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For the longest time, I was very messy, and didn’t mind it. I just hated taking the time to clean. I wanted to go, go, go! I’m social and ambitious, and I really didn’t want tasks like folding clothes or wiping down counters to slow me down. I wanted to finish one activity, and start the next, without pausing to clean up any sort of mess I’d just created. Maybe because I was young or single, it didn’t bother me for many, many years. But then, things took a turn for the better. I met a very tidy partner—he’s so tidy that it can cause some disputes—and he generally taught me to appreciate living in a clean space. He had to, because we were moving in together, and he just couldn’t live the way I lived.
He didn’t say anything for the first couple of years we dated because he had his own home to retreat to—his clean place. But once we started talking cohabitation, he just had to tell me, “Hey the way you live causes me anxiety and I really don’t want messiness to be the reason we don’t work out. So…can you fix it before we live together?” So I did. It turns out love is a pretty good motivator like that.
As I was forced (not really, but kinda) to live in a cleaner, tidier way, I became accustomed to living like that. And then, I started to like it. I really started to understand how not living in clutter is good for your moods, mindset, and productivity. But I still never came around to enjoying cleaning. It still feels like a huge bummer to me. So I’ve had to learn cleanliness hacks for lazy clean freaks. Like these.
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Have a bed that’s easy to make
There’s no need to make things difficult on yourself with your bed. If you aren’t going to replace 10 accent pillows and a throw blanket every day, then don’t have those things. Having a duvet, instead of a comforter and top sheet, can be nice, because you just give one item a big shake, and the bed is practically made.
