For the last 2 weeks I've been telling you about the All Organized ebook Bundle and sharing reviews of some of the books included in this awesome bundle.
Well, the sale ends TODAY! So if you haven't bought yours yet, you need to do it before 11:59 p.m. EST or you'll miss out!
[Update: Sorry this bundle sale is over, but you can still get the book from today's review individually. Read below for details!]
Today I want to tell you about one more ebook from this bundle that I've read, and share some of the ways I think it will help me organize my life!
I've mentioned plenty of times on this blog that I'm not a big fan of cleaning. Organizing... YES! But cleaning... not so much. I love having a clean home, but it just seems to take so much energy to motivate myself to clean. Once I'm actually cleaning, it's not that bad. In fact, sometimes I get on a roll and do more than I planned to do. It's the getting going that's the problem and it often causes me to feel stressed and overwhelmed.
So when I saw this book, I knew it was one I needed to read!
Create Your Perfect Cleaning Schedule So You Can Get More Done in Less Time! It's not just a book about having a cleaning schedule, it's about being more efficient when cleaning. I LOVE the idea of spending less time cleaning :)
I've gotten better at doing the dishes daily and cleaning the counters and table every day. And my kids help clean the bathrooms and vacuum the cat hair and crumbs off our couches (plus a few extra cleaning chores in the summer). And my hubby and I are GREAT at cleaning the house before we have people over.
But the day-to-day sweeping, dusting, vacuuming, mopping, etc. are not my favourite things to do. So I don't do them as often as I feel I should. {Insert embarrassment if people drop in unexpectedly here.} And I know it takes me more time to do these things when I don't do them regularly.
Something needs to change! Which is why I'm so glad I read this book.
Here are a few of the things I've learned from it:
1. A cleaning schedule will reduce stress
In the first section of this book, Christine lists 4 ways a cleaning schedule will help you and I gotta tell you, this one is my favourite! I can sure use less stress. How about you?
Christine quotes David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, who says this:
"Your brain is like a computer. If you fill up its RAM with the things you have to do, you don't get anything done."
This was an eye opener for me. I see things all the time around the house and think, "I should do that" but I'm usually busy with something else at that moment so I put it in the back of my mind to do it later. Those tasks accumulate though and that causes me stress.
I've recently started creating a simple menu plan every week and I've been surprised at how much it reduces my stress level when dinner time is approaching. Knowing all day what I'll be making that evening takes the worry out of trying to figure out what to make when I'm in the midst of helping the kids with homework or dealing with a
It never occurred to me that having a cleaning schedule could do that too! Having a plan for how often I want certain cleaning tasks completed and spreading those tasks out over the week, month, quarter, and year will take away the "I should do that" thoughts. Which will free up more of my brain to focus on other projects and tasks.
That reason alone is enough for me to create a cleaning schedule!
2. This ebook contains lists and charts of cleaning tasks to help create the perfect cleaning schedule
Christine walks you through deciding what your daily tasks are, and then creating a master list of tasks to be completed weekly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually. She included a sample chart, organized by area of your home and life, with all sorts of tasks to help you get started.
The great thing is, you get to decide how often you want to complete each cleaning task. I've tried to follow other cleaning calendars or schedules in the past, but I've always found it hard to keep up. And honestly, I just don't feel that I need to clean some parts of my house as often as some cleaning schedules say I do. And when I try to do that I just go crazy and give up. I need to read Clean Enough next :) It's also part of the bundle.
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Putting these two books together will help me determine what I need to clean and how often I need to clean it, based on our family, our home, and our habits.
3. Grouping similar cleaning tasks saves time
Another eye-opener for me. I talk all the time about grouping similar items when organizing, but for some reason, it never occurred to me that I should do the same for cleaning!
Once you've created your daily, weekly, monthly, etc. cleaning task lists, you can decide how you want to schedule them to save you time. One option is to schedule your cleaning tasks by room. Here's what Christine says about this option:
"Instead of cleaning out the refrigerator, changing bed sheets, refilling soap containers, and organizing bookshelves on the same day, stick with the same room. Using the kitchen as an example, tackle 3 or 4 of the weekly tasks, a couple of the monthly tasks and one of the bi-annual or annual tasks. You’ll clean more efficiently and in less time."
I love this idea because I'll be able to see a difference in one area, which I know will motivate me more than a little bit all over the place.
The other option is to schedule your cleaning tasks by function.
"Let’s use floor care as an example. While you have your broom and vacuum out, it would be better use of time to sweep and vacuum the entire home rather than focus on one room. Over the week/month, you’ll save valuable time by not retrieving, plugging in, and returning your vacuum to it’s proper place repeatedly. Instead, you’ll focus on one task and finish quickly. "
This makes sense too. And I can see how it would save time!
Some cleaning tasks make more sense to do by function (like vacuuming or mopping floors). Others make more sense to do by room. It's really up to you and your home and how you prefer to clean. The key to saving time and working more efficiently is to group tasks as much as possible and not be doing random things on the same day. I know I get in a groove when I focus on one thing, so I should apply that to cleaning the house.
4. Use a cleaning scheduling tool that works with the rest of your scheduling tools
Once I've decided on my tasks and my cleaning schedule, I plan to incorporate them into Evernote and Remember the Milk, using the tips I learned from Paperless Home Organization.
If you prefer checklists though, there are several included in this book so you can choose the one that works best for you and customize it with your cleaning schedule.
I'm so excited to put all this into practice! I've already started making my daily cleaning tasks list and my master cleaning tasks list. I'll let you know in a future post how it's working! It can't be any worse than what I've been doing, because clearly that wasn't working for me at all :)
Create Your Perfect Cleaning Schedule is available here for $5.99. It's also part of the All Organized ebook bundle, which means you get this book and 22 other great organizing ebooks for only $20! That's over 85% off the regular price of all those books individually or only $0.87 per book! I figure by cleaning more efficiently, I'll be saving myself more than $20 worth of time in the next few weeks, so it's well worth the price! Time is money right?!
Click these links to read my reviews of two of the other books from this bundle!
Click the picture to get all the details on what's included and to buy your bundle.
{Note: I'm an affiliate for this sale, which means if you buy a bundle after clicking one of the links on this blog, I'll make a small commission. This helps cover the expenses of running this blog. My opinions are 100% my own and I absolutely love this bundle :) Thanks for your support!}
Do you have a cleaning schedule? If so, what tips can you share? Which ebook from this bundle are you most excited about reading?
Happy reading and happy organizing!
