Five Steps to Keep a House Clean on a 9-5 Working Schedule

Made it to work on time for this morning’s meeting? Check. Picked up the kids—and dinner? Check. Put the laundry in the dryer after washing clothes yesterday? Oh, um… let’s check.

As if working full-time and taking care of any children and pets are not enough tasks to keep you busy, you’ve also got the responsibilities that come with owning a home? If you’re having a hard time keeping your house clean after you get home from your 9–5, you don’t have to hire help. While that will take care of a messy home in a hurry, it will also have some negative effects on your finances!

Instead, employ a little organization. We’ll get you started. Here are five easy steps for full-time working homeowners who want to master the task of keeping their home clean:

1. Make a schedule

Knowing it may take several hours to clean your entire home is daunting. We get it. Instead of trying to devote one day to whole-house cleaning, make a list of your most important cleaning tasks and devote one to two days to each. If dusting, sweeping and cleaning the bathrooms are top priorities for you, give them a specific day each week and stick to it. You won’t feel overwhelmed by each task and your home will stay clean. Win—win!

2. Divide and conquer

When you’re working full-time, you’ve got to enlist the help you have at home to keep up with your regular cleaning tasks. This means your spouse and children should be pitching in. Allow small children to help out by stocking tissues or toilet paper in the bathroom. Children also may be able put away dishes. Split up any remaining tasks with your spouse and your team will have your home clean in no time!

3. Use time wisely

This tip may be less about time and more about positivity. Although you may feel like you have no time before you head off to work in the morning, know that it takes only a few moments to throw a load of laundry into the washer. You can toss it into the dryer when you get home in the evening and fold it in the few moments you have to catch up on your favorite episode at night. So, put a positive spin on the free minutes you find throughout the day. You can have a clean home!

4. Don’t go to bed angry

This may be age-old relationship advice, but we’re talking about your relationship with your messy home here. Don’t be frustrated by the fact that your house isn’t tidy before you go to bed at night. Make it a point to pick up toys, mail or anything else that’s laying out before you lie down. You’ll have a better start to your day when you wake up to a clean home!

5. Always make your bed!

Speaking of waking up each morning… when you do, make your bed! Yes, this is motherly advice; but, it some you need to take. Making the bed takes only a few minutes (at most), but it makes a world of difference when it comes to how clean your home appears to be. Besides, who wants to crawl into an unkempt bed at night anyway?

There you have it. Five easy steps to help even the busiest homeowners keep their home clean. And, don’t fret. If you really feel that you don’t have enough time to put these tips into action before the holidays, keeping a clean home is a great resolution for the new year!