it done.”  Let’s say our toddler wipes peanut butter on the walls.  My husband would say “let’s close the door to this room and go finish what we are doing.  Then we can come back and clean it up later.”  Meanwhile, I’m having a minor anxiety attack wondering if the peanut butter smell will sink into the drywall or if the dogs will get into it (inevitably make things worse).  Now, to some of you, it may seem like the “right” thinking between the two is obvious.  But there are actually equal pros and cons to both mindsets!

His mindset prioritizes the current task, giving more attention to what we are doing.  When the situation requires immediate cleanup (ex. a Gatorade spill on the carpet or a big diaper-y mess, etc.), he’ll clean no more than what is necessary so that we can get back to the scheduled program.  I love how he gives continued attention to our kids, even when a major mess is made.  He can focus, despite messy setbacks.  Whether that’s family time, work, or projects – he can commit!  However, this dubs the task to a later unknown time, where he will most likely forget it needs to be taken care of until the situation worsens.  He may also waste his time redoing what he did before because it wasn’t cleaned fully the first time.

My line of thinking takes care of things immediately, so there’s no chance of the situation worsening or of forgetting about it.  I’d much rather clean up the mess in whole, properly, and completely.  That way I don’t have to come back and re-do it later.  This mindset allows me to get things done to the absolute best of my ability and maintain my home instead ofspending hours cleaning.  One con, I also end up abandoning what I was doing before the mess happened…  When I notice the kitchen needs to be cleaned, I will rearrange my entire schedule to make sure it gets done first (whether or not that was really the priority over what was planned).  So, my time on some days could definitely be better spent if I took a moment to prioritize.

I thought this topic would be perfect for Motivational Monday!  It really emphasizes that there are equal pros and cons to both these mindsets.  Nobody can tell you when to clean, or how to make the best decision.

Sure, I hate that my hubby leaves things for “later,” but I admire his ability to stick with the plan.  And yes, Josh gets frustrated when I impatiently do something that he was supposed to do, but he appreciates how well I keep up with the house (or try to!).

• Is it easier for you to dedicate a set time for cleaning? 

Try finding a 30minute time slot in your day to do the required tidying, cleaning, and organizing.  If you’re a morning person, wake up 30 minutes earlier to fix things up before your day.  If you’re a night owl, schedule these 30 cleaning minutes before your bedtime routine.  For those who work at home, you could do this right after lunch to stretch your legs and refocus.

• Do you want to clean up the messes as they are happening?

Allow yourself time for that.  Say it takes you 15 minutes to prep lunches – you’ll want to plan on 20 minutes so you have time to clean-up any mess you made while prepping the food.  If it takes you 30 minutes to get dressed in the morning, allow for 40 minutes because you might make a mess deciding what to wear or drop a glass of orange juice during breakfast!  In essence, plan for your spontaneous tidying and cleaning.

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