Seven Secrets For Successful Spring Cleaning

As good as it feels to dust off the cobwebs and freshen up the house before the summer heat starts up, the process of getting everything in order can sometimes be a painful one. Instead of dreading this year's cleaning sessions, let the following seven tips help make the process easy and enjoyable.

1. Get your family involved. This is absolutely essential if you want to get things done quickly without doing all of the work yourself. Plan ahead at least a month so that you know everyone will be available. Mark it on the calendar and remind every family member of the date.

2. Figure out exactly what needs to be done. You'll feel more accomplished at the end of it all if you set measurable goals for each room. Write down the name of each room of your house and make a list of the chores that need to be done in each room. Include such tasks as vacuuming, washing windows and dusting for each room, in addition to other room specific chores, such as organizing toys or mopping behind refrigerator.

3. Once you've figured out what needs to be done, decide if it can all be accomplished in one day, or if you had better plan a cleaning weekend, or a series of Saturdays. The goal is to get everything accomplished without stressing yourself out. If you need to take a few days to get it done, start with the biggest jobs first. Working from big to small will help you feel like you've gotten more done.

4. The final preparation step before your actual cleaning day is to delegate the tasks to various family members. If you have very small children, you may need to make arrangements for them for the cleaning days so they won't be underfoot. Older kids can pitch in, as well as your spouse. You can either give a person the responsibility of cleaning an entire room, or you can break down the chores by task. For example, one child could be in charge of all the vacuuming.

5. Get all of your cleaning supplies together ahead of time. You can get buckets at the dollar store and fill them with all of the items that someone would need to clean a specific room. Get a bucket for each person, or one for every room. This way you won't have to stop to get supplies and you'll have everything on hand.

6. On the day of the cleaning, get everyone motivated with a big chart. When tasks are completed, you can check them off on the chart so everyone can see how far you've all made it. Offer rewards for the halfway mark. You can make it fun by offering prizes for the first completed, the most thorough job, etc.

7. Once the cleaning is done, reward the family with a special treat. Order a pizza, rent a movie or get cleaned up and go out for the evening. If you reward everyone for a job well done, they'll be on board next year to help out again.