Approximate reading time: 3 minutes
Have you ever wondered why it is so hard to get and keep your house clean?
The answer may be something about which you have never really consciously thought.
I have a close friend with two little ones. One of our recent conversations centered around how very difficult it is to get and keep your house clean. And how completely nutty a messy house makes her.
I can totally relate.
Long after we had disconnected, our conversation circled my brain. The easy plan that I had outlined in the post, How to Have a Clean Enough Home, wasn’t working for her.
There had to be a key element that I had missed.
The answer came in the form of an extension cord. I was holding the extension cord in my hand when I had a random thought ( a common occurrence for me) concerning extension cords in general.
“How, after three decades of marriage, do I still really not know where to put an extension cord away?” I had never intentionally created a spot where I could say, “this is where we store extension cords.” The result was that if I were “putting away” an extension cord, I was very likely to lay it on the ping pong table and assume Brian would “put it away”. If he dropped the ball, or the extension cord, the result was additional ping pong table clutter.
The lightbulb moment followed; the element about which I had not written.
The root of getting and keeping your home clean can be found in the quote “a place for everything and everything in its place”.
Until that idea is firmly planted in your brain, getting and keeping your house clean will feel like a never-ending battle.
The benefits of intentionally choosing a place for everything that enters your home are numerous.
Having a designated home for any and every item allows you to quickly and efficiently tidy the house.
There is no time wasted when picking up and putting away an item. There is no question of “where should I put this?”.
Put it in its home and move on.
Having a place for everything saves time and frustration
If an extension cord has been put away, and a need arises that requires the extension cord, it will not be necessary to waste time on a fruitless search that ends with an even more fruitless text to your spouse.
Ditto for any other item for which you may be on the hunt.
Knowing where something is located saves money
It will no longer be necessary to run to the dollar store and purchase a new one when the search ends with no extension cord and no return text.
Again, the same can be said for any item that you may need to replace due to the fact that you have no idea where it is currently located.
Intentionally choosing a place for everything is a great life lesson for kids
Tell a kid to go “clean your room” and see what happens. (Just don’t look under the bed!)
Tell a kid who has been taught that everything has a place to, “go clean your room” , and there is a higher chance of success.
Not only will they learn to clean a room, but the lesson will eventually spill over into their adult lives. (Maybe not immediately but the roots are at least planted!)
If you too are struggling with getting and keeping your house clean, take a good hard look at every item in your home.
Once everything has a place and everything is in it’s place, you may be surprised at the bouquet of benefits that blooms!
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