30 days of SUPERclean!

[Ekb]

Okay this may sound ridiculous, but i just decided to embark on a 30 day trial of increasing the equilibrium of the house i am residing gradually to a 'clean' level of around.. well at least 8 i hope! currently to me it is around a 4, ughh! this is going to be a lot of work and organising, but afterwards i hope a dream to stay CLEAN!!

Day 1: Made my goal public!

Any tips greatly appreciated!!

[Ekb]

Day 1 update: cleaned half lounge floor, put a couple of clothes i don't want in a bag, rearranged some stuff.
Shall go looking 4 a mega bookcase for cheap tomorrow - there is one i want but lack funding currently, so gonna hit the secondhandy!

[pauldickinson]

You should have a look at some stuff over at Zen Habits (hope I don't get attacked for recommending another blogger!), there is quite a bit about decluttering etc. I used to be so messy but the place is actually quite minimalist now, and so it's easier to clean! I read quite a bit into Feng Shui and some of the tips I found help you to arrange a room in a way that it is easier to keep tidy. I think a little bit of work everyday would help you maintain an 8 once you get there!

I have a declutter 101 e-book on my website if you want to take a look!

Good luck!

[Ribbles]

I'm interested in hearnig how this goes, keep us updated. I might try to convince my roommates to do this challenge with me. We need a system of who mows the lawn, who does the floors, etc.

[Ekb]

Okay i lied! I didn't go look for a bookshelf at all! though i did talk about it... today i didn't even THINK about my 30 day trial until i got on this forum - at 9.30 at night.. so i just did a little 5 minute organizing spree, not much, but it feels good!! Stuck the empty fish tank outside and the feng shui feels a lot nicer!! hehe been checkin out your site paul thanks! i think i am going to have to introduce some structure to the cleaning schedule..
current thoughts: when i was share housing and moved back in with my parents i had one room that was all mine, it was impeccable and i loved being creative with it... now i've had a bub and live with 4 other adults, things are different!! I really love having a clean and peaceful environment... what's blocking me?
Also in another previous living arrangement with my ex who always had dodgey people around and i only felt comfortable cleaning when i was all alone, otherwise i would be hiding out in the bedroom.

[emeadow]

Maybe look at Flylady. I used to subscribe to the newsletter, but it was a bit much on the long term, but great for making a change.

No matter what, I always end up back at my sink (like she recommends). I scrub it 'til it shines, and work from there

Here is a link to her beginner program...even has a 31 day to day program.

[Ekb]

Wow! Thankyou emeadow this looks fantastic!! i've got to say i am really surprised at how perfect the help has been here, ask and you shall receive i 'spose! Over the weekend the house got messy - of course, but not messier as i did a little maintenance and it felt really good, i am really looking forward to living in a superclean house, now i've accepted a little at a time, and now time to scrub my sink 'til it shines

[Ekb]

Day 6: Cleany things I've done today

1: Decluttered bedroom, put away clothes, sorted unwanted clothes out, chucked out bad stuff.
2: Washed clothes, folded clothes
3: Bought a microfibre cloth and dusted the tv
4: Fed Dead Hard, my betta splendens that doesn't die
5: Wrote this
6: Read Flylady.com - love this!
7: Dwelled on my accomplishments so far!

[simplystephen]

Ekb...what a terrific goal. Keeping life clean and clutter free is a good way to clear your mind. There are tons of resources for doing this.

The easiest way is to follow the 3 basic rules:

Eliminate-Categorize-Organize

There are many variations, the SOS theory, I like my ECO theory because it runs parallel to my green lifestyle. Green is less consumerism.

To eliminate - start small and do it room by room.
Categorize - then you can actually sort your stuff and put it into the right location
Organize - once it's sorted you can figure out what containers and locations are the right for what items. Hint - the bedroom probably isn't the best place for your books or iron.

When you have done your first round through every room in the house...start again. It gets easier each time and it can also free up some money and time. Good luck and well done so far.

[Ekb]

simply stephen... i am looking forward to decluttering everything in my life! excitable and managable - thanks for the acronym, it is fluttering around my brain as I type.

Day 7: Got heaps done today! Also, last night my boyfriends mother cleaned a couple of rooms, things are falling into place.
- scrubbed oven, it now looks beautiful
- vacuumed
- have started sweeping the driveway daily, though the leaves come back very quickly!
- cleaned up sink twice, raising the equilibrium
- thought about what things need to be done daily and what things have to be done weekly
- read flylady some more

Habits and Patterns of a superclean housed person! What are your secrets?!

[emeadow]

Glad to hear of your progress Ekb!

Here are a few things that work for me just to toss it out there. Although I am FAR from a clean freak...but I am much improved from where I was say 3-4 years ago and hoping to keep progressing.

