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Big Job Ahead? Just Start Somewhere!

If you have a big job ahead of you, and you really dread it, my secret is to just start small. Work in small areas daily until the chore is completed. For instance, if you have several windows and blind sets to clean in your house, start by cleaning one or two sets of blinds and the windows those blinds cover on day 1. The rest of the blinds and windows can follow in short bursts of progress. 

Clean a small area
Image courtesy of CDC via Unsplash

Another example would be carpet cleaning. What a hard job! It requires lots of energy and time. So, I start by moving a piece of furniture away from the wall and I clean that section on day 1. Then I move another piece of furniture the next day to clean the carpet under it and so on until all of the furniture that can be moved has clean carpet beneath it and behind it. Then I can move to the simple parts - the area where no furniture needs to be moved! Let me stress that not all furniture needs to be moved. And if it's too heavy to move, then don't! Keep it as simple and SAFE as possible. 

Yes, it takes longer to clean house this way; however, you still have time to do the other daily chores - or rest - without feeling like you want to throw a brick at something instead. I have spent years on the verge of a nervous breakdown trying to get my house deep cleaned in less than a month. It's not worth it. Cleaning a little bit at a time has made me a better person to live with.

This slower, better way of cleaning started this year (2022) in July when I finally had the opportunity to start deep cleaning areas that hadn't been deep cleaned in over 4 years, I went straight to panic mode. And God told me to just start somewhere, anywhere I wanted, and He would help me get the work done a little at a time. And that has been perfect! No rush to complete it by a deadline. Some days, I had more energy than other days and got more accomplished on those days. I had to take about 1 1/2 months off to help someone else with their life, and today, I'm using that same advice to get back to - and finally finish - cleaning the carpet in the last 4 areas of our house. I hope to be finished by Christmas. No stress!

After the New Year, I plan to clean out closets, cabinets, and drawers - 1 shelf or 1 drawer a day if need be. I refuse to let deep cleaning stress me out any longer. For the most part, I'll work only 3 or 4 days a week like this. Because I still have laundry to wash, dry, and put away, meals to cook, dishes to wash, groceries to buy, other housework to do, etc. 

By the time I get the closets, cabinets, and drawers finished, the weather should be good enough to finish cleaning out the garage/basement. We donated hundreds of dollars worth of stuff cluttering our basement and closets to a neighbor's church yard sale. There's more that I can throw away a day or week at a time until more clutter is gone.

My next plan is to NOT deep the whole house in 1 year. I will split the work into halves or thirds each year and work that way from that point, on. Life is good. Life is short. Figure out how to enjoy it more. I hope this has been helpful. Do you have a simple cleaning style you would like to share with the rest of us? If so, simply leave a comment, and I will be very happy to post it.

God bless you on your cleaning journey,

Patricia

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