Keep Your Household Running Efficiently
It’s difficult to keep things organized and clean at home when there is so much pressure to worry about these same things at work. After all, home should be a retreat and a place to relax. However, if you put some extra effort into getting to a solid baseline of clean, orderly, and efficiency, you can continue living from this point and it will only need to be maintained along the way. This will increase your enjoyment and ability to relax in a smoothly running home.
The least fun part comes first, so let’s get it out of the way: cleaning and organizing what you have and getting rid of the things you don’t need.
You might ‘know where everything is’ within your mess, but it’s easier for everyone in the house to operate with agreed upon, proper places for things. Then everyone can move about spaces with little clutter and access their own things without yours in the way. No one will need to track someone else down to find the kitchen scissors or the charger for the tablet because they have a proper place. Cleanliness and orderliness are habits and they don’t happen overnight. If everyone is dedicated to changing their habits and going easy on each other, it will be a more positive transition. It starts with cleaning and deciding where things should go, together. Then, when, say a dish is used, it should be put in the dishwasher or cleaned, not left on a side table or desk. When something is used, it should be put back when the task is complete, not just left lying nearby. Soon these actions become second nature.
Getting rid of clutter and unnecessary things is important for home efficiency, and, in some cases, can make your home more secure. There are many benefits of document shredding and preventing identity theft is one of them. Having old files, paperwork, and mail pile up creates a higher risk for losing track of them, having them seen or taken, or accidentally throwing them away – by you or a well-meaning family member. The same goes for old devices, disks, drives, and out-of-use technology. These can all contain sensitive information and should be destroyed and properly recycled by a certified document destruction company. The office will be easier to navigate with efficient, current files, and fewer items around. Go through your closets and other storage areas and separate things that can be given away, sold, or donated.
Creating a large, physical wall calendar with activities is a good way for everyone to stay abreast of what others are up to. Assign chores and to-dos to specific family members to do weekly. This will become their special task that they know how to perform well over time. Starting a family group text is handy for updates, reminders, and planning sessions. The history of the conversation can be searched for reference more easily than an email chain (that people tend to check less often, anyway). Keeping open communication and letting everyone in the whole family know what’s going on will keep you running like a sleek machine.
Efficiency at home isn’t going to happen overnight, but if everyone communicates, is open, and does their part, it will become second nature and improve the mood and enjoyment of your household.
