I’m the first person to admit that I am not the most effective homemaker. I have my super-productive days, and days where it all gets the better of me. But in all of this, I have observed that to be an effective homemaker, there are 7 characteristics that have stood the test of time.
Aspiring to be an Effective Homemaker is not something that has always been at the forefront of my mind. In fact, when I was first married, (and still working full-time), homemaking was simply a case of cooking the food and doing the chores, and making sure the house was in a reasonable state of repair.
I didn’t even think of Homemaking in an aspirational sense. It was just a hard slog.
It was not until I was at home all day with my first son, and began listening to homemaking podcasts, that I began to realise the importance of the role, and to take it seriously.
What I learnt was, that a loving and well-run home does not just happen. It takes an Effective Homemaker to make a powerful home environment, wherein the people flourish and grow and are loved and nurtured.
The truth that I have discovered, is that we are all homeMAKERS, regardless of whether we have a career or are a stay-at-home-mum.
This is because everyone has a home, however it may look. A home where we come to at the end of the day, to relax and recharge. It’s the place where we wake up and get ready for the day. Thus, we all have a degree of responsibility for the atmosphere and effectiveness of that home.
We are what we eat…and Home IS how we manage it. If we are not investing in the atmosphere and effectiveness of our homes, then it will look and feel forgotten.
Since I began delving into this topic, I have observed that there are 7 Characteristics of Effective Homemaking that have existed since time immemorial.
My hope is that these characteristics inspire you as much as they do for me. I find it so exhilarating to know that it is within our power to make our homes the place we want it to be.
1. Effective Homemakers have Clear Routines
The fist age-old characteristic of effective homemakers is that they have clear routines.
A Highly Effective Homemaker has analyzed everything they do, and how often. This means they have a clear idea of what each day, week and month will look like.
For example, I know that I need to wipe down my kitchen and bathrooms every single day. Knowing that these are daily chores removes the “not AGAIN!” mentality.
I also know that I must bake bread once a week, and mop the floors or change the sheets once a month. Knowing these things at the outset helps me to map out my week or month or quarter so that when the time comes to do it, I am ready to hit the ground running!
If the Homemaker does not have some kind of system for managing their chores, they will only become a source of stress and annoyance, and this will reflect in the atmosphere of your home.
2. Effective Homemakers are Always Thinking Ahead
This point is like first habit, but it is more about adopting a continual mindset.
A Highly Effective Homemaker is ALWAYS asking themselves, “What can I do today that will make tomorrow easier?” It is a constant thought that weaves into everything you do. It makes you focus on your capacity to do more today, to relieve pressure from the next day. It makes you utilise every moment of your time.
This Habit empowers you to get things done as you see them. It saves from work building up and confronts the procrastinator (putting my hand meekly up, here!). Procrastination is a negative habit that we can train ourselves out of by always thinking ahead.
And the more we can get done, the more we can do!
3. Effective Homemakers Budget Wisely
The household budget feeds into the home in more ways than one. Yes, it determines what food we buy, how much electricity and internet we use, and what treats we have.
But if the budget is a source of stress and anxiety, then this permeates into every aspect of the home. It makes the home a stressful and anxious place to be.
Highly Effective Homemakers safeguard this by being excellent at budgeting.
They ensure their expenditure does not exceed their income and they do what it takes to make ends meet. They are shrewd shoppers, and they save where they can.
4. Effective Homemakers have a Place for Everything and Everything in its Place.
I firmly believe that a home needs to LOOK orderly for it to BE orderly.
Why does a home need to be orderly? In short: success always requires order or discipline in some form (unless it is a fluke). The way we run our home is an indication of how orderly we are. If we cannot achieve order there, how can we in other areas of our lives?
A simple way for our home to be orderly is to make sure we have a place for everything and that everything is in its place. This is a strategy that makes it easy to teach toddlers how to clean and the same applies for grown-ups too.
By adopting this philosophy, we will never have more stuff than what we have space for and having a designated resting spot means our home will only ever get superficially messy.
5. Effective Homemakers Clean as They Go.
If they see a mess, Effective Homemakers will clean it then and there. They will always leave a room tidier than when they entered it.
This may seem like a big ask, but the thing is, if we do it all the time, then every time we do it, it will not be a Big Job. It means our home will always be in a general state of tidiness, which conveys excellence and diligence on your part.
When I think about it, I know I would rather live in a generally tidy house than a generally messy one.
I can see that this habit of doing little things often, must foster the ability to achieve. A person who will cannot stop doing little things, will inevitably expand in terms of productivity and capabilities.
6. Effective Homemakers Play Music.
Now in this one I am home and dried!! I love to play music while I work.
The jist of this characteristic, is that Effective Homemakers find joy in their home. They make the job fun by putting on their favourite music or listening to an inspiring podcast.
How can other people enjoy our home, if we, the person in charge of Making our Home, do not? Let’s make our homes the place where we want to be. Otherwise, we cannot expect other people (our friends, family, husband, children) to want to be there.
So put on the sounds, and crank it up!
7. Effective Homemakers Rest.
This is a big one, and something I have only intentionally started doing in recent months. I was challenged about rest through my bible readings. God rested. Who am I, therefore, to say that I can’t? Rest is SO important, that the Lord set aside a whole day for it.
We need rest. Otherwise, we get burnt out and grow discontent.
This habit requires all the other habits, combined. Our routine needs to revolve around it. We need to be constantly thinking ahead, getting things done earlier in the week so that we can have a period of rest without having anything on our mind.
If we give everything a place and clean as we go, then preparing for a period of rest will be less difficult. And if we are lacking joy, then the rest isn’t going to be, well, restful.
Hubby and I set aside Sundays to rest completely from chores, work, gardening, and cooking. It isn’t easy, because you don’t want to spend your day of rest thinking about what you still need to do. We have to carve out this time and prepare for it thoroughly.
Now, our day of rest is one we look forward to. It is our favourite day of the week, where we truly focus on each other and just have FUN.
Final Word:
Please note that all this is geared towards myself as much as to you, friend. I am by no means an effective homemaker, but I do so ache to master all these characteristics, myself.
It’s all a matter of time!
I’d love to hear what characteristics of Effective Homemaking would you add to this list?
Happy Homemaking, friends!
Steph x
