Prime's Ultimate Cleaning Tips
Keeping your home clean and organized can feel overwhelming, boring and endless. With my tips and tricks to make it (almost) effortless, it takes the 'cba' out of general cleanliness by making it a mindless habit that takes up a few minutes some days and a bit more on others. The goal is to try annd make it so that there never needs to be a big cleaning job to be done because it all just gets done in dribs and drabs through the day. And most of the time, just doing the starting bit is enough to get you to do a bit more than you'd initially planned.
Have the vacuum handy
If your vacuum cleaner is upstairs, in a closet, behind a pile of boxes, you're much less likely to use it because of those extra steps you have to take just to get the job started. Keep it somewhere handy, somewhere where there's only 1 or 2 steps to get to it. Most people don't want it visible all the time, so keep it somewhere the space allows it to be super accessible, but hidden. Behind a door (if it fits). For the first few days put it somewhere you can see it, temporarily, until you see how easy it is to use when it's right there.
When it comes to vacuum cleaners, cable management is another problem for a lot of people. Having to wrap it up every time you've used it becomes a chore in itself, especially if you only plan on using it for a few seconds or minutes. I recommend finding a quick and easy way to store the cable that only takes a few seconds. A cordless vacuum cleaner gets rid of this issue, but the battery presents new problems in itself, so it's not a fix-all solution. If budget and space allows, having both offers the best of both worlds.
Your main floors really only need vacuuming once or twice a week in most cases to stay 80% decent*. This varies on the usage of your carpet; how much foot traffic (and if you wear shoes or socks), kids, pets, crumbs from eating etc. Getting used to vacuuming for a few minutes is the key here. Finding a procedure to follow that works for you that makes the whole process take ~5 minutes. If you get used to doing this once or twice a week and build that habit, then at least one of the times that you do it you will naturally do a bit more than is necessary, like right in the corners, behind things that don't normally move, skirting boards etc. These only need doing once or twice a month (thankfully) so you can skip it the majority of the time. You'll also naturally spot things that need doing (corners of skirting boards, spider webs) and note them down mentally and do it next time you have the vacuum out.
*If you have little children (or adults) crawling/rolling around on the floor I recommend to do it every day or every other day.
If you have things on the floor like small tables, kids toys, books etc, just vacuum around them as a minimum, no need to mix tidying and organising clutter with vacuuming (unless you want to!). Either vacuum between things or move them to one side, clean most of the floor, then move to other side and clean the rest, sort and declutter later. Just be sure to move things that might end up getting sucked up the hoover (cables, small items etc)
Kitchen Kleanup
Here are some practical, low-friction tips for keeping on top of dishwashing / sink management in a realistic, habit-building style—because the kitchen sink is one of those places where small daily friction turns into a mountain very quickly.
Keep everything you need to do a wash out and on the counter or next to the sink, not tucked away in a cupboard. If you have to open a cupboard, bend down, rummage, then close it again just to start, most people won't. Having everything within one arm's reach means you can attack a single plate or mug the second you finish eating without thinking twice. The goal is to make "I'll just do this one thing" feel effortless.
Gloves. Marigolds and a scrubber that is already loaded with soap turns a 30 second job into 5 seconds. No need to get the soap, no need to dry your hands. This makes this next step so much easier;
Do micro-washes throughout the day instead of one giant session. Whenever you pass the sink and see 3–6 things, wash them in 60–90 seconds. A coffee mug + breakfast bowl + cutlery takes almost no effort or hot water, and doing five of these little bits per day keeps the sink almost empty. The full "evening wash-up mountain" rarely appears, and if it does you actually have energy for it because you aren't already exhausted from staring at the chaos all day. (It also makes cooking throughout the day less bothersome because the kitchen is clear and all the utensils are clean)
Rinse any pans or utensils at the end of the cooking process not after the meal. Dried on food stuck to pans are the crux of washing pots, and are very easily avoidable with minimal effort. Waiting until food is cold and glued on turns a 20-second job into five minutes of swearing.
Stack plates, bowls etc rather than side by side. This saves space, and makes the job of washing pots look easier, which means you're much less likely to drag your heels before doing it. A crusty, food-stuck pile looks like a three-hour job.
Train yourself to see that post-cooking rinse as part of the cooking, not a separate chore.
Keep a few inches of hot soapy water in the sink, and when you're done using the item and leave it there. You don't have to scrub right now; you just have to dunk it. Later—whether that's 20 minutes or 4 hours—the gunk will have loosened itself and come off with a lazy swipe. This one habit cuts scrubbing time by about 70% on the worst offenders.
Give the sink a quick wipe. A shiny clean sink tricks your brain into thinking the whole kitchen is under control, even if there are still a few things drying. A grubby sink, on the other hand, makes everything feel dirtier than it is. It's one of the highest-impact tiny habits you can build.
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Finally, pair sink time with something tiny you enjoy. Stick a headphone in and put on your favourite song, prop your phone up and watch something, or just stand there and people-watch out the window for a minute while you rinse. The micro-reward makes your brain stop seeing the sink as punishment and start seeing it as neutral (or even mildly pleasant) background noise to something nice. Over a couple of weeks the association sticks, and you'll find yourself drifting over to do a quick wash without the usual resistance.
Build these little systems and the kitchen stays functional with almost no "big clean" moments. Most days it just quietly never gets out of hand.