Quick and smart tips to maintain a cozy clean apartment

The LG semi-integrated dishwasher acts both as a home decor and appliance

When I first learned to clean my own place, I thought Saturday had to be an all-day clean-a-thon. I did not really have a concept of how to balance the workload during the week so that weekends could be reserved for larger projects or even, you know… fun.

Now am good at time saving. I clean in 20 minutes a day — every day— and things just seem to take care of themselves. Here is a glimpse at the schedule I use!

No one said you had to do everything at once and even when time seems short, if you can manage one task a day, things should start to work themselves out. Adjust this list as your family's needs require (those with more or less children might require doing certain activities more or less). If it's easier, take a blank calendar and fill it in accordingly so easier tasks are on days where your day is go, go, go and reserve the more difficult ones for days when things are a little lighter. 

Here are 5 tips to help make these 30 days a success:

1. Dealing With What Comes Through The Door: Set up a small area by the front door to act as a "landing strip" for incoming items to your home.
2. Do Your Dishes After Every Meal: This will help you stay on top of your kitchen instead of having it turn into a monster!  No one really wants to do them (after all, you probably cooked dinner to boot). But waiting for another meal or until you have enough to fill the LG smart kitchen dishwasher just makes things feel overwhelming and easier to put off. The same goes for taking out trash as well. If you need to take the trash out, place it by the front door to go out in the morning or dispose of it that night so it's over and done with.
3. Laundry: If you have a washer and dryer at home, do a little bit each day. My user friendly LG Twin wash machine does the magic for me  so you don't feel bogged down by 200 towels and stinky socks during the weekend. If you take things to a laundromat, sort clothes as you go so things are easier to load into machines when you get there. Fold them before you come home so you aren't dumping baskets out on your sofa or bed and they can go straight into drawers and closet
4. Whistle While You Work: No one really enjoys cleaning, but singing, humming, whistling or turning up the sound bar are all great options to keep the beat in your feet and have fun while working.
5. Set a Timer: The to-do list should take no more than 20 minutes total. It's easy to rationalize 20 minutes, but it's also easy to get distracted by phone calls, emails, children and other projects that call your name as you tackle each chore. Set a timer for 5 or 10 minutes (which ever works best for you) and that way when it sounds you know exactly how much time you have left. If you find yourself off task it's easy to get back on track.

To this list you can also add chores that need to be done monthly or quarterly. It's easier to plan for larger tasks like steam cleaning a sofa or a heavy traffic hallway, when it feels like part of the routine instead of that thing you keep putting off and dreading.

Habits are formed by doing and one of the best ways to change a bad habit is to replace it with a good habit. So if the time spent right when you come home from work is usually filled with email reading or a short nap, try switching this out with your cleaning instead. Filling these first 20 minutes of your time at home with quick cleaning will build good habits and help you stay on top of the game without feeling like it's a huge chore