I do not love to clean.  Truth be told, it’s a task that’s usually at the bottom of my to-do list (except for when we have friends coming over!)  Honesty counts right?!?  Daily there is too much to do and to little time to do it.  I’m not alone!  Many of us wonder how to keep our houses clean with so many competing priorities.

Cleaning is similar to exercise.  I like the end result, but mustering up the motivation to actually do it can be a struggle.  With exercise, I’ve found that when life gets too busy to squeeze it in if I can commit to a small amount of time e.g. 10-30 minutes, I’m motivated to be more consistent and some days I even exceed my expectations!  If cleaning is like exercising when you commit to short bursts of work, then you’ll likely be more consistent and ultimately motivated to get more done.   

Busy & Overwhelmed

Life is busy. Many of us are overwhelmed and focused on the urgent things we have to get done every day.  If you’re not motivated to clean, you can find every excuse in the world to avoid it, but I’ve got a quick and easy solution for you.  Even the busiest person can squeeze 10 minutes from their day.

Cleaning Routine Transformation Tip

Fitting in 10 minutes to clean and being consistent daily, can make a big difference.  Especially if you’re not the only member of the 10 Minute Cleaning Pit Stop team.  Yes, I said “team.”  Many hands make light work.  Get other family members involved and you will transform your cleaning routine!  We’ll talk more about this at the end of the post

Speed Cleaning Tips

• Decide what you want to tackle

Tip:  look around where you are in that very moment and take on a task that is close in proximitiy to where you are.  The more conveinet, the more likely you are to do it!

• Set a timer for 10 minutes
• Go get’em

You may be so happy with the end result that you decide to do another 10 minute task later in the day!!!

Ok, so now, let’s explore the list of 50+ 10 Minute Cleaning Tasks. Note:  Because we all have different size homes and a different number of people living in our home, these tasks are approximations. If you have a smaller home you may be able to scrub all of the toilets, but if you have a larger home (or messier people living there 🙂 you may only be able to scrub 2 toilets.

Kitchen:

The hub of the home and clutter trap for many!  Trust me, I know from daily experience!  While the kitchen can get messy pretty quickly, it can also be cleaned in small bursts.  There are many 10 minute tasks you (and your family) can do to help keep the kitchen tidy!

1. Clear the counter and put things up
2. Wipe down the counters and table
3. Wipe down appliances
4. Clean out the dishwasher
5. Empty the sink / Load the dishwasher
6. Run a cup of vinegar through an empty dishwasher
7. Sweep the floors
8. Mop the floors
9. Take out the trash
10. Clean Microwave and Scrub the Sink
11. Clean Oven
12. Wipe out the Utensil drawer

Living Room:

The Living Room can often see as much action as the kitchen, but because you’re not prepping food there, it doesn’t require as much clean up.  Here are six 10 minute speed cleaning tasks you can work into your weekly routine.

1. Dust
2. Vacuum
3. Dust Frames and Hanging Pictures
4. Quick Pick Up
5. Wipe down blinds
6. Fold Blankets and Fluff pillows

Bathrooms:

Most homes have multiple bathrooms.  You can either take on a lot of parts in one bathroom and do a quick 10 minute speed cleaning or you can tackle the same cleaning task across all bathrooms, for example, you could clean all of the toilets in your home in 10ish minutes.

1. Clean the toilets (up to 3 bathrooms)
2. Wipe down the counters (up to 3 bathrooms)
3. Empty the waste baskets (all bathrooms)
4. Clean the bathtub and shower
5. Clean the mirrors (up to 4 bathrooms)
6. Change out hand towels and restock toilet paper
7. Clean your make up brushes

Bedrooms:

I’m going to share a deep dark secret with you.  I don’t hang my clothes up every day.  During the week I’m usually moving fast and moving from one thing to the next.  From time to time (ahem, EVERY WEEK) I get into a rut and let my clothes pile up in my dressing area. So, if you’re not a clothes pile-r, then some of these activities won’t relate to you, but if you are…I’ve got quick solutions!

1. Sort clothes into piles hang, fold, wash
2. Hang up clothes
3. Fold and put up clean clothes
4. Do a quick pick up of anything that has accumulated on horizontal surfaces (top of a dresser, floor, night stand, etc.)
5. Make the bed
6. Change the sheets in 2 bedrooms
7. Dust
8. Vacuum

Laundry:

Now, the laundry can be a monster if you don’t stay on top of it! IMO! If you do a little each day, you will easily keep things in check.  Let’s look at five 10 minute speed cleaning tasks.

1. Start a load of laundry
2. Fold a load of laundry
3. Iron a couple of shirts
4. Sort the items to take to the dry cleaner
5. Put up clothes

Misc:

Let’s cover our last speed cleaning category so that you never have to ask “how to keep your house clean” again! Our category covers the span of the house.  They are things you can find in multiple rooms or areas.  Again, all 10 minute speed cleaning tasks you can take on when you don’t have much time!

• Wipe down the baseboards
• Wipe down light fixtures
• Tidy linen closet
• Return items to their original location e.g. things the kids brought downstairs to play with, need to go back to their rooms
• Wipe down door knobs with anti-bacterial wipes
• Organized books / magazines
• Change the Kitty Litter
• Wipe down the pet’s food area
• Wipe down light switches with antibacterial wipes
• Clean off the ceiling fan blades
• Change the furnace or A/C filters
• Clean out the cob-webs from the ceilings

But what if I don’t love cleaning?

So, as I admitted up front, I don’t love cleaning.  I do love to find things to help pass the time while I’m cleaning.  Here are a few ways you can engage your mind while you speed clean.

• Turn on a TV show if you’re in a room with a Television
• Take your tablet or laptop and put on Netflix, watch a Facebook Live, or catch your favorite Pastor online sharing a message.
• Listen to a podcast
• Put on upbeat music
• Listen to a book on tape

Involve others

At the beginning of this post, I mentioned that you should involve your family in speed cleaning.  This will help the work to get done faster and make sure responsibility is shared.  Here are a few ideas for getting kids involved.

• If you’re dusting areas, give the kids a rag and let them help
• Make the speed cleaning a game…for example, see who can pick up the most toys in 10 minutes.
• Do a challenge between two members of the family. My daughter and I are working on creating a new habit of making up our beds every morning before the day starts.  We keep track of who made their beds the most times during the week.  The winner has bragging writes (hey, it works!) and sometimes a little incentive.  For me, it’s a foot massage, for her, it’s a coin.

Bottom line, even if you don’t love cleaning, and you’re tired of asking how you can keep your house clean there are many things you can do in only 10 minutes.  By committing to dedicate 10 minutes a day, you can keep things in check.  Involving other household members will also lighten the load.  This list of 50+ Cleaning Tasks you can do in 10 minutes or less gives you an idea of where to start.  Are you ready?  Set?  Go!

 

 

 

 

 

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