“Come on in, just overlook the mess.”

Pretty sure we’ve all uttered those words before,  “Come on in, just overlook the mess.”  Not a shining moment for anyone.  If you implement my 5 things you should do daily you’ll never have to utter those words again.  You’ll actually spend less time cleaning, more time enjoying your home and you’ll always be ready for company.  

It can be overwhelming trying to keep a house clean.  You feel like it’s a never-ending cycle, and guess what, it is. The house will always need to be cleaned.  Unfortunately, if you live in it, it’s going to get messy.  It can be a challenge to keep it all under control. 

Do you dream of having a home that’s always company-ready?  A home where you don’t panic when the doorbell rings?    

Now, I know you weren’t born yesterday, and you understand that those clean homes don’t just stay clean. 

I wish they did. 

Sorry, there’s no magic wand that I’ve found. Yet, at least.  I’m still searching. But, I will share with you the next best thing.  The top 5 things you can do daily to keep your house clean and company-ready.  

The top 5 things you can do daily to always keep your home looking clean and company ready.

Make the bed’s

I can’t express to you how much this simple task can impact your day.  When the bed is made, everything immediately looks cleaner. It’s crisp and puts your brain at ease.  You put yourself in the mindset that this day is beginning. 

Even if no one else sees your bed, you probably see it multiple times a day.  I don’t know about you, but seeing wrinkled up sheets and blankets makes me anxious. But even more, so it’s also always calling my name to crawl back in, throw in the towel on the day, and binge watch Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix. 

So get up, make the bed, and set yourself up for an amazing day.

Do the dishes

Ugh, the dishes!  They never end!  Seriously!  It’s like running on a treadmill, eating Oreo’s, and brushing your teeth all at the same time.  I get it. 

So, here’s the deal.  You cannot let those guys pile up.  

Dishes get loaded into the dishwasher 3x a day at my house after each meal.  I tried not letting anything sit in the sink, but I felt like I was constantly doing dishes since I was the only one doing it.  I felt like I was shackled to the sink.  So, I backed down. 

Here’s the biggest secret.  Don’t go to bed with dirty dishes.  It’s not some crazy superstition, but it’s mentally rewarding.  Waking up to a clean home is huge for your mental mindset. You feel ready to take on the day.  Not already dreading the sink full of dishes that need to be tackled.

So make it a point to take care of them after each meal, if not more often.

Tidy up!

The flat surfaces of your home are like a magnet to all the “stuff.”  It’s insane the amount of stuff that can accumulate on them.  So don’t let it happen.  

The greatest trick I ever learned was using a laundry basket to tidy up.  It’s the perfect size and has handles, making it easy to tote around.  

Start in one room, preferably the one that collects the most random stuff.  Collect everything that doesn’t belong there.  Move to the next room. If there’s anything in the basket that belongs in this room, put it away.  Collect anything in this room that doesn’t belong and add it to your basket. Then, move on to the next room. Repeat throughout your entire home.

Once you’ve gone thru every room, you may have some things you collected that belong in the first few rooms you did. No biggie.  Work your way back through the house, putting those items away. 

The biggest pointer here is to start with the room that collects the most “stuff” from all the rooms, usually a family or bonus room.  That way, you’re putting away more as you go along your way compared to adding more to your basket.  I recommend doing this twice a day, especially if you have kids.  Once as part of your morning routine and once after dinner or before bed.  It keeps things under control, and there’s not as much to do at one time, so it doesn’t take as long.

If you’re staying on top of it, the tidy up process should take no more than 10 minutes.  

Floors

Can I just start by telling you how much I hate floors and if you have kids or pets, I bet you hate them just as much as I do?  

Having clean floors instantly gives your home that “I’m Clean” feeling.  

Hardwood floors can especially show the “love tracks” quickly.  Yep, “love tracks” that’s what we’ll call the trail of mess that kids and pets leave throughout your home.  

The saving grace in my life is my Shark ION Stick Vac.  I’m a huge advocate for Norwex cleaning products, but I’m sorry my stick vac is my go-to for daily floor cleaning.  It’s quick, simple, and can do my area rugs at the same time.  

 Even if you can’t get to the bedrooms, etc do the floors in the main living areas daily or every other day to keep things looking fresh.

Bathrooms

Another area no one likes to talk about.  I don’t know a single person who says, “oh yay, I get to clean the toilet!”  

I also know we’ve all felt that state of panic when a guest says, “can I use your bathroom?”  Is the toilet a disaster?  Is there toothpaste in the sink?  OMG, the anxiety.     

Avoid that feeling by doing a walk-thru of each bathroom daily.  Put away any clutter and wipe down the sink and toilet if they need it.  That’s it.  

If you can keep it up, it doesn’t get gross. It’s that simple.  

Seriously, after I get ready for my day, I put everything away, including everyone else’s things, and wipe down the sink.  That’s it. It takes 2 minutes.  

If I use the bathroom and notice any mess, I take care of it right then. Taking just an extra minute can save you hours later and keeps everything looking clean. Again, Norwex, for the win here!  

That’s it.  It’s really that simple and once you make it part of your daily routine it won’t take a lot of time.

Less Time Cleaning = More Time For You

Actually, if you follow through with the 5 steps to keeping your house clean, you’ll save yourself a lot of time.  See, if things are always tidy, then on the days you “clean,” there’s not near as much to do.  I can dust my entire home and vacuum all the floors in an hour.  I can “clean” 3 bathrooms, tubs and showers included, in an hour.  Then guess what?  That’s it, and my house is clean.

It doesn’t take long because there’s no mess.  The messes we let pile up and accumulate are what takes all the time.  

So, if you want to have one of those homes that always looks clean.  A home where the doorbell rings, and you don’t panic.  Then, take a few minutes here and there throughout your day to keep it in order.  You’ll be so glad you did. 

Need more help?

If you need more help with how to structure your day, you can check out my post on how to plan a productive day. If you need more tips on cleaning, you might find my post on creating a cleaning routine you can stick with helpful. Plus, you can check out the related posts section at the bottom for additional posts you may find helpful.

I’d love to hear from you!

If you found this post helpful, please share it on your social media with friends or family.  I’d also love to hear if it helped you or if you have any suggestions. You can drop me a comment below or shoot me an email. 

May you have a home that always looks clean and is company-ready!  You’ve got this!

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