How to Stick to Your New Year’s Cleaning Resolutions
2019 is here and the annual tradition of setting New Year’s Resolutions and vowing to break bad habits has begun!
The new year is the perfect time to start afresh and set yourself a few personal goals. This year, why not try setting some resolutions for your home too? From monthly decluttering, to cleaning the fridge once a week, these can be a great way to improve your family’s wellbeing and the general cleanliness of your home.
Once you have decided on your resolutions, the hard part is sticking to them! By late February, many of us begin to lose motivation.
Make this year different – we have gathered six tips that are sure to make your New Year’s cleaning resolutions a success!
1. Keep it simple
It is easy to get carried away when making resolutions, especially when filled with the optimism and determination of the new year. In reality, establishing new cleaning habits will take time and willpower. So, the best approach is to settle for a few, simple resolutions. This will allow you to focus your efforts and will make sticking to your goals more achievable. Check out our post on New Year’s Resolutions to Improve Your House’s Well-Being for some ideas!
2. Make a plan, not a wish
Once you have decided on your resolutions, the key is to make them specific. For instance, instead of declaring, ‘this year I will keep the fridge organised’, it is much more effective to decide, ‘this year I will organise the fridge once a week’. Break your goals down into smaller steps and create a plan detailing which day each task will be completed and how often. By creating resolutions that are clear, measurable and scheduled, monitoring your progress will become much easier.
3. Share it with the family
Sharing your cleaning resolutions with everyone in the house will help to drive your motivation and deter you from giving up. Better yet, getting the children involved will be a great way of sharing the work load and making sure the housekeeping resolutions are kept throughout the year.
4. Write it down
Make your cleaning resolutions concrete by writing them down. Creating a checklist or a journal can be a great way of tracking your progress. Try placing notes around the house, such as on the noticeboard or fridge, as this will help to remind everyone what should be cleaned and when. A written checklist will keep your motivation alive and ensure your resolutions do not fade into the background after the initial enthusiasm of January!
5. Reward Yourself
When making your New Year’s resolution plan, don’t forget to include rewards! Rewarding yourself and your family with a treat, after each successful month of sticking to your cleaning goals, will give you all a sense of achievement and will help to maintain your motivation.
6. Don’t give up!
Slip-ups are the most common reason why people give up on their New Year’s resolutions. However, it is important to remember that slip-ups and set backs are inevitable. If you forget to clean the fridge or pass on your weekly declutter, don’t view it as a failure or an excuse to give up altogether. Instead, treat every slip-up as a temporary set – back and resolve to get back on track!
Happy New Year and Good Luck!
Love,