From the Desk of Clearissa’s Command Center/Divinely Organized
When Is It Time To Hire A Housekeeper?
This week we will revisit a tip I shared a while back and is based on organizing our time. Although I am an organizer, I sometimes feel overwhelmed with all the “stuff” I have to do. After all, I am a working wife, mother, grandmother, full-time employee and part-time lifestyle blogger and even though my blog focuses on organization of all types, business and personal, DIY and re-design, I sometimes feel that I need help. But deciding what I need help with, is the issue. Would a housekeeper work for me and my lifestyle?
Do I hire a ghost writer for my blog? Absolutely not, that would take all the fun out of it. Do I need a 
stand in wife, mother or grandmother on speed dial? How ridiculous. I want to enjoy my family. I can’t outsource my 9 – 5 and that just leaves my home. Should I hire someone to help me with cleaning my home? Like most of you, I have a very hectic and seemingly never-ending schedule and I’m not made of money. Therefore, I need to weigh this carefully. However; as my blog indicates with every post, it is imperative that my home is clean and organized, well at least most of the time. I actually believe in and live by my tagline – A place for everything…and everything in its place. Let’s face it, I couldn’t very well advise others if I were not following the program myself…right?
With that said, I must admit there are times I am consumed by the needs of my work life, family, community service, passion for blogging and the requirements of maintaining an organized and clean home. It is during those times, I have considered hiring a professional housekeeper. This is especially true when I am working on a DIY project or I am running a challenge on my blog, etc.
I have come up with five reasons that make the concept of hiring housekeeper not only positive but quite frankly a necessity.
When you know it’s to Hire a Housekeeper?
- Your schedule overwhelms you – it’s okay to be busy. Busy is good. But overwhelmed is a whole
different ball game. If you are feeling nervous when you look at your to-do list, it’s time to delegate and one thing you can delegate is the house cleaning. - Your budget is fluid enough to sustain paying for a housekeeper. As I said, most of us are not made of money but this is where you must consider what your peace of mind and sanity is really worth. Perhaps if you did not buy Starbucks for a couple of weeks or if you prepared your lunch at home, or ate out less often or – as much as it pains me to say this – did not buy that new pair of shoes, maybe, just maybe you could work that housekeeper into your budget.
- Having a housekeep will free up your time to complete current projects, write your blog, spend time with family or simply give your mind, body, and soul a rest.
- If you find that your family is telling you about the game or movie instead of you enjoying it with them, it’s time you hired a housekeeper. I realize I’ve said it before, but I cannot stress enough how important family time really is. You can hire a housekeeper to take care of that messy kitchen but you can never get that moment back when your kid hits his/her first ball out of the park or wins a swim tournament or any of the millions of other little moments we can never get back.
- In a perfect world, you know it’s time to hire a housekeeper when you find one with a flexible schedule which allows you to use the services when you need them (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, occasionally). For me, I could hire a housekeeper to do my seasonal cleaning and be happy because there are no kids in the house anymore. It would be a big help to me to have someone do my winter, spring, summer, and fall cleaning while I get to do the refreshes and upcycles and share them with you.
So, now you get the picture. You don’t have to have someone come in to help you keep your house clean weekly. You could go for every two weeks or have a deep cleaning on a monthly basis and still alleviate some of the stress from your shoulders. Or you can hire them to do certain time consuming & specific tasks like cleaning blinds, windows, hardwood floors, etc.
I am also betting that you can find someone for a reasonable price because there are so many different agencies and companies to choose from right now. Shop and compare.
My advice to you is, do not try to do it all by yourself. It is okay to ask for help. And it is okay to allow yourself some free time. I will suggest that you be careful when allowing anyone into your home if you will not be there. Make sure whoever you choose is licensed and bonded. Unless he/she has superb references from someone you totally trust.
Here’s my question for you, do you think it’s hypocritical for a lifestyle blogger who focuses on home organization to hire help to maintain his/her home or do you think we should all be afforded the opportunity to use the tools available to help us maintain our organization and more importantly, sanity? Let me know what you think. I love your input.