I work 5 days a week, and find that when I get home, if I stop moving, most times I am done for the night. So when I get home from work, I just keep moving. Sometimes I stick on headphones or music right when I walk in the door, and that really helps to keep me going. I do not go all night, but I usually set an 'okay to quit' time. For me, its 7 pm, as that is about 2.5 hours after I get home. Plenty of time for short exercise, dinner, and maybe a small amount of cleaning/housecare/yardcare. I may go later, but having a set time helps me to get going through the evening. When I stop, I feel relaxed and can enjoy the rest of my evening with no 'guilt'.

If I have a large project to work on, I try and break it into very small increments so I tend to procrastinate less. Lets say I need to tackle an overhaul on my kitchen, I break it into a checklist of 'scrub baseboards, clean windows, clean top of cabinets, clean out pantry, ect', and then I try and tackle one item a day instead of thinking about the several hours all of it will take. I may do more then one item in a day, sometimes you cannot stop once you start....but mentally I will be completely happy if I just get one item on the to do list done.

I have identified the things that usually get me in trouble with staying productive. Computer and TV of course being my biggest issues. On the weekends, I try and get a few chores done in the morning right off the bat, so I can feel free to do as I please the rest of the day. During the evenings, we have stopped watching TV during dinner, so that I don't accidentally find myself flipping channels and not moving off the couch. If we eat at the table, we get up, clean the kitchen, and usually move on to something productive instead of crashing on the couch the rest of the night.

I did a 30 day media fast a few months back, and that REALLY helped my productivity, and I now rarely watch any TV. I got so much done in that 30 days I was super surpised. My original intention was to cut out TV, internet, texting, ect to clear my head.......and I ended up using all that free time to work on projects and such around the house. It was a tough month for discipline, but I really was happy with the results.

One other productivity improvement I did was learning to get up at the same time every day. I normally got up early on the weekdays, but the weekends tended to find me sleeping in 2-3 extra hours. I now get up at 4:30 on the weekdays, and 5:30 on the weekends, and I am AMAZED at how much extra time I have on the weekends by getting up early. I have to be careful and get plenty of sleep, but on the flip side I am amazed at how much free time I opened up by getting up a few hours early. I don't feel deprived, I am sleeping better in general.

Don't get me wrong in all of this....I still have my lazy days, I still have lots of things to tackle and habits I need to change. I still get behind on laundry, don't get around to cleaning the floors as often as I would like, ect ect. BUT, I finally see that over time I can make my habits change and improve, and if I keep plugging away at things, in time, ALL of this will be second nature. I want this for the longterm, so I keep on trucking no matter what goods and bads happen along the way .

Best of luck!!! I love spring....it totally gets me fired up to declutter and overhaul.

[Ekb]

Lol, Emeadow it is autumn in Australia... it's getting me fired up to avoid doing anything in winter, chillier and chillier!
Thanks for the support, some of the things you are saying I've been noticing in my own progress, especially the don't stop moving thing, It is so strange to build up the momentum - I've noticed it previously in certain jobs, but to apply it home keeping is super cool, v. useful.
Getting out of bed early is something I'd like to work on... to brave the cold mornings, but by baby usually gets me up, i'd just like to wake up with a little more zip :P.

Day 8 Accomplishments
- Made a Banana cake. And cleaned up after myself!
- Did more washing.
- Did not create more mess!! Some kind of clutter/mess leveling out, whereas i can only get more sparkly???

So not so much housework today, getting ready to tackle the following
- Removal of fireplace to create a lot more bed room and room in the bedroom
- Target of hotspots!! Places that attract clutter and untidiness
Ones i've found so far are...
- On top of the fridge - makes no sense to me, but yeah, things like a torch, earbuds, random papers and god knows lurk up there where only the cat can see them
- Next to the phone on the bench - paper, bills, tape, phonebooks, and more random junk?
- On top of the dresser - An assortment of girly stuff
- Side table - should look less cluttered
- Corners, damn them

One step at a time! :P

[Ekb]

Day 12:
-Had a bit of a cleanup of the shed
-removed clutter from corners, but they went into other corners!
-bought a heap of cleaning supplies
-attracted a coffee machine lol!

[Ekb]

Day 13!

Sooooo tired! House still doesn't feel super clean - can't believe it's been 13 days already! whoa
Changes I've noticed in myself
though keep in mind all I've really done is as much housework as i can each day - including doing the dishes at least once lol!
- I notice more things I can clean up
- Care about clutter more
- Maybe I am seeing my living space more as a living breathing being, sheltering me
- I want to invite people over!
- Looking forwards

Meh! It is a slow process but I am thinking habits accumulated over time are harder to shake - good and bad - Enjoying the ride...

[malala]

I recently remembered the saying "A place for everything and everything in its place." This came over me like an epiphany. As a work-at-home mother of a 2.5-year-old, my home can easily spiral out of control.

I am now eliminating everything I do not absolutely need, especially if there is no place for it. Furthermore, I am establishing and LABELING places for everything in the house. Even my young daughter is starting to learn where things go.

It's a work in progress, but so far so good. And thanks for all the good tips, everyone!