A neurodivergent brain makes you unique and special, but it can also make some tasks more difficult to do. For you, that might be cleaning your house, and if you struggle to finish the job, stay on target, and keep focused on what you are doing, then these tips for people with ADHD could help you. Even if you only have mild ADHD or you don’t have it at all, but you still have trouble focusing, you may get some help from this article.
Break Up the Job into Small Bits
It is tough for most people to stay focused on one job for very long thanks to dwindling attention spans across the globe. If you have ADHD, it might be even more difficult, but this tip is really for everyone. If you have some trouble staying with a large task until it is complete, then you may want to try breaking it up into smaller tasks that you can do in short bursts.
For instance, if you want to clean your kitchen, you can break the big job of cleaning an entire room into its different tasks. Take one job at a time, working on washing dishes for one period, cleaning the floors for another, wiping down surfaces for a third, and organizing the cupboards and cabinets for a fourth period.
With any room you are cleaning, just figure out what the tasks are and give yourself one of those to do at a time. Stay focused on that task as best you can until it is completed, and then you can take a break to let your mind rest before going back to the next task on the list. To keep your single task in mind, you can make a list and stick it onto the wall, and then just check off each task as you complete it. That paper on the wall will be a constant reminder of what you are doing and what comes next. This simple method could make a big difference.
Time Yourself for Each Job
You may lose track of time and forget to do important things because you are focusing on a task. The world around you might seem to disappear, so keep yourself grounded and have a tether to pull yourself back to reality. You can do that by timing your task, setting an alarm for 10 or 15 minutes, or whatever your time will need to be. At the end of that time, you can stop the task and assess if you need to set another time or go on to do something different.
By setting alarms as you do jobs, you will be able to worry less about how long the work is taking and focus on the work rather than worrying about what you might be forgetting to do or what you need to do next. Alarms help us to focus better and be less distracted by the next item on our list.
Bring All Cleaning Items into the Room before You Start
What happens if you start cleaning a room and then realize you don’t have the tools you need? Do you lose track of your focus when you go into another room to retrieve the cleaning tools? If that happens or there is a risk it might happen, then it is best to bring all the tools into the room you are going to work on, and then you should do that ahead of the cleaning. That way, you should not need to leave the room. Think ahead and plan for with you will need in the room before you begin, and you ought to be more focused then and accomplish more with fewer distractions.
It’s Okay to Have Some Help
You might feel like you need to do all the cleaning yourself, but that’s not always practical, is it? When the work gets to be too much or you are too busy or you just can’t stay focused long enough to finish, it could be worthwhile to bring in some help. So, who do you ask for assistance? Not all of us can ask a roommate, family member, or friend to help out with the house cleaning. You can do a search for weekly house washing near me and see if thee are professional cleaning services in your area. There are probably quite a few, especially if you live in a big city.
There are going to be times when you need some assistance with the house chores, and that’s okay. Calling in professionals or asking for a friend to help out should not be a shameful thing. It would be tragic if you needed help but didn’t ask for it and then overwhelmed yourself and stressed yourself by trying to handle things on your own. If you just pretend like the work doesn’t need to get done and that it doesn’t bother you, even though it does, that would be equally unfortunate.
What you might want to do is to complete all of the housework you can and then leave the rest for whoever is helping you, whether that is a cleaning service or a friend. This way, you can feel accomplished and be contributing but also not be overwhelmed and put too much on yourself.
Make Housecleaning a Habit
The rituals and habits you make can become very helpful. If you have the habit of putting off work until the last moment, try to form a new habit of getting some work done as soon as you see it needs doing. Try to get in the habit of doing some housework as soon as you wake up and right before you go to bed. These things can become rituals in your life that allow you to do more and keep the work from getting out of hand. Just don’t let yourself be controlled by habits that you sometimes need to take a break from.
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