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Until next time…I remain in my element
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Loved this post. I must say I am guilty of needing to hire a housekeeper myself but I’m one of those old fashioned people who doesn’t like others cleaning for them. I know eventually though I will have to give in 😂😂😂
I like that you’re shedding a light on the fact that hiring a housekeeper isn’t necessarily a bad thing to do! I think a lot of people have negative thoughts about it these days. Great article! 🙂
Hi Lizzy. Girl a lot of us have that, “I must do it all” syndrome. Me, included. However, if we take a step back and realize we are human just like everyone else, asking for help becomes easier. I will admit, the first couple of times I hired someone, I cleaned before they arrived. A defeatus move I know, but that’s another post. 🙂 Give it a try and just breathe through it. You may find that that one little thing will help you enjoy many other things in your life a little better. As a side note, I don’t hire someone on a regular basis but it is nice to have clean blinds and window sills twice a year without spending a weeks vacation handling the spring and fall cleaning.
Hi Shannon. Yes I agree many of us do not give ourselves permission to ask for help in many areas of our lives. But just as we want to do what we do best and be appreciated for a job well done so do professional housekeepers. And besides, wouldn’t it be nice to come home to a clean home every once in a while instead of spending our weekends getting it done? I thin so for sure. Thank you for reading along and commenting.
[ Smiles ] Hmm. The bad part is discontinuing the services of the housekeeper when your life returns to a level of normalcy.
Lovely post!
Thanks for reading along Renard. I don’t use a housekeeper on a regular schedule. Just hire a company when you need them. That way no guilt for letting someone go. Again, thanks for stopping by and please visit again.
I think it’s about that time for us to hire one, but we don’t like someone else cleaning after us! Guess we will just need to get over it.
I had to get over that too. When I had someone come in at first, I cleaned before she arrived. But that has changed. The thing I will not allow someone else to do is our laundry. I generally bring someone in twice a year for those jobs like cleaning all of my blinds, baseboards, windowsills. I have them do the entire house but those are my focus because I don’t like doing those. I don’t have a regular schedule. Just when I know I need the extra time. Give yourself permission to try it once and thanks for reading along. Please come back again.
When I worked full time we had someone clean every other week. Now that I stay home, I do the cleaning. With three young kids I’ve been wanting to hire someone, but its not in budget. I never thought of hiring someone to do just the hard jobs like windows and baseboards. Thanks for the idea!
Hi Christy. Yes although I work outside of the home, it’s just Mister and me and I am kinda OCDish so I clean. But there are weeks when I’m working on a project or like I said the times when those other jobs need doing. I call a company that I use and although it’s not regular, I generally get the same person. So it works out. Good luck and thanks for reading along.
Such a great question. We started using our current cleaning lady when I was about six months pregnant. I just lost my will (or interest) in cleaning the toilets, etc. When my son was about 10 months, we stopped using her because I thought that I could “do it all.” But, six months later, we are back to having her come every other week. It just frees up time and energy for me so it is worth the money!
Hi Karyn, I totally agree with you. I know for a lot of us, money is sparse. But sometimes you have to sit and evaluate the best use of your time. I’m happy you found what works best for you and your family. 🙂
SO what I’m hearing is, I should have hired a house cleaner 6 months ago! haha! Thanks for the little push I needed.
I want a housekeeper and fall into all the categories you mentioned! I just need to monetize my blog more to be able to hire one.
It’s always time to hire a house cleaner! 🙂 Outsourcing this job helps me have more time to focus on my business. Thanks for the article!
