I need to motivate myself to tidy up my room. How?

The trick is to just force yourself to pick up the smallest item first. Once you get up and moving, the rest is easy.

Invite someone over who you would be embarrassed to see the mess.

This one time, I had a glass of milk sitting on my dresser. I went to pick it up and discovered that it was not the same glass, but one that had been sitting there for about three weeks.

My room is never messy anymore.

@jaytkay That’s always my motivation for tidying.

Grab all your cleaning supplies and a Coke or a coffee, lock the door and put on some fast music.

@rangerr That’s a good great one. I don’t know what my motivation is…usually it’s my mom.

Try looking for something you really need, and not finding it in the mountain of clothes, trash, and books/magazines. :P

When I clean my room I usually set myself a time limit and then an awward for myself if I get done in time… like I will have my room cleaned up in 45 minutes and then I will go get an icecream cone

I’ll double your allowance, but it must be cleaned by noon.

;-)

I hate to be the one to tell you this- but right now you are using Fluther to procrastinate.

Turn Fluther off and get going!

We know you can do it!

Suggestion #1:
Play the robot game. When I was a kid one friend and I would clean up using the robot game. I would “turn the key” on my friend’s back, and she would make robot sounds as she robotically picked up five items and put them away. She would then turn my key and “power down” as I had my turn. We alternated til it was clean. I still play the robot game, minus the friend and the robotics. I’ll pick up five items and put them away, then take a mini break. Even five items makes a difference and can make the whole thing less intimidating. It’s good to do with food or drink—after you put away five items you can take a bite/sip. Works especially well with dessert:)

Suggestion #2:
Do it “cabin clean-up” style. As a teenager I worked at a sleep-away camp. Every morning the kids would stumble down to breakfast, then immediately have fifteen minutes of cabin clean-up. This worked really well for keeping the cabin clean because we did it every day. You can only make so much of a mess in one day, so as long as you spend a short time in the morning picking up it won’t accumulate much. This way you can also justify leaving a day’s clothes in a pile on the floor before going to bed because you’ve committed to putting them away the next morning. I mostly get intimidated when my room is a big mess, so restricting the time for the mess to grow really helps.

Suggestion #3:
Do it in chunks. Take a day to work on parts through the whole day. You can break it up into manageable chunks and separate them by several hours. I do bed, desk, dresser, clothes, and floor. Each is separated by classes, meals, and fun. Deciding to clean your desk is less daunting than deciding to clean your room.

And once your bed is made the whole room will look better so you might be more motivated to clean other areas.

Suggestion #4:
As @jaytkay said, invite someone over. My room is never cleaner than when I’m trying to impress someone. Especially romantic things, I want to make a good impression. You’d be amazed at how quickly I can clean my room if someone’s coming over on short notice.

@rangerr Haha, mine’s always cereal that’s congealed onto the bottom of a bowl:) I’ll have to soak it for hours before it’ll budge.

Make a list. “Clean your room” is overwhelming, but breaking it down into a list of 1–5 minute chores is not.
If your room is like most, your list should look something like this:
Find all the glassware and dishes and return them to the kitchen; put the dishes in the dishwasher or sink.
Put all dirty clothes in a laundry basket.
Put dry cleaning in a separate bag, and place beside the front door to be taken to the car.
Pick up all the paper and put it in the trash can.
Take the trash can and put its contents, along with the bathroom trash can, into a plastic bag, ready to be taken out the next time you head out the door.
Hang up your clean clothes.
Put books back on the shelves where they belong.
Pick up change off the floor and dresser and put in change jar.
Change the sheets and remake the bed.
Vacuum and dust.

Did I miss anything? If you get half way through the list, you’re ahead of the game.

@PandoraBoxx Correction: Pick up all the paper and put it in the recycling, not the trash! :)

Bring three boxes (or more if needed) to the room that needs cleaned. Have one box for stuff to throw away, another box for storage or giving to charity, one for stuff you want to keep, etc. Once it’s sorted, it’ll be easier to finish.

@lfino GA! When I clean my room at home I also include an “elsewhere” box for stuff that goes in other rooms in the house. When I need a break I carry that box around and deliver stuff where it belongs.
Or just leave it for months, like the one upstairs now.

You will not be allowed to spend time on Fluther until your room is clean. Do you understand!?

Why?

Because I said so, that’s why!

Now get to work!

@sliceswiththings, I agree with recycling newspapers, magazines, junk mail. Anything that’s more personal should be shredded or tossed.

Things I have done:

1) Break it into smaller tasks that you can check off a list like the one @PandoraBoxx made. Do at least one task each day.

2) Start by picking up everything of one sort, such as all dirty clothes. Then go on to another category.

3) Set a timer and clean as fast as you can until the timer goes off. I generally set mine for 60 minutes.

4) Play an audiobook that you really like and clean while you listen.

5) Find a friend or a sibling who is willing to help you and then do it as a race or a competition.

6) I also do the “box trick” but I use clean plastic trash bags instead. The one for trash can go straight outside to the bin, and the one with clothes for charity can go straight to the laundry room, and then out to the truck for the next time I pass by a donation site. Things that need to be put on shelves I put away as soon as I touch it, and things that belong elsewhere in the house or garage I simply group together and take them all in a bunch.

7) Invite someone to come over several days in advance that you want to impress, and then do any of 1 through 6.

Just do it!

I absolutely abhor cleaning of any kind. So when the house gets so bad I can’t stand it anymore, I hire someone to come in and clean it for me!

Do you have any younger siblings you could hire to do it for a modest sum???

Buy new pillow cases, candles or a picture you’ll want display. Or be me and wait until it’s so bad even I can’t stand it. I’m thinking dust bunnies are breeding as we speak!

Start in a corner. Grab a 40 of PBR and turn up the music.

I am a slob. I need to clean my room too.

@johnpowell They sell 40’s?

@jonsblond – Yes, they do.

sweet! more than a 40 is needed in my house though. ;)

Ugh, I HATE cleaning. The only way I ever get myself to do it is to play not music, but DVDs on my laptop. I just kind of glance at the show as I’m cleaning. It really helps.

I start by deciding to fill a shopping bag with trash/receipts/etc. from around the room then I poke into drawers for junk and then to the closet to remove tags from my clothes which prompts me to sort laundry. Once I get to laundry stage then it’s easy because I’ll strip the bed, throw the towels on the pile and carry it away to the wash. Little piles of clothes follow to where the room looks like it needs a sweep and good dusting, might as well windex the glass and counters while I’m at it. All this makes me dirty and hungry so I tell myself I’ll clean the bathroom (floor/toilet/shower/tub) and then clean myself in order to relax on top of clean laundry to eat and have a nap.

Awesome insights guys! I have managed to do a lot since I started this thread, thanks! I will definitely refer back to it when I need motivation and stimulation for it… :D

Put up a clipboard, and every week take a “before” and “after” photo, before you’ve cleaned up and after. You’ll find that the room gets nicer and nicer to live in – you’ll start adding little touches that make it even more beautiful, and your whole attitude to the room will change.

I will tell you my secret: I gave green light to my girlfriend…

My ADHD gives her a very messy room to re-tidy very often…

I personally have a really hard time tidying up. Reeally…