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The reason why you can’t keep your house clean might be because you’re aiming for an unrealistic standard. Learn to develop a cleaning standard you can achieve. Perfect for women who are working full-time, have a packed schedule, or are caregivers for family!
“It’s a GOOD thing,” I sneered through twisted lips, mocking Martha Stewart as she closed a segment on deep cleaning wallpaper, or some other crazy crap I had zero time for.
“Give me a break, lady. You get paid to clean your house on TV,” I mumbled.
I watched the sparkling room fade to black on the screen as I folded my last piece of laundry. My chest collapsed under the weight of jealousy and disappointment as I sighed, “I’ll never be able to keep my house that clean.”
Home Image – It’s a Thing
Similar to body image, our home image can be distorted and unrealistic.
We’re bombarded with images on Pinterest and TV of immaculately clean, perfectly organized homes.
We read blog posts about how some incredibly efficient woman deep cleaned her entire house with a toothbrush in 45 minutes while parenting her kids, doing her taxes, and smiling the entire time.
It’s the home equivalent of Kim Kardashian, and we’re repulsed and jealous all at once.
We wish desperately for an insanely immaculate house, as our chests tighten at the simultaneous realization that we probably don’t have the time or energy to achieve it.
You feel like there’s something wrong with you because you can’t keep your house clean.
STOP. RIGHT. THERE.
If deep cleaning with a toothbrush works for that woman, that’s fantastic. But you shouldn’t feel bad if it doesn’t work for you.
Why? Because she has a completely different house, family, schedule, and life than you do. What works for her may not work for you.
Trying to fit her standards into your home and life is a recipe for disappointment, defeat, and poor home image.
Here’s Why You Can’t Keep Your House Clean
Okay, here goes… watch the video below or scroll down to read on about the REAL reason why you can’t keep your house clean.
If you feel like you can’t keep your house clean and organized, its probably not because you’re incapable.
It’s probably because you’ve been trying you hold yourself and your home to someone else’s standards.
You’ve been chasing the ideal image of a clean and organized home for so long, and it’s taken a toll.
You’re tired, overwhelmed, and feel defeated before you even start cleaning. You don’t even know where to start organizing.
You think it’ll never be good enough and you don’t have the time or energy, so why even try?
The truth is, sweet friend, you’re setting the bar so high, Neil Armstrong had to place it on the moon for you.
You’re letting someone else set YOUR expectations for how clean and organized YOUR home needs to be.
THAT’s probably why you can’t keep your house clean.
Here’s The Solution
Most people fail to realize that cleanliness and organization are not a single, defined state of being. Rather, they’re on a continuum – sort of like a scale from 1 to 4.
Finding the right balance between cleanliness and personal flexibility will help you set and maintain a standard in your home. As a result, you’ll have more positive home image, and feel less stress about cleaning and organizing.
The trick to keeping your house clean and organized? Decide what level of cleanliness and organization is realistic based on your time, energy, and needs, and make THAT your new standard.
Not sure how to develop your own cleaning standard? Great news! My 4 levels of cleanliness and organization will help get you started.
By the way, if you need a cleaning schedule, like, yesterday, check out my post on keeping your house clean in 30 minutes a day.
How to Develop a Cleaning and Organization Standard
Before we delve into my 4 standards, let’s bring it back to square 1.
Remember that the whole idea here is to figure out what you have the time and energy to do based on your home and lifestyle.
As a result, I’ve provided some estimates on what it might take to maintain each standard. They’ll help you decide which one is a good fit for you and your family.
The elements are:
- Time Commitment. How much time it’ll take to maintain the standard on a regular basis. Low = little time. High = lots of time.
- Family Effort. How much effort you and your family will need put forth to maintain the standard. Low = little effort. High = significant daily effort. Some examples of high effort would be always putting things away, family members cleaning up after themselves consistently, etc.
- Environmental Preference. Your tolerance for lower levels of cleanliness and organization. Low = you’re cool with some clutter. High = you can’t stand messes.
Here’s an example of why you can’t keep your house clean without a realistic standard.
Let’s say you’re shooting for a standard that requires high time commitment, high family effort, and a high environmental preference.
But when you look at your schedule, you realize you can’t handle a high time commitment. And your family isn’t quite able to keep up with a high level of effort, either.
See how you’d be shooting for a cleaning standard that’s unrealistic?
Decide What’s Realistic For You
The reason you can’t keep your house clean is because you’ve been holding yourself to someone else’s standards. So, it’s time to figure out what you can realistically do, so you can develop your own standard.
Think about each of the 3 elements above, and rate yourself and your family based on your life right now – not how you’d like it to be.
- How much time are you able to devote to cleaning each week? Low, medium, or high
- How much effort is your family willing or able to contribute toward keeping the house clean and organized? Low, medium, or high
- How much do clutter and dirt drive you crazy? Low, medium, or high
Got your ratings? Woo hoo! Keep them in mind as we move on to the cleaning standards. Review the ratings for each standard, and find the one that matches most closely with your own ratings.
