Okay, let’s talk cleaning. Because, you know, it’s one of those things, isn’t it? Like, you know you should do it. You might even appreciate the feeling of a clean space… eventually.
But the doing part? Ugh. Especially when your brain is wired a little differently, maybe jumps from one thought to another like a caffeinated squirrel. Sound familiar? Yeah, me too.
I’m not about to tell you to Marie Kondo your entire life. Honestly, the thought makes me want to lie down. What I am thinking is, maybe there are ways to make the whole “cleaning” thing less of a monumental task and more of a… well, a series of tiny, potentially ignorable, steps.
See, the problem for me, and perhaps for you too, is that “clean the house” feels like this huge, looming boss battle in a video game. And I just don’t have the energy or the focus to even pick my weapon, you know? So, what if we didn’t try to conquer the whole house at once? What if we just aimed for, like, one tiny victory?
For example, the other day, I had this pile of… stuff… on my desk. Papers, random charging cables, an empty mug from, I think, Tuesday. It was just there. And I kept looking at it, feeling this low-level hum of annoyance. But actually dealing with it? Nope. Too much.
Then I thought, “Okay, just pick up one thing.” And I did. I grabbed the mug and took it to the kitchen. That’s it. That was the win. The pile is still mostly there, admittedly, but the mug? Gone. Progress, right? I think so.
Maybe we can apply this to other areas. Like, the bathroom. That can feel particularly overwhelming. But what if we just focused on one surface? Say, the sink. Just wipe the toothpaste splatters. That’s it. You don’t have to scrub the shower or clean the toilet right now. Just the sink. Feels a bit more manageable, doesn’t it?
And then there are the furry overlords.
My three cats – Kim, Pukis, and Ciko – they are adorable, truly. But the amount of hair they can generate is frankly astounding. It’s like they’re constantly shedding tiny pieces of themselves all over my life. Vacuuming the entire house feels like a Mission Impossible episode.
So, sometimes, I just vacuum the one area where I tend to sit the most. Like, the rug in the living room. It’s not perfect, but it’s… less hairy. And that’s a win in my book.
Oh, and speaking of things being everywhere – dust. Where does it even come from? It’s a constant source of mild irritation. I’ve found that keeping a duster in a really obvious spot – like right on the coffee table – makes it slightly more likely that I’ll actually use it. It’s right there, staring at me. Less friction, you know?
Now, I’m not saying my place is consistently spotless. Far from it. But these little, almost ridiculously small, steps? They sometimes make a difference. It’s like tricking my brain into doing a tiny bit of cleaning without realizing it’s “cleaning.”
Maybe you have your own weird little cleaning hacks for when the motivation is… well, let’s just say “on vacation.” I’d actually be curious to hear them. Because honestly, surviving adulthood, especially when your brain has its own agenda, often comes down to finding these little loopholes and making peace with “good enough.”
And hey, if you happen to be in Indonesia and need a place to stay, I do have that Airbnb… still waiting for its first brave soul. Maybe I should try these tiny cleaning steps there too. One less dust bunny at a time, perhaps?
What do you think? Does any of this resonate? And more importantly, what’s your go-to “I really can’t be bothered but I guess I should do something” cleaning move?