To begin with, the easiest way to keep your home clean and tidy is to have less stuff to deal with. Our homes in America are filled to the gills with collections of childhood belongings, mountains of clothing that could dress a small nation, broken electronics, stacks of containers filled with every sort of gadget or decoration, you name it, we probably have it somewhere.
Focus on your main living areas first, such as the living room and kitchen, before tackling the entire home. Take a look around. First, note the visible clutter. What are the things that are routinely left lying about? Phone books? Toys? Magazines? Newspapers? What do you have for storage in this area? Do you have bookshelves that are cluttered? Drawers in cabinets that have no more room for new items? Are you not putting things away because there's no room?
You don't need a bigger house, you first need to stop bringing new things into your home without first getting rid of some old belongings that you no longer use, need or love. Find an organization in your town that accepts donations such as a mission, a thrift store or a women's shelter and find out the hours when you can drop off your donations. Pick one that works well with your schedule and is convenient for a before or after work stop. Always ask for a receipt to help you plan for tax deductions.
Get some kitchen trash bags to begin your task of eliminating stuff from your home and your life. You will feel so free once you get a handle on what you choose to keep and, if you're donating it to a worthwhile group, you'll feel even better for helping others. You will also need to get a trash can near your area because some of what you'll find will truly be trash and deserves to be tossed. Work on one small section at a time, then make sure to take a break. Don't try to tackle your entire home on one Saturday morning - it won't work.
Fill up a bag or two of things you won't miss, then immediately take them to your vehicle. Keep doing this until you are done for the day, always taking the bag to your vehicle once it is filled and ready to go. The first key is to get the stuff out of your home and you don't want to live will filled bags of stuff in the meantime.
As you get your vehicle filled with bags, make sure that in the next day or two you stop by your chosen charitable group to drop off your donation.
Are you having trouble deciding what to keep and what to get rid of? First off, only keep the stuff you love and that when you look at it, it makes you happy. If you are filled with guilt over certain items you are hanging onto, get rid of them. Your home and the items you have with you should only bring you happiness. Is it something you haven't looked at or used in the past year? If so, you can probably live without it. Is there someone you know or someone in your family who might appreciate the item more than you? There are many ways to move things on to others, just think about who might appreciate it more than you, then ask them to take it off your hands.
After the living room and kitchen have been tackled, then you should hit the main bathroom or whichever bathroom you make available to guests. Remember, the first areas you want to work in are the areas where visitors to your home may see or where you want to be able to relax and talk with friends. If you also have a family room or TV area, this is another you will need to work in the eliminate the things you don't need and that are keeping you from having a clean home.
The process of eliminating your belongings should be an on-going habit that you begin to develop. Remember that whenever you buy something new, your home is a finite space and you'll have to make room for the new things by eliminating old things. Filling boxes and storing them in the garage or basement doesn't count, you need to get rid of them by throwing them in the trash or giving them away.
Once you master step 1, eliminate, you'll be ready to begin step 2, establish and you'll finish with step 3, execute. It takes all three of these steps to have a clean home and one that only takes a few minutes of your day to maintain and always be ready for friends dropping by.
