I’d like to start this month’s column by telling you that, generally speaking, if you don’t want to clean, you don’t have to. This is a judgement-free zone.

I think many of us have a tendency to get wrapped up in the shame of our living spaces not being quite up to standards, which can be an obstacle in and of itself.

Maybe you feel unsafe in your space because you let it go too long, or the clutter is making it hard for you to focus, or it’s affecting your mental health.

You really want to get some cleaning done, but you’re overwhelmed, tired or ashamed.

These tips have worked for me to get the ball rolling. They may not work for you, but it might be worth a shot.

Set a timer. It can be for any amount of time, from 1 minute to several hours, and that time should be spent taking care of whatever it is that is bothering you. There are two ways that this can end up. Either the timer goes off and you go back to whatever it was you were doing before with less guilt, because you were able to get something done, and that is something to be proud of. Come back to it later. Either that, or, once you get started, you find that you can keep going after the timer goes off, and suddenly you’ve gotten a decent amount done. That can feel very rewarding.
Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. At some point I got it in my head that every single cleaning session needed to be a deep cleaning session, but that is not always the case. I would end up putting things off if I didn’t have time to really clean, and then when I did get to it, the task was a mammoth one. Of course, if you have the energy to deep clean your bathroom multiple times a week, more power to you. But don’t discount the positive effects of a little light tidying, sweeping and wiping things down. This can turn a multiple-hour job into a 20-minute job, and just like that, you have made your space a little more comfortable. This has the added bonus of making your less frequent deep-cleans a lot easier as well.
You don’t need to clean the whole house at once. You’ll drive yourself crazy trying to keep absolutely everything pristine. Maybe you have three rooms that really need a good cleaning, but you’re exhausted. Tackle one, and leave the rest for another day. Maybe do some of that light cleaning I was telling you about if you have the energy for it.

Schedule the tasks. This one likely goes without saying, but don’t underestimate what a little organization can do. I like to write it down, but if you have the kind of brain that can hold onto this stuff, that is awesome. First, rank the importance of the tasks. Then pick a day to tackle each task a little at a time. Just seeing the chores spread out can have an immediate calming effect on my overwhelmed brain, personally.

Remember that you are more than what your house looks like, and happy cleaning!