Every one of us wants to live in a clean, sparkling home. But most of us hate doing all the work that comes with keeping homes neat and tidy. If you are someone who hates cleaning and dreads the overwhelming feeling when it comes time to tidy up, there is a good chance you are approaching the issue wrong.

With a few simple tweaks in your daily, weekly, and monthly habits, you can have a bright, clean home without needing to waste eight hours in one day.

Here are five realistic resolutions to make this your home’s cleanest year ever.

1. Plan a daily, weekly, monthly system to keep your home clean.

The main problem for most people is that they fail to do small tasks each day and then end up with an overwhelming job in front of them. This year, you are not going to be one of those people. Instead, you are going to devise a daily, weekly, and monthly plan to keep your home clean.

This plan is going to be unique to your home and your lifestyle. You can come up with a good plan by dividing all the work with the other people who live in the house. In fact, many roommates find it beneficial to set a weekly time when all members know they have to clean (2 hours on a Sunday morning).

Having everyone do it together means it will get done in no time and you can all reward yourself with brunch after!

2.  Commit to tidying up for 15 minutes every evening.

On a daily basis, resolve to tidy up for 15 minutes before getting to bed. You will be amazed at how productive those 15 minutes can be!

Each evening, wipe down your bathroom surfaces. You will thank yourself when you walk into a sparkling bathroom each morning!

Additionally, always clean the kitchen after cooking, hang up your clothes when you change, and put things away after you have used them.

Getting in the habit of doing these small tasks will help keep your house clean overall because you won’t want to start messing it up when it is already tidy.

3. Live by the “one-in-one-out” rule.

This year, to truly have a clean and organized home, make a promise to yourself that you will live by the “one-in-one-out” rule. This rule states that for every new item you bring into your home, you also have to remove something similar.

So, if you buy a new pair of boots, you need to remove a pair from your wardrobe. If you buy a new candle, book, pillow, etc., you must donate one of your old candles, books, or pillows (see #4).

Not only will this make you take a step back and think a bit deeper about impulse purchases (are there really any boots you want to get rid of?). But, if you do decide to buy something new, you know that no more space is going to be taken up.

4. Have a donation box readily accessible.

Unless you are a through and through minimalist, there is a good chance that you have some clutter around your home that you would like to do something with. Decluttering is one of the most overwhelming parts of organizing a house (it takes a little bit more than 15 minutes). But, if you break it down into monthly tasks (see #1), then you can focus on a specific area of the house each month.

If you focus on a specific area each month and live by the “one-in-one-out” rule, then in a couple of months you will have a completely de-cluttered space.

An additional resolution to make this year is to have a donation box readily available. That way, when you come across something in a drawer, or a cupboard, or in the back of your closet that you don’t like, toss it into the donation box. When the box is full, you can donate it to your local charity shop.

5. Buy cleaning products with fragrances you want to smell.

Last but not least, a simple resolution everyone can all get behind! Only purchase cleaning products that come with scents you actually enjoy smelling. After all, you are much more likely to clean regularly with something that produces a smell you enjoy!

Do you think you can commit to one or all of these resolutions this year? Or do you have your own cleaning resolutions? Let us know in the comments below!

AUTHOR BIO

 Mohamed Samad is the Founder & CEO of Matic Services. He started the company in 2016 after a series of small start-ups within the home services sector. Prior to that, Mohamed was Vice President at Greenstone Equity Partners, where he spent 24 months building the UAE business from 2011-2013 with its founder.