Nobody likes clutter. In a perfect world, our work area and home space [1] would always stay in perfect order. Until the day reasonably priced robots are invented that make everything squeaky clean for us (hey, a girl can dream, right?), we've got to somehow find time in our busy schedules to clean, organise, and declutter things on our own. Truth be told, organisation [2] is not really my strongest suit. And more often than not, cleaning for me is a rushed afterthought. Recently, though, I've taken cleaning lessons from someone much better at keeping things neat than yours truly: my 9-year-old daughter. Her room is always spotless, and she does an impressive job of leaving a space cleaner than she found it — so I asked her to share her secrets. When it comes to tidying and organising [3], she's got plenty of tips to offer, and I've discovered they not only make sense . . . they seriously work! Read on for her most efficient and easy-to-follow favourites.
Designate A Space For Everything.
No exceptions! Decide what goes where, and stick to that decision. For my daughter, that means every toy gets put away [4] when she's done playing with it — leaving it on the kitchen table is a no-no. For me, I have to remember that depositing a half-read book on the couch or dumping papers on the coffee table is just clutter in the making and breaks the "designated space" rule. But once I have it in my mind that things have a right place to be, everywhere else starts to feel like the wrong place, and it gets easier to remind myself to put items away properly.
Don't Rush.
Sure, we all need to multitask [5] at times, but jamming a bunch of activities together lends itself to a lot of disorder. I've noticed my daughter always takes her time when she's cleaning, so I also do my best to also not hurry through my tasks. When I rush, I only end up cleaning the topical dirt, and miss the deep-down grime, like that black lining of grunge in the corner by the bathroom vent (and yes, I am speaking from experience here).
Organise Based On Use.
Yes, it's great to get all similar items in one place, but now I'm always sure to consider how to arrange them – something my daughter is very careful about. Whenever I can, I organise things [6] so that all the items I frequently use are easiest to find. In the spice cabinet, for example, I keep what's most used in my recipes at the front, whereas what's least touched gets stored in the back, which keeps me from rummageing through them all constantly and causing disorder during meal prep.
Label Everything Properly.
You'll never catch my daughter storing t-shirts with long-sleeve t-shirts together! Inspired by her diligence, I always make sure that I don't mark a box or cabinet's contents as "financial records" and then throw some other notifications in because they kinda-sorta fit the label [8]. A year from now, I know I'll be looking for those documents and have no clue where I put them. I take the time to be specific and make sure my label makes sense for what's actually stored in a file, cabinet, drawer, whatever. No labels marked "miscellaneous" allowed!
Use Paper Towels — Or Put It On Something Else.
This may seem like a no-brainer, but I know personally, I've used my kitchen counter or table for something it wasn't made for . . . only to regret it later due to a scratch or impenetrable stain [9]. I thought my daughter was going overboard every time she grabbed a paper towel, but it's been a game-changer. Adding a protective layer between the item and whatever surface I'm using is an easy way to keep things a little cleaner.
Don't Break the Rules.
Once I set my cleaning rules [10], I try to stick with them. Even when I'm in a rush, I know taking an extra moment to set things in order will mean less of a mess to deal with later. As my daughter's shown me time and time again, the more I work at maintaining a clean environment, the easier it will be to keep things that way.