Pinterest-Ready
- Time Commitment: High
- Family Effort: High
- Environmental Preference: High
Remember the lady who deep-cleaned with a toothbrush? This is probably her standard. Here’s what it looks like:
- Virtually no clutter
- Surfaces are consistently clear
- Home is almost perfectly clean most of the time
- You’re happy with the strong organizational systems you have in place
The Pinterest-Ready standard is perfect if you have lots of time, energy, help, and desire to keep your house clean. It works well for those who regularly entertain or are super neat freaks. (Nothing wrong with that, by the way!)
Where you should focus: Keep your home clutter-free by regularly getting rid of things you don’t use, need, or love. Be super picky about letting new items into your home.
Stow and Go
- Time Commitment: Medium
- Family Effort: Medium
- Environmental Preference: Medium
Stow and Go households are on the move, and don’t have time to clean and declutter right away. Here’s what it looks like:
- Good organizational systems throughout most of the home
- Items are often out and in use, but are put away by the end of the day
- There is a little clutter
- Home is cleaned at least weekly
- Kitchen and bathrooms are spot-cleaned 1 or 2 times per week
The Stow and Go standard works great for couples or families who are:
- On the go
- Have fairly limited time to maintain their home
- But still want a fairly well-cleaned and organized home
Where you should focus: Keep your organizational systems running smoothly by decluttering them regularly.
Life In the Fast Lane
- Time Commitment: Low
- Family Effort: Medium
- Environmental Preference: Low
These families live a go go go lifestyle. They’re short on time and have many commitments. As a result, they’ve learned to live with some extra clutter. They also don’t stress over wanting a pristine house, but expect family members to do their fair share of chores to keep things running smoothly. Here’s what it looks like:
- Some basic organizational systems in place that work fine most of the time
- Some clutter accumulates between cleaning/organizing sessions
- Home is cleaned a few times per month
- Family members are expected to pick up after themselves and contribute to cleaning
Life in the Fast Lane is the prefect solution for families with multiple kids, especially if both parents work full-time. The key is to maintain expectations while learning to embrace the mess sometimes.
Where you should focus: Reinforce good habits for your family (And yourself!). Encourage everyone in the household to put away their own belongings and keep common spaces clean. For example, wiping down kitchen or bathroom counters after use.
Family Circus
- Time Commitment: Low
- Family Effort: Low
- Environmental Preference: Low
If you’re an exhausted mom, work long hours, or have little to no extra time, Family Circus is perfect for you. It also works for those who aspire to another standard, but aren’t yet able to go for it. Here’s what it looks like:
- Minimal organization systems in place
- A good deal of clutter might be present all the time
- Items are regularly left out
- Home is cleaned about once per month
Family Circus is bare-bones cleaning and organization. If your time and energy resources are tied up in other things, it’s perfect for you. For example, a new baby, caring for elderly parents, or someone just starting out on their journey to a clean and organized home.
If this is what you have the time and energy for right now, then set this as your standard and feel good about it. Once you’re used to this standard, you can slowly move toward another one… IF that’s what you want to do.
Where you should focus: Take a few minutes each day to spot clean your kitchen and bathrooms. Even 5 minutes daily will help keep them clean and sanitized. Find time to squeeze in extra cleaning when you can.
Why You Can’t Keep Your House Clean: Conclusion
Keeping a house as clean as you would like it to be might be difficult. The reason why you can’t keep your house clean could be that you’re aiming for a standard that’s unrealistic for your home and life. Every family, home, and life is different, and one person’s definition of “clean” probably won’t fit the unique situation of another household.
A home cleaning and organization standard you CAN achieve will set you up for success.
Choose to feel good about doing what you can do, rather than feeling frustrated about what you think you should be able do. As a result, you’ll be able to let go of frustration, guilt, and maybe even envy over the perfect homes on Pinterest.
Do you struggle to keep your home clean after work? Join the ShowMe Suburban Community and grab your free copy of my 10-Minute No-Fail Cleaning Game Plan for Working Women! It will help you ease into a daily cleaning routine and gradually get your house looking great. It’s perfect for keeping your home clean in the time you have!
This post was really encouraging, because not only do I work full time and have an aging parent, our house is in a semi-renovation mode from some damage to the roof, which led to water damage to ceilings and plaster walls, etc. Although the roof has been replaced, we have not gotten to the other renovations yet, and that creates more “the house is a mess” stress. Realizing that I need to set the standard that works for me at this stage, and not for someone else, is a very positive approach to cleaning my house!
I’m so glad this post encouraged you, Sylvia! It sounds like you’re dealing with a very full plate at home, and trying to keep it all clean is no easy task. Giving yourself grace and doing what’s realistic for your current season of life are so important. Sending positive thoughts your way! 😊
Amy, I have all the time in the world and my home is still messy, I’ve worked on myself for years but still feel guilt, is like my home to be perfectly organised but I’ve learnt to accept living mess, it’s the being consistent I have a problem with and I also identify with your idea of being perfect.