Becoming A Neat Freak
Are you a neat freak? If not, don’t worry, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a slob – no judgment here! Many people feel completely content with a mess. So, if the glasses that leave rings on the coffee table, pizza boxes on the counter, and dirty dishes stacked up don’t bother you until they do, enjoy the chaos. It is when the disorder causes anxiety, depression, purchasing items that can’t be found, affects your personal or work life, or becomes an unsanitary situation, that making a change becomes necessary.
How To Go From Slob To Neat
Reimagining your attitude and thoughts on keeping a neat and clean home doesn’t usually happen overnight. It is often difficult to transform a lifetime of habits all at once, but professional organizers insist that anyone can go from slob to spotless with the right plan of action:
- Envision your home being tidy and well-kept.
- Make a list of your goals for each room.
- It may be helpful to start with getting rid of as much as you can. This is where the idea of donating anything that you haven’t used or looked at in 6 months comes in.
- Give everything a home. Books go on the bookshelf, shoes go in the shoe basket, and tools go in the garage. If you have an assigned place to put all of your stuff, it is more motivating to stay organized.
- Initial and ongoing organizing should be done in small spurts. Using your list of goals, take 30 minutes to an hour each day to complete tasks. Once your goals are complete, use a maintenance checklist to establish a routine of keeping the place in good order.
- Make your bed every day. This provides a fresh start in the morning and means your room starts out part way done.
- Listening to music or an audio book while going through items will make it more fun and time passes quicker.
- Self-talk assists in changing your ideas about yourself. If you have heard your whole life that you are lazy or sloppy, that mindset needs to go! This leads to a feeling of inadequacy and inability to actually do the work. Ask a friend who is organized to come alongside you in your efforts and be your cheerleader.
Keeping Up
Once the hardest part is over, staying organized is a piece of cake with a good plan in mind. Some ideas to keep up are:
- Make an exhaustive list of every area in your home, including closets, cabinets, and drawers. Each week concentrate on one of those things to ensure that the objects stay in place. Smart phones have the ‘Notes’ app and you can create a reusable list with checkmarks that can be added as you finish and then removed when you start over.
- Spend 15-20 minutes a day putting away items that aren’t in the right home, throwing away any trash left around, and breaking down boxes to recycle.
- Empty your donation box at least every month or more often if it is full! (yay you!)
Maidstr offers recurring cleaning services that are great for everyone. Keeping your home clean aids in organization and neatness. Contact us today to get started!