After the dark and gloomy winter, ushering in the spring season with a weekend of spring cleaning can be refreshing and energizing, if not a tad overwhelming. But there is no reason to spend more time and effort than necessary on spring cleaning your home. Consider these seven suggestions to get your home spic and span in a flash, and save your stamina for enjoying the weather.

1. Create a Plan

Knowing what to tackle is as important as tackling the task itself. When it comes to spring cleaning, create a plan that includes:

• Areas you plan to clean
• A schedule with a day and time for each task or room
• A list of who will complete each task (you or family members)
• An inventory of cleaning supplies
• A list of cleaning techniques for each area to be cleaned

2. Minimize cleaning supplies

Take inventory of existing supplies so you can shop for what you need before you embark on your spring cleaning to-do list. When shopping, keep the products to a minimum so you can minimize clutter and be more efficient while cleaning.

Be sure to choose the most effective and powerful cleaning supplies so that the product is doing most of the work — not you.

3. Clean room by room

It's easy to feel overwhelmed when going from room to room as you clean. Target one room at a time to see the results of your productivity quickly. Create a checklist to make sure you've tackled all the necessary tasks.

4. Focus on the most important areas

Spring cleaning can be a huge undertaking (especially depending on the size of your home). Be more efficient by thinking about the most visible areas first, like your living room or home office. Also, consider only focusing on areas that have been neglected and pass by areas that have been cleaned frequently.

5. Work smarter, not harder

Don't exert more effort than necessary. Simple steps like the following can save tons of time:

• Soak pots and pans before scrubbing
• Let cleaning products sit before wiping down surfaces
• Consider using the self-cleaning setting on your oven, but mind safety precautions

6. Get rid of the clutter

You can never truly have a clean and tidy home if you are buried in your stuff, especially if you're short on storage space. When cleaning out your things, remember the 80/20 rule: Only 20% of the items we own are truly important — 80% of our belongings just get in the way.

When deciding what to get rid of, consider the approach of sorting items into four categories:

• What to keep
• What to store for later use
• What to donate or give away
• What to throw away

Once you've created the four piles, work on putting everything in its place and taking donation items away as soon as possible.

7. Create more efficient habits

To help you be more effective in keeping a clean home, implement at least one of the following habits:

• Go paperless
• Tackle cleaning for 10 to 15 minutes each day
• Create a chart so household members will remember to complete their tasks
• Make a regular donation pile

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