Have you ever gotten distracted from one cleaning task by another? It happens often—start in the living room, end in the bedroom, and every room is only half clean! It can be frustrating to try to clean when you find yourself distracted from the living room by the dishes in the sink, or distracted from the dishes in the sink by the dirty clothes in the bathroom.

Maid services use focus through tasks. This makes the process much more efficient, and you can do this, too! Rather than deciding, “I'm going to clean the house,” make a list of the things you want to accomplish most, and then stick to those tasks.

Start with the things that matter the most to you. Can't stand dirty dishes? Tackle them first. Hate the dirty clothes in the kids' rooms? Throw them in the wash to clean while you work elsewhere. Find what's important to you so that when you're done, you feel the most satisfaction possible!

If you need some ideas on how to make your list, here's a sample. Sub in the things that are most important to you or reorder them to fit your priorities:

• Wash all of the dishes.
  
  
• Pick up and take out trash in every room.
  
  
• Put clothes away in every room.
  
  
• Put papers away, throw away junk.
  
  
• Clean the sink, floor, and shower in the bathroom.
  
  
• Vacuum the living room and dining room carpet.

The more specific your tasks, the better.

It will still be tempting to stop what you're doing to take care of something else that comes to your attention, but there are things you can do to fight the distraction:

• Set a timer for yourself. Clean for an hour, then take a 15 minute break.
  
  
• Write your list down and scratch through each task you finish. Celebrate the little victories!
  
  
• Do an inspection at the end of each task to see if it's really complete—did you get all the dishes washed? Every bit of trash picked up? Don't mark it off until it's completely finished.

When you fight the distraction, you'll be thrilled with the results!