Struggling to maintain a tidy house? Believe me, I understand the challenges, especially as a busy mom. Fortunately, I have three practical tips that we can put into action today. They will alleviate the overwhelming task of keeping our homes tidy. Get ready with pen and paper as we dive into practical tips and strategies!
Listen below for the entire episode on The Systemize Your Life Podcast
Conquering the Chaos and Keeping Your House Tidy
How is it that bobby pins have the magical way of migrating into every possible corner? As tidy as I try to keep my house, they still end up everywhere! I know I am not alone in my struggles over the years to maintain an organized home.
I had a motherhood productivity session with a mom recently. One of her biggest frustrations was that she always felt like a bomb was going off in her house. Have you ever felt like that? I know I have. All of a sudden you can’t find your wallet or keys. We have all been there. That is why I am here to share the methods I use to keep my house tidy. These tips can help lessen the chaos around you and help you gain the confidence to keep it that way.
Unlocking the Secrets to Maintaining a Tidy House: Balancing Parenthood and Organization
I, too, have not always had a perfectly tidy house. We are not perfect, and I am no exception to that. When my husband moved in after we got married, he couldn’t understand why I would get so worked up about the disorganized cutlery drawer while leaving my socks scattered on the bedroom floor. However, over the years, I’ve discovered the secrets to maintaining a tidy house.
One day, I decided to pause and reflect on what was truly hindering my ability to keep the house in order. I have realized being a busy mom and having children played a significant role in the challenge. But as parents, it’s our responsibility to guide our children in all aspects of their lives, including tidiness. I firmly believe in teaching my kids the importance of picking up after themselves and instilling good habits. After all, we must show them what it means to keep their belongings organized if we want them to live tidy lives for themselves
Understanding the Difference: Tidiness vs. Cleanliness of Your House
Before we get into my tips for maintaining a tidy house, I want to clarify that our focus here is on tidiness, not cleanliness. When someone states, “My house is such a mess,” what does that mean? It’s essential to realize there is a significant difference between a dirty, unsanitized house, and a house with clutter scattered around. The tips I’m about to share are practical ways I have used to manage keeping things picked up, organized, and to make sure that everything has a purpose and a place to live inside of my home
3 Simple Tips to Keep Your House Tidy
In order to help you in maintaining a tidy home while juggling the demands of being a busy mom, I will share three simple tips that can be readily implemented to make tidying a breeze. The reality is, achieving a consistently tidy home has not always come easily to me. However, I have dedicated time over the years to get to the bottom of what was keeping me from a tidy home. These THREE easy tidying tips have proven to be game changers for the tidiness of my house.
Tidy House Tip #1 – Simplify and Declutter
The biggest obstacle keeping you from a tidy house could be that you just have too much stuff. If you have been following me for some time, you may know that I am super obsessed with Marie Kondo. I love her commitment to living with a minimalist approach. However, you don’t have to be that extreme. Really, you don’t. If you ever pick up Marie Kondo’s book, you’ll experience that feeling when it hits you—an irresistible urge to declutter that can become addicting! With the changing of seasons, this desire to declutter and start fresh hits me repeatedly.
I can tell when we’ve been bringing too much into our house and not taking enough back out because it starts to feel overwhelmingly challenging to manage. Now is a perfect time to take a look around!
Tidying Made Easy: Transforming Your House for Joy and Purpose
Choose a room in your house and begin tidying and decluttering. A simple approach is to separate things into four different piles, each serving a distinct purpose. Create one pile for items you use every week and wish to keep. The next pile should contain things you know you don’t need and would be perfect for donation. The third pile is for ‘maybes’—items you’re unsure about parting with but haven’t used in a long time.
Lastly, make a pile of items that belong in the garbage, which no one would want, but you haven’t discarded yet. Start sorting your belongings into these four piles and let go of unnecessary items. By doing so, you’ll free yourself from the constant task of tidying items that no longer serve a purpose in your home.
Let Go of the Clutter
When your house is cluttered, there’s no space for the items you truly love. Treat your belongings with respect and let each item bring joy and gratitude to your life. Simplify and reduce the number of things you own, focusing on bringing joy rather than acquiring more. This transformation in your relationship with your belongings will encourage you to care for them, put them away thoughtfully, and use them with intention. Take a moment to reflect on your connection with the items in your home. This shift in thinking can be a significant step towards achieving a tidy house.
Tidy House Tip #2 – Pick Up as You Go
The second reason that you may be overwhelmed with keeping a tidy house is because you may not be picking up as you go. This tip builds upon the first one. When there’s an excessive amount to pick up, it becomes challenging and overwhelming, right? As a busy mom, if your kids have an abundance of toys, it becomes nearly impossible to pick up as you go due to limited time.
An overwhelming mess quickly leads to frustration for moms. I don’t want you to live in that state of frustration, constantly dealing with the aftermath of a volcano each day.
Efficient Transitioning: The Key to Maintaining a Tidy House
One of the most effective methods to stay organized in tidying your house is by setting clear time boundaries for your daily activities. For instance, if your kid’s lunch is scheduled for 12:00, it means that by 11:50 or 11:45, you should wrap up the ongoing activity because the next 15 minutes need to be dedicated to transitioning. By announcing the transition to your family, everyone can work together to clean up, allowing for a smooth transition into the next activity without the worry of dealing with the mess from before.
