A Reddit user has shared five cleaning tips that they say helped them maintain a tidy home, after another user appealed for advice on managing household chores. The original poster, who said they and their partner are both neurodivergent, hold three jobs each and care for three dogs, explained that cleaning frequently becomes "out of hand".
Struggles with dishes and laundry
Sharing photographs of their property, displaying clothing and belongings scattered across the floor, they wrote: "We mainly struggle with dishes and laundry, but overall dirtiness and clutter too." They added that they had tried numerous approaches to managing household tasks, but found them all "difficult to keep up with".
In response, one user, who said they are also neurodivergent, listed five recommendations that they claimed had helped them keep their home in order.
Five tips for a tidier home
The first tip was straightforward: "Don't put it down, put it away," they advised. "Make this your new habit with EVERYTHING."
Their second recommendation was to "quit buying things". They cautioned against purchasing fashionable decorative pieces and "trinkets", stating: "Get rid of all the extra stuff you don't use or want either."
Tip number three was to tackle the washing-up every evening before going to bed, and to prevent them from accumulating. "Just load the dishwasher," they suggested. "Who cares how dirty it is - you can always run it a second time! Alternatively, empty it EVERY morning so it's ready to go that evening!"
Their fourth suggestion involved dedicating five or ten minutes each evening to tidying up clutter while listening to music. They added: "[This means] future morning me can wake up refreshed and motivated for the day ahead - NOT overwhelmed the second I open my eyes!"
For their final piece of advice, they said: "Think about your future self. Do small micro cleaning habits that your future self will thank you for. Examples that come to mind are doing my hair and makeup before an outing and coming back to a clean counter vs an explosion of makeup everywhere."
Further advice from other users
Another user contributed their own pair of suggestions. The first was: "If it takes less than two minutes to do, don't wait and just do it." Their second tip was: "Everything has a place and purpose. I don't buy anything any more if I don't know exactly how I will use it and where it will go."
A further commenter recommended tackling one particular chore per day rather than attempting to address everything at once.
In a follow-up to their original post, the initial user responded: "Thanks for all the tips! So many comments were very helpful and I'm taking notes (literally)!" They continued: "We are going to get rid of some stuff but I'm sorry, getting rid of half of our things just simply isn't possible and wouldn't bring us joy. We love our decor. We love our books."
They added: "We obviously need to declutter and purge, but getting rid of everything we own isn't helpful or a solution we can get behind. Hundreds of you have suggested this. I'm happy you're all living minimalist lives but we aren't minimalist people, we just want a functional life and that's possible without getting rid of everything we know and love."
