- Reserve the day. Check the schedules of everyone in your family, and plan spring-cleaning for a day when everyone is free. If something else comes up, be sure you keep your commitment to cleaning. Let everyone know that this is a family event and they are expected to attend.
- Get supplies. Do your best to have all supplies ready for the day of rigourous cleaning. If you have to run to the store in the middle of it, it may slow the momentum, so plan ahead.
- Take breaks. Before you start, tell your family that you'll all take a few breaks to eat, drink and rest. (Provide their favourite snacks.) If they know they'll get breaks from the start, they're more likely to keep working.
- Ask everyone to bring their favourite music. Play each person's tunes for a while before moving on to the next person's selection. This will make cleaning into a more fun experience and could even lead to a good workout if you like to dance while cleaning! Reward the person with the best cleanup music.
- Hide one small prize in each room of the house. When someone cleans a room, he or she can claim the prize. Whoever has the most prizes at break time will receive an extra five-minute break.
- Eliminate distractions. Phones and computers can cause the whole project to fall apart. Turn them off, and focusing on cleaning will be much easier.
- Stay positive! Spring-cleaning can be a big challenge. Although it may go slowly at first, don't get discouraged. Encourage everyone to keep doing a great job.
- Reward your family at the end of the day. When the house is clean and you're satisfied, express your gratitude to everyone. Take them to dinner and a movie. If you prefer to stay in, order pizza and rent a movie. You can relax knowing you completed a thorough spring-cleaning.