Hahaha…yep Jane, if you are feeling any of the things mentioned in the blog, you indeed need to splurge on yourself. Glad I could help. 🙂
I get you Stephanie. Money is always a consideration in my house. Like you, I need this blog thingy to take off. But I will say, if I am careful with my pennies I can usually squeeze in a housekeeper once every couple of months. Which is not bad because it’s just hubs and me and I like to have a list of those things I really don’t like to do for her on that day. We will keep pushing with this blogging thingy and one day we will be able to afford a housekeeper once a week. 😉
Hi Kelly. I know you are so right! I will be so happy when I can afford to have a housekeeper come in more often. Especially with trying to focus on my business and working a regular 9-5. But I know it will come. 🙂
If you can outsource things you don’t have to necessarily do yourself to save yourself some time and stress then I say you should absolutely do it! You’ve earned it!
Clearissa, toward the end of my full-time self-employed career, there was no way I could run my business and keep my house as well as I like to keep it. My husband couldn’t do any more than he was doing. So the choice was between getting some help or lowering my standards. So I hired someone to work with me on the “big jobs” one day a month, and it worked out well. It was a woman I knew, and we worked well together, sometimes in the same room, sometimes in different rooms. That one day a month of help made all the difference.
Hi Jean. Thank you for commenting. I totally understand. I can’t afford someone weekly or even biweekly but when I need to clean windowsills, blinds, molding, etc., the big jobs, that’s when I make the call. Maybe someday I will be able to have a regular biweekly service but for now, help with the big jobs is working out fine. Thank you for reading along.
This is great advice, Clearissa.
Thank you for sharing and co-hosting #blogginggrandmotherslinkparty!
We greatly appreciate it!
Worth considering for sure. Of course I’d have to clean before I got someone to come over and clean 🙂 I’m crazy, I know 🙂 Thank you Clearissa for attending the #WednesdayAIMLinkParty. I shared your post on FGPT.
Hi Donna. Thank you as well.
Hi Dee,
You’re not crazy at all. I have heard a lot of folks say that and truth be told, I do straighten things before I have someone come in as well. It is all in the perception. 🙂
Clearissa, I definitely do not think its hypocritical to hire out housekeeping when you are a professional organizer. In fact, I think an important key to organization is to hire out (or delegate) certain tasks so you can focus on the things you do best or feel passionate about. We’ve had a housekeeper for several years now. We’ve come to know and trust her, and allow her to work even when we are not home. I love it!
~Christie
Hi Christie, you are a girl after my own heart. I don’t have a housekeeper on a regular basis…YET! However, I don’t feel guilty, any more about having someone come in to help with the big jobs like window seals, blinds, and all of that heavy spring or fall cleaning. Thank you for validating me. Continue enjoying your housekeeper.
I’ve used a cleaning service before and it’a a marvelous feeling when the house sparkles! Thank you for sharing at #BloggingGrandmothersLinkParty
Thank you Lori.
Still gotta clean before hiring, yes I’m still crazy. Thanks Clearissa for linking up and co-hosting at the #BloggingGrandmothersLinkParty. I shared this post.
I hired a housecleaner to come in every two weeks during the years that I was a single parent of three children and working full time. It was a huge help, and I have had no problem hiring someone since then whenever I get overloaded. Via #Blogging GrandmothersLinkParty.
Jude
Hi Clearissa I totally agree with your reasons for having a housekeeper. Life is too short for housework! Thanks so much for co-hosting and sharing with us at #blogginggrandmotherslinkparty. I’ve pinned and shared on social media. Catch you at the link up next month!
Sue from Sizzling Towards 60 & Beyond.
I would love to hire a housekeeper! It isn’t the practical or wise thing for us to do right now, but I say “good for you” to those that do! Thank you for sharing with us Clearissa at the #BloggingGrandmothersLinkParty and being a wonderful co-host!
Thanks Dee. We all have to do what makes us comfortable. Just remember to get help when you need it. 😉
Hello Dr. Sock. I totally agree. Knowing our needs and limits is the first step. Good for you. Thank you for stopping by.
Hi Sue and thank you. Sometimes we all just need a little help. Take care.
Hi Teresa, We all know what is best for us and our families. Thank you for reading along and taking the time to connect. Continue to enjoy life.