The other day, I was over at the very clean house of one of my “cleanie” friends and it’s really got me thinking. This lady had a gorgeous house that was beautiful and apparently effortlessly clean. I was in several different rooms during my visit and all of them were gorgeously decorated and looking wonderful even though she works a full-time job and wasn’t expecting any visitors.
I used to feel really bad about myself when I would go into homes like this. Now I try to use people like this as an example and a way to get ideas. Obviously, I’ll never manage to keep my home exactly like this because she has that “born organized” gene and I don’t, but I think it’s an opportunity to learn.
I heard a saying recently it says “The way you do one thing is the way you do everything?” I don’t know if I believe this 100% – I am somewhat slapdash in the way I do some things, but I am very focused in certain areas of my life.
I once re-edited a 60 page document because it bugged me that it only had one space after the periods, and I felt that it needed to have two. I know that’s outdated, but at the time, it bugged me enough to go through and fix it. But, I could care less how my towels are folder or how my dishwasher is loaded while I know those things are crazy-making to a lot of other women.
The interesting thing is that people like this probably don’t spend HALF the time cleaning that we do. Because they’ve got those naturally neat habits, they just sort of pick things up all the time as they are going about their day, so they never have a big mess to deal with like I do. And apparently this has rubbed off on her husband and children, which is wonderful. I’ve seen both her kid’s rooms and they are just as nice as the rest of the house.
Do People Have a Clean House Because they have Money or do they Have Money Because they can Keep a Clean House?
I have several friends like this and there’s one thing I’ve noticed. They all seem to be in the category, I would term as “well-to-do” or even quite wealthy. They certainly have beautiful homes in nice neighborhoods that are full of beautiful furniture and decor.
This leads me to kind of a chicken or egg question. Are they doing well because they have neat habits, or do they have neat habits because they are well-to-do?
Personally, I kind of think it is the first one. I think they are doing well because of the neat habits they have developed. The good habits that make for a nice house are the same habits that make for a good worker and a good parent.
What employer doesn’t want an employee who is organized, meticulous, and self-disciplined? And these same skills come in very handy as a parent. I know that my kids struggle a lot in school, not because they aren’t really, really smart, but because I don’t do well in helping them keep organized.
Here’s an interesting thought. What if we were to take like three months and really focus on building our routines and getting our house into this kind of shape? I’ll bet that would help us have the confidence and the skills to go out and get a better job and do a much better job with managing our money. We’d probably be much better parents too.
I’ve heard of this before. Flylady has said many times that messy houses are often tied with other problems, such as weight issues, money problems, marital problems and low-self esteem. It’s kind of like a spider web. When you tighten up one thread in the web, the other ones just automatically tighten up as well.
What a great goal. Wouldn’t it be just wonderful if we could all have a clean house, lots of money, great kids, AND a skinny body – whoohoo!
Here are some other posts you might enjoy:
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15 Comments on Does a Clean House Equal Money in the Bank?
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I believe your premise is correct about saving money. Folk who have beautiful, clean, neat houses are people who have successfully de-cluttered their lives. Through de-cluttering they identify the difference between buying for “want or need” and ask the question – if I buy what am I going to get rid of?
Cleaners – When I was working full-time I used to have a cleaner come through and clean my house twice a week – Monday after the weekend and Friday before the weekend. Crazy thing was – I used to clean before the cleaner arrived so she wouldn’t think I was a slob!:)
I saw the best quote this weekend. All that clutter — used to be money. That really says it all, doesn’t it?
This has some interesting ideas. I don’t think that I care enough of what my home looks like, but it doesn’t really matter because I don’t have company over. If I had people coming over, I think that I would be more consistent with cleaning. Thanks for linking up at the Bloggers Brags party, I pinned your post to our group Pinterest Board.
I hear ya. I used to invite people over just to give myself an incentive to clean up, but even when it’s clean, my house isn’t as nice as most of my friends houses, so lately I haven’t been inviting people over as much. It’s a shame because we used to love to entertain.
In answer to your final question…absolutely yes!!! I used to be a neat person until I had kids. My idea of what counted as clean changed some with my first child and then completely changed with my second! I’ve given up on a clean house with a 3 and 7 year old and just do the best that I can 🙂
I enjoyed this post…thanks so much for sharing it with us at Share The Wealth Sunday!
xoxo
Lisa
I hear ya. I don’t have little ones any more, but I work probably 60 to 80 hours per week, so I’m in the same boat. You just do the best you can…. Thanks for hosting.
Oh my, this was great motivation to clean my house today. Lol! I love this post. Thanks for sharing with Share the Wealth Sunday. I’m sharing this on my FB page and blog this week.
Thanks so much for the shares. Really appreciated. And thanks for hosting.
That would be cool if it would help. I just need to stick to routines in cleaning.
I think that’s something all of us struggle with. I do pretty well for a while, but I’m so ADHD, it’s crazy, so if I start focusing on my blog, or Scouts, or something else, the housework just goes out the window…..
Well, my health improved when I determined to clean up my home. So, good point that FlyLady made. Everything about us is connected. A positive move forward in one area encourages us to do the same in another area.
But money in the bank???? Maybe, by not having to buy duplicates, and saving on rotten food. So, I guess so!
I do think our behaviors are inter-related. I’ve just noticed that all of my wealthy friends not only have expensive homes, they have spotlessly clean homes. Pretty much every one of them. And my not-so-wealthy friends – a few of them have nice looking homes, but most are average to poor as far as messyness. I was just wondering if there was a connection there somewhere. It is kind of interesting to think about.
So THAT’S why I’m poor!
😉
I know…when I walk into a spotless house I do the same thing… wish mine could always look like that with 5 kids and 2 dogs and working 60-80 work weeks.
They can be inspiring though. But.. I did find out the house that I always love (and of course it is big and beautifully decorated) and is so perfect all the time… she has a cleaning crew come in once a week!
lol (made me feel a little better… and I got the name of the cleaning company!)
Thanks for linking up to my Organizing Mission Monday link party! Hope to see you back!
I would love to have a super neat house. I know a lot of the time I don’t always deal with the stuff hanging around because it’s overwhelming. I guess that’s kind of counter intuitive as if I dealt with it on a more regular basis, I wouldn’t feel so overwhelmed. Go figure. 😛