Tag : health

How Hiring a House Cleaner Made Us Happier, Healthier and More Productive

Sometimes you have to admit mom was right. When my husband and I moved into a behemoth old Victorian in need of some love, she shook her head. “You’ll never have any time to enjoy the house,” she warned us. “You’ll spend all your time cleaning.”

Enthralled with the acres of hardwood floors, fireplaces in every room, and gorgeous trim you only find in houses of a certain age (this one dates to 1890), I laughed it off. We had moved from a 900 square foot home that took a team effort of just 20 minutes to get it clean enough for company and I couldn’t envision spending any more time than that. We’d just get a Roomba, we figured.

Within weeks I admitted privately she was right.

Within months I fessed up more publicly.

Soon I was the boring person who complains about how much time it takes to clean the house.

We tried various approaches; one room a day, x number of minutes per day, refrigerator lists, apps, paper planners with chore lists. But when there was always more to be done it came to seem pointless to even make an effort. So we’d let it slide. Then something would spur us into action; family coming to visit, hosting friends, wasting half an hour looking for something we’d misplaced, and we’d lose an entire weekend to mopping, scrubbing and fervent proclamations that this time we’d get clean and organized and stay that way.

Between those frenzied bouts of cleaning I’d find myself in one of two untenable situations. Working from home I don’t get to leave dirty dishes or the mountain of laundry behind each day. So I had to either look at it all day, which left me feeling stressed and overwhelmed, unable to focus — or just deal with it myself, which ate away large chunks of my work day and left me feeling stressed and overwhelmed. You see where this is going.

We needed professional help. But I felt guilty at even the thought. What would people think? My own mom cleaned houses when I was a kid and I helped sometimes. We’re not one-percenters by a long stretch; I’m a freelance writer plus Airbnb host with a full-time rental on our home’s third floor, and my husband works in HR and is pretty much an eternal college student. We share a car and are more likely to shop consignment and thrift stores than luxury boutiques. Thoughts of a housecleaner conjured up fancy people with shiny jobs and paychecks to match. Who did we think we were?

That feeling isn’t unusual, Ashley Whillans, assistant professor at Harvard Business School tells NBC News BETTER. Her research into how people navigate trade-offs between time and money has shown that people who spend money to save time are happier than those who spend it on material goods, significantly happier. But very few people – as in two percent, in an experiment — would actually spend a windfall on a timesaver.

But why? Blame that nagging guilty feeling. In ongoing research “we find that guilt really does undermine consumer likelihood of buying time — and the benefit you get from buying it,” Whillans says. Another possible reason, she says, is that people consider time abstract and money concrete. “Material purchases you can have right now [while] time saving benefits you in future. We always think we’re going to have more time tomorrow than today whereas money is equally valuable [anytime]. It takes some mental gymnastics to think about spending a resource that’s concrete now in a way that’s going to save some time in the future.”

I guess I’m good at the mental gymnastics because I couldn’t get the siren song of help out of my head, and we made the leap. My husband took the HR approach with an ad on craigslist and phone screenings. Meanwhile I called a woman whose card I found at the register of our local hardware store and asked her over. And she was the one. With a passion for helping people and a drive to launch her own full-time cleaning business, she took us on as one of her first clients. I liked her hustle.

M and I worked out the details; she’d come once a week, on Friday mornings. I didn’t tell anyone at first (aside from friends in our neighbourhood, that is — we live in American’s largest concentration of Victorian homes so we’re all singing the same housecleaning blues).

And something magical happened after that first cleaning. I took a look around at the glowing floors, polished furniture and gleaming kitchen counter all previously cloaked by the dust ever-present in these old houses and strewn with the detritus of a busy life. And I could draw an easy breath. I knew living in a house in constant need of cleaning was stressing me out, but I didn’t realise just how badly until the worry was lifted.

The transformation in my outlook was remarkable. Now I could see the toothpaste splatters on the bathroom mirror or the balls of dog hair tumbleweeding across the floors and shake it off; rather than fretting about the impossibility of ever catching up, “M’s coming Friday, she’ll take care of it,” I could think, and return to my own work.

For the first time, my husband and I fell into an easy routine of keeping things picked up. We don’t consider it M’s job to pick up dog toys, do dishes or fold our laundry, so we make a point by Thursday evening to have the house clutter-free and ready for her. That deadline, and the freedom of knowing that’s all we have to do, that the heavy lifting will be done by a pro, means no more danger of letting things pile up — and a drastic reduction in arguing about who does what.

