why do i lack so much motivation to do house work? and how can i get some?

[cheekychic]

i have always lacked motivation when it comes to housework and although i never let my house get ridiculously messy.. its not the tidiest it could be.

 

why do i lack so much motivation to do it?? id rather watch tv with daughter, play with daughter, go shops, chat to friends online etc then tidy up but then its also annoying coz i want to have that motivation.

 

i mean its not as if its even that messy at all so i cant understand why i lack so much motivation coz its not as if i have a big job ahead of me or anything ... but i jsut would like it to be tidier.

 

i wish i could be one of these women who go crazy with hosue work every day.. but thats just not me

 

why do u think someone lacks motivation with cleaning and tidying???

 

and

 

any motivation ideas???

[3boys]

I'm the same as you so I can't give any suggestions, but I'd sure like to hear some. My house is clean, but cluttered (well, except for the dust on the bookshelves ) Part of the reason is that no one else in the house seems to help and I feel like I didn't make a majority of the mess so why should I have to clean it up? Hubby likes to think that he's Mr. Clean, but I'd have to say that's wishful thinking. For example, right now, there's a pile of clothes on HIS side of the bed that I don't know if they can be worn again (only worn a few hours or less) or need to be washed. I could probably just wash them, but I have enough laundry that really needs to be washed, I have no desire to wash clothes that don't need it. He'll also spend 10 minutes rinsing and stacking the dishes in the sink instead of 4 putting them in the dishwasher

[cheekychic]

lol ... yes my mess is caused by another person 2.. my daughter

if it wasnt for her then i doubt itd be very messy at all but she is only 3 and is only just leanring about putting things away.... and clothes is another thing... i am very lazy when it come to putting them back in drawers etc once they are clean and try grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr i annoy myself

[sweetharmony]

hey, i am in the same boat. lol. i end up either going out or on the internet....and really have to motivate myself. I love a clean house, don't get me wrong, i don't like being a little messy, but it's like procrastination. you have to think about it like it is your job. pick one day, like sunday evening...for just one hour and do the work...say, it's only one hour, that's it and then I can do whatever afterwords. even if everything isn't clean, just stop after an hour...so you don't get crazy the next time. if you haven't finished everything, spend a little time the next day and so forth. just break it up into little bits so it doesn't get too overwhelming...and I'm sur having a daughter makes triple the mess and can be exhausting.

[TheSmilingTurnip]

I know exactly how you feel. It annoys me greatly to clean up after my bf or daughter. My daughter isn't so bad; she's a child and she's learning. The bf? Another story.

 

One thing that helped me though, was Flylady. link removed. She advises just taking 10-15 minutes for each thing and not perfectionizing ourselves to death. And she's so right.

 

When I am in a real funk, I try to do just one thing per day until I'm feeling better. Remember, you will eventually feel better and you will eventually get it done. Just be patient and not too hard on yourself. It'll all work out.

 

Don't expect it to be perfect. Think about a standard you can live with and actually bring into reality, and then go with that.

[Entropy Smith]

^The flylady book helped me...and my apartment used ot be pretty bad.

[Sunshine75]

I don't enjoy housework either but I have found a few things that helped me:

 

1)Smells. I LOVE the scent of things. So I'll buy some carpet powder or cleanser that I like the smell of and it encourages me to clean. Kinda like aromatherapy.

 

2)Music. I'll put on some headphones of my favorite dance music that will keep me moving and just get to work.

 

Finally, the thing that has helped me the MOST is:

 

3)Schedule it. I've made Mondays "cleaning day." You can pick whichever day is good for you, but stick with it.

 

I did a thorough cleaning a few months ago(I do one probably once every 3-6 months), and the Monday cleanings are just upkeep - putting things away properly(not just throwing them somewhere), sweeping, mopping, vacuuming, etc. It's easier when it's not a massive overhaul every time because everything is basically clean.

 

Hope that helps.

