How to Create Tidying Habits that Stick
With everything going on in our lives, keeping things organized and tidy at home can be difficult. You may ask whether it’s worth it to go through the organizing process at all if it’s just going to become a mess again. Well, organizing creates a system for where everything should go to make it easy to put things away. I mean, how can you tidy if you don’t know where things go?
But how to keep up with it? It’s important not to get stuck trying to keep things perfect. Aim for functional and lived in. If you keep up with it enough so that your home isn’t too cluttered and your home is relaxing and comfortable, then when you want it perfect, like say for a party or meeting the in-laws, then you won’t have much to do to get it there. So here are some tips on creating lasting habits for keeping your home feeling like your happy place.
13 Tips for Creating Habits
Repeat, repeat, repeat – repetition is the key to creating a habit. That goes double for children and pets.
Be consistent. If you miss once, get back on track right away. Consider using a habit tracker when adding a habit to one of your routines and try not to break the chain.
Use well-defined triggers that always happen to initiate the habit. For instance, I always fill my water bottle before bed and that action triggers going into the kitchen where I know to also put the dishes in the dishwasher.
Use habit stacking, which is the practice of pairing it with a well-established habit. For instance, if you want to start reading more, you can listen to an audio book while you walk the dog. If you’re like me and hate commercials, choose a tv show with commercials and do the habit during the breaks.
Make it simple and easy to do. Reduce the number of steps and break it down into short tasks. For instance, clean up and tidy as you go by putting things away and wiping things down before you move on to the next thing.
Be clear and specific about what you will do and when.
Create obvious cues that get you to start your habit or routine, like using an alarm on your phone.
Set up the space in a way that makes doing the habit easy and visually cues you to do it. Organize the tools and supplies and make them easy to access. For example, set out your clothes and make your lunch the night before.
Eliminate distractions. For instance, turnoff the sounds and vibrations on your phone. Better yet, put it in a different room.
Make it gratifying by doing it at the same time as something you look forward to, gamifying it (turning it into a game) to make it fun, or arranging something enjoyable for right afterwards. Don’t give yourself the reward unless you complete the habit. Or do it while you’re waiting for something to make the time go more quickly. An example of this would be if you have a tv show that you look forward to every week, do the new habit while you listen to it.
Join a culture where the habit is the norm, like a gym or a meetup group.
Pair with an accountability partner. For instance, dust while catching up with your mom on the phone, while she is also dusting.
Customize it for you, your motivations, how you prefer to do things, and how you live your life. Use your priorities and vision for your life and your home. For example, if your life is pretty hectic and you spend a lot of time with your family or housemates, you may be motivated to sit quietly and fold the laundry to get some alone time. Or the reverse, you may have a pretty solitary life working from home and enjoy connection, so fold the laundry while catching up with a friend.
Action Steps
Schedule time in your calendar to work on your new tidying habits.
Write down specifically what habits you want to create. Remember, not every tidying habit needs to be done every day. Focus on what’s realistic for you and your family and making your home functional and comfortable.
Choose 1 or 2 that will make the most impact.
Use the tips above to create a specific plan for how to implement your new habit.
Be consistent and keep going even if you miss it one time. Don’t let that derail you.
After you give it time to see if it works, make tweaks if needed and try different strategies listed above until you find the ones that work.
Ask for help if you need it from a friend, family member, or accountability partner. I’m always here to help has well.
After a month, work on creating your next 1 or 2 habits.
