Tips to restore work life balance with a tidy home

  A busy Miami mom of three, Gisela Lowenstein knows that most of us hate cleaning. We don't want to spend a lot of time doing it and aren't that good at it. But a clean house really gives you a sense of balance. Gisela created a user-friendly DVD series (in both English and Spanish) that teaches users the basics on cleaning and organization. It's called The Glow System. The program uses a color-coded system, videos and flashcards. Because I admire entrepreneurs, I invited Gisela to write a guest blog to tell her story and share some tips with us time-pressed moms.

Gisela

If there's one thing we all know, it's that women are survivors by nature. I've survived moving from Argentina to the United States and the cultural and social changes that came along with it. I've survived the challenges of raising three kids. I've even survived breast cancer. But that doesn't mean I don't need to ask for help sometimes. One area that I really feel women constantly need help in is managing and organizing their homes. Let's face it - when our homes are messy, our lives feel even more scattered. Having a clean and organized home acts as the foundation for a stress-free life.

After moving to Miami with my husband and three kids, I needed a little assistance to get things organized. I noticed a gap in the marketplace for well-trained professionals or even effective instructional programs to maintain a clean and tidy home.My next challenge was – how do I get kids to actually enjoy participating in daily cleaning chores? Well, you’d be surprised how much they are willing to learn something when it is played as a DVD on a television screen. A new favorite game in our house is trying to find new tips for the series.

While people may not always realize it, there is definitely an emotional response to a clean and organized home; it provides a sense of calm in a world of chaos.

Here are a few tips from The Glow System (Home Cleaning Edition):

 

• Always open the door or window of the room you plan to clean – fresh air circulation is beneficial for you and the process
• Making your own cleaning solutions from household items can be a more cost-effective and organic method – all-purpose cleaners can be made from vinegar and water or baking soda and water
• Using a cleaning caddy will help diminish the constant and back and forth between jobs
• A paintbrush is a very effective cleaning tool – it can be used to clean tight crevasses in bookshelves, artwork, and for dusting large frames, etc.
• Make sure to have a micro fiber towel – it prevents damaging sensitive surfaces. MICROFIBER REMOVES DUST WITHOUT USING CLEANING PRODUCTS)

For those of you who feel too busy to clean, Gisela recommends breaking chores down into simple sequences and setting up reminders for daily maintenance.

 

 

Comments

[Elvensarah]

You can see which job will allow you to have this balance at http://www.cubecheck.com

[work life balance programs]

Thank you for reinforcing the strong, quantifiable business case supporting work+life strategies--a business case that the work life field has been compiling with increasing success.

[merchant accounts]

I needed that badly. I need to know how to divide my time.

[interview preparation]

You need to set boundaries. Boundaries are good because, given they are set right, they promote a great work-life-balance.

[Cindy Goodman]

I agree that boundaries are important. But they are getting much more difficult to set. I have to remind myself of my work life boundaries all the time.