JOT Lessons from Pesach Cleaning

It may seem overwhelming and paralyzing to tackle the mess. It is just too big. But the truth is moving and starting all over again is hard too. And if you don’t change your cleaning habits, you’ll have a mess in the new place too. It is usually worth trying to reclaim your current home. […]

Windows are the lens through which we see the world. Dirt on the windows filters how we see what is out there. Window cleaning is about changing what we see by transforming what we are looking through, not what we are looking at. But the windows don’t stay clean for long. You’ll have to notice

If something is important to you, make sure you take care of it. If it is neglected it may fall to disarray or ruin. And it can more expensive and time/ energy consuming to fix it than prevent it from deterioration. Don’t just leave it to chance or the elements. Protect it. Maintain it. Safeguard

Trash cans are often forgotten. Until they can’t be ignored anymore. And then the work is harder. Just because it is hard doesn’t mean that you can neglect it. You know the stink will just get worse.–Start with the easier parts and then tackle the more difficult. Wash the outside of the can before addressing

Don’t compare your home/life to anyone else’s. Everyone has at least a small messy drawer somewhere. But you may not see it and they probably are not going to share about it publicly.

Firstly, what exactly is a small win? This is an activity which you do successfully but weren’t sure you could actually pull off. Like cleaning a small pile or closet. Like getting rid of old stuff. A bunch of small wins equals significant change. Step by step. Notice it and get excited. Think back to

It is far easier to KEEP your home clean than to have to try cleaning a messy house once it gets to the paralyzing mess stage. If your house is generally clean and then you have a kid’s birthday party and the house gets messy – that kind of mess is fairly easy to clean.

Ignoring the mess doesn’t make it less of a mess. Neither does denial. Neither does wishing it away or hoping that someone else will take care of it. It doesn’t just get clean by itself. (‘Just point and junk disappears’ is just a marketing ploy from a junk removal company.) It may seem overwhelming. But

There are so many tools and methods for cleaning. *Using the right tools can make the job so much easier and more effective.* The right sponge, scrubber or spray cleaner. Don’t just ‘make do’ with whatever tools you have at hand. It is worth investing in getting the best tool for the task. And once

Sometimes the project is so big, we don’t know what steps to take to get us there. The goal can seem overwhelming; we may feel we don’t have the know-how, time or the resources. Or we don’t see what steps we can take to get ourselves there. Oftentimes, this is because we set unrealistic expectations