7 Principles of Psychology You Can Use to Improve Your Cleaning
- Organize your Cleaning Products First
One of the most common reasons people procrastinate when it comes to cleaning is because they are short on time and can’t find what they need when they need it. So many of us will start the task of cleaning, but then are unable to find the product we are looking for and while searching for it we become distracted and fail to get back to the task at hand. As part of your cleaning process take some time to find and organize your cleaning products and then leave the actual cleaning to the next day so you don’t feel so overwhelmed.
- Reward Yourself
If you’re struggling with how to get started setting up a positive reward for yourself to enjoy after you’ve finished cleaning can really help. Before you start set aside or pick out a snack that you enjoy to treat yourself afterward or pick out a favourite episode of television to watch. For the larger tasks make the reward bigger. For instance, you could plan to go see a movie or get something to eat at your favourite restaurant.
- Start Off Small
Many people find cleaning difficult and often put it off because the task seems too big to tackle. Like many things breaking the task of cleaning something down into smaller pieces makes it easier for our brains to understand and makes it easier to accomplish. Instead of trying to clean the whole house in one day pick a specific cleaning related task to do each day.
- Focus on the Positives
If you’re someone who dreads cleaning going in with a positive mindset or attitude towards your task can make a real difference. Instead of focusing on how much you don’t want to do the task at hand if you focus on the positives of cleaning and what will come of it, you’ll find the task easier to do. For example, knowing that you’ll be able to walk into a room without tripping over something can help improve your motivation.
- Set a Timer
If you’re someone who finds yourself getting easily distracted by other things and as a result you never seem to get around to the cleaning you need to do, setting a timer might help. This method is called monotasking and by setting a timer and blocking out time to do a specific task and only that task you are allowing your brain to focus solely on one thing which will enable you to get the task done faster and on time.
- Distract Yourself
If you approach your task with a sense of dread it won’t be enjoyable time and you’ll find yourself putting it off more and more. One way to make cleaning more enjoyable is to distract yourself while doing it. Since most of our devices are portable these days and cleaning typically requires the use of your hands, but not your ears you can do other things to entertain yourself while you clean. For example, you could call a friend or a family member, listen to a podcast, or rock out to one of your favourite albums.
- Clean from Top to Bottom
If you clean regularly but find that often when you return to a certain room or area that it feels like something you just cleaned is already dirty again the way you’re cleaning might be the problem. If you’re cleaning multiple surfaces within the same room, you should start at the top and work down. Both physics and psychology are at play here. Dislodged dust and dirt will follow the law of gravity and fall onto surfaces below when you clean and cleaning from top to bottom provides order and gives you a clear plan with which to work from.
