I don’t know about you, but when someone says, “I’m cleaning the house today,” my immediate reaction is exhaustion.

Not because I don’t want a clean house—I do—but because that phrase is so big. So vague. So overwhelming.

“Clean the house” could mean:

• scrubbing baseboards
• vacuuming everything
• cleaning bathrooms
• tackling piles
• organizing closets

And once a task feels that ambiguous, it’s easy to avoid it altogether.

That’s where my thinking started to shift.

Making Change Smaller (Thanks, Heath Brothers)

I’ve been reading Switch by Chip and Dan Heath, and one idea really stuck with me: change is easier when you shrink it.

Instead of aiming for perfection, you aim for progress. Instead of big, exhausting goals, you design small, repeatable actions.

So instead of telling myself, “I want a clean house,” I changed the goal to:

I want a cleaner house.

That one word made all the difference.

The 5-Minute Rule

Here’s the rule I’m living by:

Most days, cleaning should take 5–10 minutes.

That’s it.

Not a deep clean. Not a reset day. Just one small, defined task.

Dust the furniture.
Vacuum the upstairs.
Wipe the bathroom sinks.
Clean out the litter box.

Done.

Step 1: Make a Master List of Tiny Tasks

I started by listing everything that needs to happen to keep our home functioning—not perfectly clean, just livable.

Big tasks became small ones:

• “Clean bathrooms” became:
  • wipe sinks
  • clean mirrors
  • scrub toilets
• “Kitchen reset” became:
  • wipe counters
  • empty trash
  • clean fridge shelves (monthly)

Nothing fancy. Just honest.

Step 2: Assign a Frequency

Next, I gave each task a realistic frequency:

• once a week
• twice a month
• once a month

For example:

• Litter box → once a month
• Dusting furniture → once a week
• Vacuum upstairs → once a week

This took the guesswork out of it.

Step 3: Put It on the Calendar (and Reschedule It Immediately)

This part has been surprisingly motivating.

Today, I cleaned out the litter box. When I was done, I went straight to the calendar and scheduled it again for the end of January.

Future me will be annoyed—but also grateful.

Nothing lives in my head anymore. It lives on the calendar.

Step 4: Share the Load With Kids

Some tasks don’t need to belong to me at all.

Age-appropriate chores:

• emptying trash
• feeding pets
• wiping counters
• vacuuming common areas

It’s not about perfection—it’s about participation.

Why This Is Working for Me

• The tasks feel doable
• I don’t procrastinate
• I don’t need motivation—just 5 minutes
• The house slowly improves without burnout

And most importantly, I’m not waiting for a mythical “cleaning day” to arrive.

A Cleaner House Is Built One Small Choice at a Time

This approach isn’t flashy. It won’t make your house magazine-ready overnight.

But it will make it more manageable, more peaceful, and more sustainable.

And that’s a change I can stick with.