“Scheduling in transition time is how you keep a tidy house.”
It is incredibly easy to fall into the habit of thinking you’ll address something later, but that “later” can quickly stretch into five days then two weeks, ultimately becoming an eyesore. Scheduling in transition time is how you keep a tidy house. Picking up as you go you can’t wait until the end of the day. In order to keep a tidy house, you have to tackle these tidying tasks in small increments and pick up as you go.
Tidy House Tip #3 – Build in Time to Tidy
The third way to stay on top of keeping a tidy house is to specifically build in the time to do it. I hinted at this in reason number two, but to keep a tidy house, you need a framework for your day with built in time to get done your necessary tasks. This is what I love to do- help moms build a framework to fit their unique lives. Whether you are a stay-at-home mom or a working mom, you are responsible for juggling various priorities: taking care of yourself, caring for the lives of others, and maintaining your home.
One of the most valuable lessons we’ve learned from our girls’ Montessori education is the philosophy of leaving the environment in a better state than we found it. We have made an effort to use this philosophy within our home as well. Often, we get caught up in our busyness and overlook the importance of leaving things better than we found them. However, by intentionally setting aside time each day between one activity and the next, it really helps with that.
Building Habits for a Tidy House: Incorporating Cleaning Time into Your Day
It’s important to prioritize dedicated time for tidying throughout your day. For example, after dinner, set aside time to clean up so that you don’t have to worry about it later. While it may be challenging at times, especially when you’re exhausted and just want to relax, if you want to maintain a tidy house, it’s important to be disciplined. Instead of immediately sitting down to watch TV, consider scheduling 15 minutes after dinner to clean the kitchen.
To ensure you have enough time, aim to finish dinner with enough time to get that done. Remember, maintaining a tidy house is an ongoing process, and it doesn’t always work out perfectly. However, by incorporating these practices into your routine, you can create systems that support having a tidy house.
Bonus Tidy House Tip- Teamwork Makes Tidiness
I may not be Superwoman, but I do prioritize implementing my three tips as often as possible. Doing this daily helps me keep my house tidy. Another reason my home is able to be tidy most of the time is because I don’t try and do it alone! Call it a bonus tip: teamwork makes tidiness.
How Involving Your Partner Transforms Your Tidy Home
I really involve my husband. He knows, just as I do, where the items in our home belong. I don’t just assume 100% of the responsibility myself. I genuinely want to share my life and my home and my kids with my husband. So, I never underestimate his abilities just because he’s a dad. We were both designed to raise our kids.
He may have things that he does well and so do I, but that doesn’t just mean that I have to assume responsibility for always being the one to pick up after everything our children do. We both put an extreme amount of energy and passion into our businesses and to our jobs, but we share a lot of the responsibilities around the house.
Empowering Kids: Engaging Them in the Tidying Process and Teaching Respect for Belongings
I also really involve our kids in the process of tidying our home. For example, our girls get to decide where they want things to go in their bedroom. They get to choose if they want to keep something by respecting it and keeping it put away. If they do not want to respect it, they have the choice to donate their items. They know that it is the expectation that if they want to keep things, they need to respect them.
How we show that respect is by placing them away neatly and gently in their home. If they are unsure of where something goes or how something is done, they can ask me for help, and I will guide them by modeling the process.
It is just so important to remember that the culture of motherhood doesn’t have to look any specific way. You are allowed to make decisions that support a happy and whole you. Give yourself permission to make your own schedule that allows you the time to slow down enough to clean up between activities. You’re allowed to focus on what’s meaningful and important to you like keeping a tidy home. Start this process by sitting down and creating a schedule that works for your life.
Strategies for Maintaining a Tidy Home
Maintaining a tidy house is a common struggle for many of us. The everyday chaos and clutter can leave us feeling overwhelmed and frustrated. However, by implementing the practical tips and strategies shared here, we can conquer the chaos and create a more organized and peaceful home environment. In summary, here are the tips to help you manage keeping your home tidy:
- Simplify and Declutter
- Pick Up as You Go
- Build in Time to Tidy
- BONUS: Involve Your Family
Remember, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to motherhood and maintaining a tidy house. It is about finding what works best for you and your family. You have the power to create a framework that supports your happiness and well-being. With these strategies and a mindset focused on joy, gratitude, and intentionality, you can maintain a tidy house.
Looking to Learn More About Tidying Your House And a Community to Share Your Progress?
Looking for a decluttering action plan? Be sure to check out this fast action plan to declutter your home. Looking for more ways to get your family to help tidy? Check out my two part series to involve your husband and your kids in the process of getting your house clean and keeping it that way.
By sharing my tips for keeping a tidy house, it is my hope that you can apply some of these approaches to help manage your home. I’d highly encourage you to share your progress inside our FREE Facebook community. If you like today’s content and wish to learn more about ways to manage your home, then please head over to Chelsijo.co/SYL. It is my hope for you that you take what you learned from this blog post and embrace the journey of conquering the chaos to keep your houses tidy in order to create an environment that serves your families and yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have any resources to help with creating a schedule?
Absolutely! Part of my weekly schedule involves scheduling fundamental needs – one of which is cleaning! If you want to learn more about your fundamental needs, start with this workbook. Once you understand your fundamental needs, then you can start to put it all in your schedule. Download my time blocking workbook to help you figure that out too!
