Parents have too much responsibility to take. You need to provide for the family’s needs while making sure the house is clean and healthy. While some people are lucky enough to have a partner to split the responsibilities with, some have no choice but to take the role of mom and dad.
Keeping the house clean and organized is a must if one values the health, safety, and sanity of everyone living in the house. When a single parent has little kids to take care of and still needs to make ends meet in between, what can one do to keep things together?
Some people claim that the best way to make sure you get things done each day is by honing your time management skills. But then, an article published in Harvard Business Review says otherwise. According to the article, the key is to find a sensible way of managing workload so that you can improve your productivity.
So what does it take for single parents to keep the house clean and organized while juggling work and childcare? Here are five tips you can consider adopting.
Invest in a Minimalist Lifestyle
One way to keep a house organized and tidy is by embracing a minimalist lifestyle. This goes beyond filling your home with different organizers to give everything a place of its own. Sometimes, we need to open our eyes to what we need to stop paying for things that will only add to the clutter.
Many parents are guilty of buying lots of things their families don’t really need and use. The key to organizing a messy household is to get rid of unnecessary clutter. The same goes for only investing in items your family will make the most use of.
Think about home improvements. Many homeowners would invest in projects that only invite more clutter inside the house. Before you invest, consider the consequences and benefits first.
For instance, instead of buying more kitchen organizers for the space, why not invest in brand new cabinets in the kitchen instead? By saying goodbye to your old cabinets, you will find it easier to organize your kitchen. You will also have more reasons to sort your belongings and start getting rid of the non-essential kitchen stuff you have lying around the space.
Stop Procrastinating
We are often told that there is no reason to tackle all things listed in your to-do list in one day. But the problem is, many of us are always procrastinating. We cannot finish cleaning and organizing the house because we spend more time doing things that do not help us get things done.
Take mindless social media use as an example. Many parents use social media to pass the time, entertain themselves, and keep up with their loved ones by posting cute pictures of their kids. But then, we often spend too much time scrolling on Facebook and Instagram, which is why we are left with little-to-no time cleaning the house.
If we only invest time spend on social media in organizing the space, we can get more things done. We will have more time to play with the little ones. Less clutter will pile up, the space will be cleaner, and we can have more time for self-care.
Get Everyone Involved in Cleaning and Organizing
Unless one of your kids or family members is immobile, there is no reason to try to do all the cleaning and organizing on your own. Your kids may still be little and can’t communicate well using their words. But know that even toddlers can learn to help around the house if we allow them to.
Give everyone age-appropriate tasks and watch your to-do list shrink in size. There are many chores you can assign to your little ones that are safe for their age. We need to realize that giving kids chores is one way to teach them responsibility at an early age.
With your toddler helping you clean up after their own mess, you will have one less thing to worry about. You will have one task you can cross out of your list. This gives you more time to rest while turning chores into quality time with the little ones.
These are ways to make cleaning and organizing your home a lot less stressful. One only needs to start making the most of their time by finding ways to boost their productivity. You can do this by getting all family members involved, stop your procrastination, and adopting a simpler and minimalist lifestyle.