[rocio]

I'm the opposite of you. When living alone, I was a bit of a clean freak. But now that I have a husband and child, the whole housewife thing is so overbearing. You can expend every last bit of energy you had to get the place spotless, go to bed, and by the time you get up the next morning it's all undone! It also sucks because the others don't seem to appreciate (or even notice) the work you've done. Not that they mean to be jerks about it but, well, if it was important for them to have a clean home, they'd clean it themselves. It's not, so they don't. Then you get upset about running around after them, cleaning up. It's just not a good cycle to get into...

 

So I've had to learn to let it go. When the whole place is a mess and there are dirty pots on the stove and I'd rather cuddle with husband or play with baby, I actually allow myself to feel proud. I'm not going to buy into that whole suzy homemaker crap. I've become a slacker housewife and I'm proud.

 

Who gets fulfillment out of being a good housekeeper anyway? Yeah, it would be nice if the home was always spotless. But that takes time and energy. Life is short and there are better ways to use that time and energy.

 

Edit: It's also cool because my husband helps out when the place is messy. He has to literally SEE the dirt, otherwise he thinks the place is clean as a whistle and has no idea how to help.

[greensleeves]

why do u think someone lacks motivation with cleaning and tidying???QUOTE]

 

We lack the motivation because there are so many better things to do with our time. Housework is boring! Don't expect perfection from yourself....do what you need to do to keep on top of things and liveable to your own standards. A home that is a bit messy is usually a happier home than a "house" that is spotless and perfect. What I do is each month my focus is on one area or room in the house to do a good cleaning/organizing/purging and just stay on top of keeping everything else somewhat tidy. That way the house is in a constant state of rotating spring cleaning, but it's not a huge chore.

[winchester3]

You could have your daughter hide some essential items around the house so that when it gets mess you have to clean the house to find them. Like a treasure hunt

[TheSmilingTurnip]

Greensleeves has the right idea! Housework is a way of blessing yourself and your family, but DON'T beat yourself up for it not being done or not being done perfectly!

[JadedStar]

I know exactly how you feel. It annoys me greatly to clean up after my bf or daughter. My daughter isn't so bad; she's a child and she's learning. The bf? Another story.

 

One thing that helped me though, was Flylady. link removed. She advises just taking 10-15 minutes for each thing and not perfectionizing ourselves to death. And she's so right.

 

When I am in a real funk, I try to do just one thing per day until I'm feeling better. Remember, you will eventually feel better and you will eventually get it done. Just be patient and not too hard on yourself. It'll all work out.

 

Don't expect it to be perfect. Think about a standard you can live with and actually bring into reality, and then go with that.

 

hey that is the method i have but i never heard of flylady. lol

 

As a matter of fact housework is exactly what i am in the middle of doing right now. LOL i like to do most all of it on saturday. all the big stuff.....

 

I take little breaks in between so that i can get it all done. I actually enjoy it tho. It clears my mind. It is a great stress reliever for me.

[TheSmilingTurnip]

Jaded, I know what you mean. Another thing is - it is so much easier to clean when there isn't clutter everywhere. I love it when I have less *things* to dust around, take up space, organize, yada yada yada.

[PixelPusher]

Make a list of things you want to do and just do one or two per day. Spending time with your daughter is really important, so pushing aside some chores to do that is perfectly fine. I can understand looking at all the things to do and feeling overwhelmed and unmotivated, so just do one or two at a time. If I'm watching TV, I end up doing them during the commercial breaks, too.

[greensleeves]

Spending time with your daughter is really important, so pushing aside some chores to do that is perfectly fine.

 

I completely agree with this. You will never regret forgoing a few chores to play with your daughter...time spent with her is never wasted time and it's far more important than a gleaming house.

[EmotionalCreature]

The trick is to get it all done in the first place rather than set a date to clean them all up, try setting a date that you and your family can enjoy activity together like watching favorite show, out to movie, bowling, dine out, romantic / quality time with your partner etc in which you won't have to tidy up right away.

 

It's more like treating yourselves to a relaxing day / night a week, rather than treating yourself 6 days a week then one full day of torture, make sense?