The 20/10 Cleaning Rule You Should Be Following

How to keep a tidy and clean home is on our minds a lot at House Digest, and we have a slew of excellent tips to get the job done more efficiently and faster. For instance, we have found easy ways to keep our loo clean, simple tricks to get a streak-free TV, and easy tips to keeping your vinyl floors clean. After all, it turns out people spend quite a bit of time cleaning. A study of 2,000 people, courtesy of Arm & Hammer Clean & Simple, found that we spend an enormous part of our month cleaning our houses: We spend about 23 hours and 36 minutes, to be exact, which is loads and loads of time that could be spent doing something else (like streaming the most fabulous home shows out right now).

According to Elle, some of the tasks we consistently put off include doing our laundry, washing our sink full of dishes, and sprucing up the bathroom. But what if we told you there was an easier way? To that end, there's actually a method that won't make you hate cleaning and could have you accomplish your tidying goals while keeping you sane. Read on to learn about the 20/10 cleaning rule that you have to try.

Picture this: you have family coming over for the weekend, and you've waited until the last possible minute to clean (raising hand over here!). "Most people want to clean as infrequently as possible, so that translates to 'I'm going to do everything all at once.' Once you're done with that marathon, sure your house is clean, but you're exhausted and probably frustrated, and you are now associating having a clean home with all of the stress that comes with marathon cleaning," says Rachel Hoffman, author of "Unf*ck Your Habitat: You're Better Than Your Mess" to NBC News. 

As for a solution? Apartment Therapy explains the 20/10 method means cleaning for 20 minutes and then giving yourself a break for ten minutes, which will leave you less frustrated and exhausted while doing your tasks. That's why using the 20/10 cleaning rule can really change everything. The way you can accomplish this is in a few ways: Try setting a timer, putting something away instead of down on the counter, and shifting your focus to be a little more small-scale. You don't have to be overwhelmed with cleaning the entire house in a short time, but you could tackle a small task, such as cleaning the bathroom, doing the dishes, or making your bed.