10 Mar A Guide to Stress-Free Spring Cleaning
Once Spring has sprung you are likely ready to welcome the warmer weather with open arms. It is time to pack away the winter gear, open all the windows, and give your home a refresh. Decluttering, organizing, and cleaning your whole house after a winter of hibernation can seem a daunting task but with our stress-free Spring cleaning tips you can spruce up your home without feeling overwhelmed.
Psych Yourself Up
Getting mentally prepared for the work ahead can help you get started and stay motivated to see it through to the finish. Give yourself a little time to think about how a clean, tidy, and organized space will make you feel. Visualize what the end result will look like and how it will improve your family’s daily life. Write those thoughts down in your Artful Agenda and refer back to them if you need a little motivation boost during the Spring cleaning process.
Build Your Team
The planning stages of Spring cleaning is the time to get all of the members of your household on board and review when their schedule allows them to pitch in. If your team is a little sparse, or if your household is a team of one, consider partnering with a good friend or two and taking turns Spring cleaning each of your homes.
There may be some Spring cleaning jobs like carpet and upholstery cleaning, HVAC maintenance, or cleaning out the gutters that are best delegated to professionals. Call your regular service providers or get recommendations from friends and family and get on their books ahead of their busy season.
Take a Tour
Walk through your home room by room and make a list of what needs to be done. Start on the inside, focusing on areas of clutter and things you typically skip during routine cleaning. Then make your way outside to note any repairs and maintenance that needs to be dealt with. Prioritize your list, making sure to tackle jobs in the right order. It is much easier to deep clean an area of your home after it has been cleared of clutter, and it is best to clean surfaces working from the top to the bottom.
Make a Schedule
Now that you have decided on your why, who, and what, it is time to figure out when you can schedule your Spring cleaning tasks. Have everyone pull out their calendars and decide what will work best for the team. Will 30-minute sprints several times a week or a couple of all-day Spring cleaning marathons knock it out in a weekend? If your list seems too long for the time that you have available, decide what should be done now, and what can wait until later in the year. If the amount of work involved starts to feel overwhelming, use your schedule to set time limits so the tasks won’t seem like they will never end.
Stock up on Supplies
Before you head to the store, take the time to inventory the cleaning supplies and tools you already have on hand. Nothing is more frustrating than getting ready to start a big decluttering project and realizing you are out of trash bags or storage bins! Make a list of what you still need to purchase and consider adding some new tools to your cleaning closet. Furniture sliders let you move heavy furniture out of the way for cleaning without breaking your back, handheld power scrubbers and steam cleaners can reduce the amount of elbow grease needed to clean dirty surfaces, and dusters with extendable handles that can pivot any which way can help you reach under furniture or on top of ceiling fans. These inexpensive tools can help you work smarter, not harder! You can also look for cleaning supplies you love, like a fun apron with large pockets, rubber gloves in your favorite color, or cleaning products in your favorite scents.
Find the Fun
Although cleaning isn’t most people’s idea of a great time, there are ways to introduce an element of fun so it doesn’t seem like drudgery. If you are going it alone, you might be able to put in your earbuds and listen to an interesting podcast or an audiobook, watch a favorite TV show, talk on the phone and catch up with a friend, or crank up the tunes and dance your way to a cleaner home.
If you are cleaning with your crew, make a game out of it by assigning numbers to tasks and rolling the dice to see who does what chore. You can create a little competition by seeing who can do the most, go the farthest, or finish the quickest. If jobs start to feel tedious and attention spans are short, play musical jobs. Turn on some music and pause it at random intervals, then everyone races to switch jobs!
Treat Yourself
If you plan ahead for your end-of-Spring-cleaning reward, you and your helpers will be more likely to enjoy the work knowing something positive is at the finish line. Maybe everyone’s treat is the same, or maybe it is more motivating if everyone gets to pick their own reward to look forward to. Whether it is a special dinner out for the whole family, a massage for mom, an afternoon of guilt-free golf for dad, or a day at the trampoline park for the kids, Spring cleaning is hard work, you will totally deserve it!
Spring cleaning doesn’t have to be tedious or overwhelming. With these tips and the right tools, including your Artful Agenda, you can have a stress-free Spring cleaning season this year! If you haven’t yet experienced the fun and personalization of a paper planner with the convenience of a digital calendar you can take advantage of our FREE two-week trial.
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