Is there any way to make cleaning fun?

Question

Everyone dreads the same thing: cleaning up a mess. The question is: is there a way that cleaning up can be a pain-free or even fun job?

Answer 1

I had something my roommate called "Frenzy Friday" where we'd take a couple of hours early Friday evening and clean the heck out of the apartment. He would have been perfectly happy never to clean it at all, but by limiting it to Friday (a) it kept me from nagging the rest of the week and (b) it meant that we could relax in a more or less clean apartment the rest of the weekend. As long as you reserve a couple of hours, you'll get a meaningful amount of work done and it won't feel like you've shot your whole free time when those hours are over. And if you do it early enough, you can still go dancing when you're done!

Answer 2

Here is how the whole family cleans house when we need to all pitch in to get the work done. And it may take a little bit longer, but it makes it easier.

We clean for fast and hard 15 minutes (could be 20), then take a break for about the same amount of time. We know we only have to work for 15 minutes instead of feeling like the work will never end. So instead of cleaning dragging out with everyone "slow poking" we all clean fast because we know it wont last long! Been doing it this way for years.

Answer 3

I havent figured that out yet, but I try to change the routine and break up the chores. Instead of dreading Sat or Sun as "The Cleaning Day", I do a little every other day, so there is never a huge amount to do at any one time. The worst for me are the bathrooms and my cranky stove, so I tell hubby to clean one bathroom, I do the other and we both hit the stove everyday, with one of us cleaning the oven every 10 days or so, since I dont use it much.
The fridge is a leftover from the people I bought the house from, and it must have been Satan's, I could clean that thing everyday, and it still looks like crap and smells like a dead racoon. We have both given up that thing!
Laundry is done in small batches 3 times a week, and vacuuming every 4 days, unless I notice dust balls the size of cattle, then more often.
It still isnt fun, but at least I dont dread it anymore. :)

Answer 4

I don't like to clean either, but I have everything organized, start in the rooms you don't walk through, and I do one room at a time. That way it is DONE! I fight with my head, like 15% of the house is clean, can I get to 30% in an hour, then I can treat myself with a cup of coffee or something. Seems like I get stuck in the kitchen. It is never all the way clean.
Turn up some music with a good beat, shut the phone off so you won't get distracted, pull open the curtains so you have good light, and think about all the good exercise you're getting!

Answer 5

Lots of tips to make it more pleasant:

Declutter your crap. Then you have less to put away, less to look at, less to move and clean up around. AND you may even find that you need less house which really makes things more fun...get a roommate, get a smaller house and work less to pay for it, get a smaller nicer house, get a smaller house in a nicer neighborhood...it is all very possible even if you didn't end up moving. The bottom line is clutter is a thief and it robs you in every way...time, energy, money, visual calm. You end up on a hamster wheel that some call "The American Dream" and you never really get there. It is also called affluenza.

Get organized. Give things a home that is sensible. The point is not to be so prickly about keeping it there, the point is that when you want it "put away" you know what that means and everyone else knows too, and then they can help you more realistically. Less brain work. Another facet of organizing is having a system for getting the jobs done before they get overwhelming...so you know when enough is enough.

Have the right equipment and cleaners, this isn't always about spending money, there are a lot of homemade jobbers and potions that are great for cleaning. Also allow your cleaners time to work.

Double up your housework with quality time as a family. Everyone 2 and up in the household should have jobs, it connects a family and brings you closer through interdependence and making a real contribution. Not to mention that every every every job in the house can be spent as a teachable moment with any any any other person in the house. When you think about any age group, teaching life skills, teamwork, critical thinking skills, work ethic, social skills, and even just getting to know each other or getting through a tough job together, competing and cooperating...housework as a family ROCKS. If you aren't getting the help you need, try spinning it that way to your family members. "I love you so much that I want our home to be clean. You matter so much to me that I want to spend time with you. You are so talented that I value your help to get stuff done." instead of nagging about chores or complaining about imperfect work or whining that you are the only one doing things the way they need to be done.

Related: Check your expectations. Are they realistic? Your cleaning standards, your routines, your solutions need to be YOURS. Your mother lived in a different world. Your sister lives in a different world. Martha Stewart lives in a different world. You can borrow from anyone's ideas but your methods eventually have to be yours and you and your family members are the only one that can decide how things will be at your house. If you are fighting unrealistic expectations, then housework will be a drag. If you keep things in perspective, and do things the way YOU need to, then it will be easier.

Do a little every day. Erase the evidence of your activities as you complete them. Did you make a sandwich? Can you tell by how your kitchen looks after the sandwich is made? If so, make it look like you were never there. For big projects like you see on TV shows, you can break them down smaller and smaller until each task is managable, or you can set a timer or race yourself during a movie or a CD and stop working when the timer/movie/CD stops. Maybe a first task is assembling your cleaning stuff in handy sizes and loading them in a bucket so they are portable and near when you need them.

You can also cooperate with friends to help you. Maybe you each work together on both your homes. Maybe you each clean on 2 different days while the other takes all the kids out of the picture.

You can actually find some spiritual satisfaction in some of the mindless motions and sounds of cleaning. It is meditative and also very metaphorical if you look at the symbolism of your house and your life...doors for example, could be seen as opportunities and access points to letting people see your true self. Are your entrances pleasant, welcoming, and uncluttered? This is where feng shui principles come into play...often very very sensible. And if that isn't hokey enough (I still think it's true)...

You can also stay positive instead of feeling unappreciated or deprived by thinking about how much you are nurturing yourself and your family by getting things clean, orderly, sanitary, welcoming. This is an act of love and service for even a single dweller...getting your home to a place where it can take care of you. It can be viewed as a privilege to be allowed so much power as to influence the way a home takes care of its occupants.

Answer 6

Yes there is a way to make cleaning fun. You can make cleaning fun by listening to music and dancing and/or singing along

Answer 7

yes ! Play your favorite music and sing along.Practise some dance steps.Have a house cleaning party for spring cleaning,serve pizza and a huge salad on paper plates when you're done.works for me.

Answer 8

Yes. Music.

Answer 9

HECK YES!!!! I love to clean, cleaning is my passion. First of all, you have to crank up the tunes. Personally I enjoy a mix of hip hop and gospel. You get the gangsta beat with the uplifting lyrics - Christy Lane is my hero. I can't help you fix yourself, but at least I can say I tried.

Answer 10

I like to turn vaccuming my house into a big dance party. Even my girlfriend joins in!

We pump up the volume on the stereo, we pull out the "Shake 'n' Vac", and go for it!

One of my favourite tracks to vaccum to is "Shake Me" by Mint Royale. It's even better when your shaking the "Shake 'n' Vac" all over the carpet whilst the track is playing!

In fact, Shake 'n' Vac was famous in the UK for the Dancing Woman - see it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRlGQvOxDwI