11 Easy Ways to be That Impressively Motivated Person Who Always Has a Clean House

If you love a clean house but sometimes lack the motivation to actually accomplish a proper whole-house deep clean then you might just need a good excuse -with a strict deadline- to get the job done.

A day of tidying, mopping, wiping, and deep cleaning with no payoff at the end isn’t very satisfying. It’s so much easier to just sit back and watch while the roomba pushes pet hair into the corners of the room, let the dishwasher leave water spots on your wine glasses, or watch your gardens grow out of control instead of cleaning your house. But an event, an occasion, or just a task that requires showing off your home can provide that motivation to create that home cleaning deadline and get the job done. Plan and prepare for a few of these events that require a tidy and clean house and you’ll no longer worry about leaving a mess too long.

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Have Your Friends Over for Instant Clean House Motivation

Difficulty Rating: Casual

Target Spaces: Kitchen, Living Room and Bathroom

They are just your old friends. They’ve seen you at your worst, and they’ll never judge you if you forget to sweep away the cobwebs. However, you should still show them the respect your time together deserves by properly preparing for it. Set a date to invite the old crew over and make them feel like important, distinguished guests in your lovely home with a clean, welcoming entertainment space.

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Your Parents Are Stopping By

Target Spaces: Entry, Living Room and Bathroom

Think about how you’d like your parents to see you, your home, and all the success you’ve had as a full-grown, functioning adult. If the keeper of a well-kept home is who you are (or aspire to be), that’s how the people who helped get there should see you. Stop putting off that visit from the folks and make sure you have a beautiful, clean home for you all to be proud of.

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Host a Neighborhood Party

Difficulty Rating: Keeping Up With Joneses

Target Spaces: Entry, Kitchen, Living Room and Bathroom

This list is top-heavy with entertaining, but we’ve arrived at the big one. The most strenuous and thorough of the entertaining scenarios that require cleaning your house. The Neighbours. The picture-perfect families up and down the street, driving the newest hi-bred, pushing the biggest stroller, perfect lawns, always judging you from behind their curtains. Well, maybe not the last one, but they could. You know, just a little. Not that you would ever do such a thing. Most importantly, bringing the neighbors together creates a safer community and builds a strong support system, and it’s a good reason to scrub every nook and cranny in case they do turn out to be just a little judgey.

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You Need to Call a Repair Person

Difficulty Rating: Easy, Like a Well-Worn Denim

Target Spaces: Work Area

This is a great excuse to tackle that room in your home that’s often neglected. Unless it’s a kitchen appliance that’s on the fritz, professional repairs are often needed in more private areas of your home that don’t get prioritized on the to-do list. The mechanical room in the basement, your ensuite, or the laundry room are great examples. You have a hard-working expert in their craft toiling away in your home. Provide them a nice clean work space and give yourself a pleasant room to work in after the repairs are complete.

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Make a Playdate

Difficulty Rating: Medium

Target Spaces: Entry, Kids’ Rooms, Den and Bathroom

It’s easy to think they’re just kids and they’ll mess everything up anyway, but a playdate is the best opportunity to teach your kids the importance of keeping a clean space. Create this opportunity for a valuable life lesson and have your kids invite their besties to a home they feel proud of. Note: Also works on spouses.

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Book Family Photo Session

Difficulty Rating: Hard, Scary, Intense.

Target Spaces: Entry, Exterior Spaces

Nothing, and we do mean nothing, is less forgiving than a 45-megapixel Canon R5 with an L-Series telephoto zoom lens and 1053 zones of Auto-Focus. If there is dust, it will find it. Dirty window? Of course. An invisible scratch on the cabinet door? You didn’t even know that was there. It’s actually not that scary because a family photographer will always prefer photographing outside, so book a photoshoot and use the occasion to clean up, polish, and prune your most photogenic exterior spaces. A bright living room will work, too, because soft drapes and textured couches won’t show as many imperfections, but don’t forget to clean the windows!

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Plan a Festive Family Feast

Difficulty Rating: Deliciously Fun

Target Spaces: Family Room, Dining Room, Kitchen

Planning and experiencing a holiday or special occasion should always start with a nice, clean home. A warm family brunch is best enjoyed in a clean dining room. A mountain of sweet snacks in front of the TV is better on a clean rug with perfectly chopped throw pillows on the couch. And it can be more festive to break a fast with a spread on a clean kitchen island. Celebrate those occasions that are important to you and your family and use them as motivation to deep-clean your favorite family spaces as part of the build-up.

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Find a New Decor Piece and Create a Clean House to Display it

Difficulty Rating: Treat Yo’ Self

Target Spaces: The piece’s special place

Give yourself the motivation you need to polish your shelves, clean the coffee table, or vacuum deep into the corners of your room by purchasing a new decor piece. Whether it’s a thrift store find or an elegant splurge, find that special new piece that brings you joy and gives its new home a good deep clean on arrival.

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Celebrate The Changing Seasons With a Clean House

Difficulty Rating: Fun

Target Spaces: Spring – Exterior Spaces, Summer – Garage & Gardens, Fall – Entries & Mudrooms, Winter – Family Rooms, Dens, Living Rooms

Mark the changing of the seasons by targeting the areas that will feature in your home for the next three months with a thorough, deep clean. Depending on where you live, March 21st might not be the best day to ring in the spring season, but choose that first ‘spring weather day’ and wake up those dormant outdoor spaces. Celebrate the arrival of summer and weed those gardens that April showers sent out of control. Use the sunny driveway to assess and purge the mountains of junk that have accumulated in your garage. By fall, your mudroom and entryways have taken a beating from all the in and out, get them cleaned up and ready for coats and wet boots. And by December 21st, you’re ready to snuggle indoors and get cozy in your favorite rooms. Get them deep-cleaned and ready for nesting season before it’s too late.

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That One Zoom Call

Difficulty Rating: Swag

Target Spaces: Office

There’s always that one manager or team lead who hates talking to a bunch of black squares, so be prepared for that big meeting with a real backdrop dressed up to impress. Dust, polish, and line up your favorite books, family photos, and trinkets, and become a little less reluctant to “turn on those cameras.”

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