I need to clean up my kitchen. I need to do something about my closet. I need to organize my clothes… I feel like I need to do all these things, but I can’t bring myself to start.
Are you always caught like this somewhere in your mind? Do you have a hard time tidying up because you don’t have the energy, you get tired soon, you are too busy? Aren’t they excuses?
Tidying up doesn’t have to depend on “place” or “content”, you can control it by determining your own timeframe.
Free yourself from the stress of having to clean up by changing your way of thinking!
Tidying Up by Determining a Time Frame that Works for You
The “time frame” here literally means the length of time.
There are almost always three reasons for not being motivated to start tidying up: energy, stamina, and busy.
For Those Who Can’t Keep Up One’s Energy, Start From One Hour
There is the type of person who can’t even muster up the energy to clean up. Isn’t it because you imagine the huge amount of work that needs to be done before you even start cleaning up? In that case, you can set a time frame of, say, one hour, and do what you can within that time frame.
Next is the type that has the energy but doesn’t last long. There are cases where you are very motivated at the beginning, but your motivation decreases as the cleanup time gets longer, or you are fully motivated and put in all your power at the beginning, and then you run out of breath and your motivation decreases. In this case, you can also start with an hour or so.
It is also important to determine whether you are a short-range or a long-range person. You can’t just blindly take your time and get it done. In either case, it’s a good idea to start with a set amount of time so that you can stop before your energy drops to zero.
You can just dispose a garbage. You can tidy up just one drawer. Or you can start from a single shelf in the bathroom.
The important thing is to get a sense of accomplishment from the cleanup. This will surely lead to the next step.
If Your Physical Strength Does Not Last
Physical strength varies from person to person, so I cannot give you a proper value for how much is enough. All you can do is to set a timeframe, such as 30 minutes, an hour, or half a day, and do as much as you can so that you can stop before you get tired.
It’s not good if you get tired and feel rejected about cleaning up.
Start from 15 Minutes, If You Are too Busy to Take the Time
I’m too busy to take the time to clean up! Is it true?
I know one person who says so. She goes to work at 5 in the morning and comes home after 8 or 9 in the evening. It’s like a battlefield as soon as she steps into the office, so by the time she gets home, she’s too exhausted even to take a meal. So, her clothes are piled up like a mountain.
Even if she tries to clean up on her day off, she wants to sleep for at least a minute. It’s her day off and she wants to go out and have fun rather than cleaning up her room.
You don’t have to spend half a day or a full day for cleaning up.
How about setting aside 15 minutes a day, or even 10 minutes if that’s too much, to clean up every day?
For example, when you get home from work, you have five minutes to change your clothes. Decide that you will always put your clothes on hangers. If your closet or rack is too full to even do that, get rid of the clothes you no longer wear once a week, even once every two weeks.
Decide that you will take three minutes to clean the washroom when you go to the washroom to wash your hands,
Spare two minutes to clean up whatever is on the floor, when you go to the living room.
The action of deciding and repeating is important. Just imagine you repeat this every day and how clean your life will be.
It’s only 10 minutes a day. Spend 10 minutes tidying up whatever you have to do. As long as you have the desire to clean up, it will work.
Again, the key here is to get a sense of accomplishment and to get into the habit of cleaning up.
This type of person will always rebound if they don’t have a habit of tidying up, even if they put everything away quickly.
In order to prevent this from happening, I recommend a daily 10 or 15 minute tidying habit.
Summary
Tidying up doesn’t have to be separated by “place” or “content”; it can be done at a specific time.
１．For those who cannot stay motivated – Start from one hour. It is good to start with something that will give you a sense of accomplishment that you have cleaned up.
２．For those who are not confident in their physical strength – Determine a time frame you won’t be tired and get it done.
3. For those who think they are busy and have no time – Make a habit of doing something that gives you a sense of accomplishment, even if it’s just for 10 or 15 minutes a day.
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