Many people seek the services of house cleaning services every now and then to make sure that their houses are definitely neat and clean. If you think that you have been placing in too much work, trying to clean the home without really getting the outcomes you expected for then you should seek the services of an experienced house cleaning service.

Before choosing house cleaners, it is important for you to know what your specifications actually are. To be able to do this, you should make a record of places that you want cleaned and how often you want them cleaned. These guidelines can consist of places like your kitchen, bathing space, cleaning laundry space or the whole house. Now make sure, that whatever choice you select, can actually help you in satisfying these needs best. For example, whether your house cleaner would be able to clean your windows better or if the cleaning service would be able to flip, you are cleaning laundry at all.

The following guidelines will allow you to get the best outcomes from the regular house cleaners:

The individual you seek the services of should have the needed insurance coverage. This will secure you in the occasion of a car incident happening during the course of work.
It is essential to seek the services of a certified individual to clean your home so that you do not break the law. Be very careful of hiring unlawful immigration just so that you can low cost.
Decide on a better after meeting with more than one person. It is never a wise decision to negotiate for the first individual you meeting. Besides, you do need to have choices so that you do not have to struggle to discover an alternative. Keep in thoughts that if you depend too much on one person then there is a possibility of complacency happening.
Have an obvious knowing about the conditions of work. You need to specify exactly what you need cleaned and at what regularity it will be done. This is also plenty of an opportunity to talk about how much you will be spending. You should also discover out exactly how long the domestic house cleaning will take so that you can make strategy your day accordingly. It is best to put everything in written so that there are no misunderstandings on either aspect. This is also when you should reveal whether you have animals or children, because this can increase the opportunity of the work.
Have quality about who will offer residential house cleaning items and devices. Whereas you might be needed to offer a machine, the housekeeping cleaners will usually offer the cleaning items. It is best to discover out exactly which items they use, just in situation you do not like any of them or have allergic reactions to them. In addition, this aspect affects costs.

Taking the effort to properly, choose home cleaning service providers will make sure that you are pleased with the services delivered to you. The cash that you pay to clean your home will make sure that it is in the best possible situation without getting you exhausted out.

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Mahi Masud
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Commercial Cleaning Is About Good Hygiene And Productivity

Benefit of office cleaning

You came to your office and the last thing you would expect is to find all things messed up in your office room. Or maybe it is you who does not like to be all disciplined rather leaves things all messed up. Whichever side you belong to, there is one thing that can be said. You will certainly know the benefit of office cleaning. To be precise, it should be called benefits as there are multiple benefits of office cleaning that you may know or you may not have realised this before. Some people do find it bothersome to clean their office every now and then. According to them, this does not stand in cost benefit analysis. So, they prefer not to clean. There notion is completely fallacious and they should revise their thinking to a more productive one. Productive? Yes. Cleaned office will keep your mood great which will eventually increase your productivity and think it like this way who does not want their office to look good?

There are obviously certain benefits of keeping everything clean. Office is a place where you do your work and which generates revenue for you. That is why, office should be considered of utmost importance. Let us discuss about the benefits of office cleaning point by point.

Easier access to files

If everything in your office is sorted properly, you will not have difficulty finding any file whenever you need one. If you need a file immediately, but cannot find it in a mess of everything. If you keep your office clean, you will never face such situation. Your time will be saved as well as your temper. As you have easier access, you can have whatever you want, whenever you want- that is the benefit you are going to get.

Clients will hold a good perception

If your client enters your office and finds everything neat and clean, then he or she is bound to have a positive notion about yourself. So, it is good to keep everything clean in your office so that whoever enters will have a good perception about you and your office.

Good for health

Cleaned office means there will be no dirt and germs in it. So, you will be maintaining complete hygiene over this. Good hygiene means good health. You are not only keeping yourself healthy but also taking care of the environment you are working in.

Improved Productivity

Who does not like to have a good mood all the time? Often it is not possible because of a number of circumstances. As per many researches, productivity does increase if you are in a good mood. Cleaned office helps you have a good mood even when you are working.

You have already learned about all the benefits that you can get from office cleaning. So, it completely depends on you now if you want to follow the rules of cleanliness or you want to go easy. Office cleaning is a task that is becoming common in all aspects. You will surely want to give it a try if you are the boss at your own office.

When it comes to keeping your facility clean, its cosmetic appearance is not the only value or aim.

Cleaning for Health results in visibly cleaner facilities and minimises chemical residues, bacteria and dust from surfaces.

The importance of prioritising Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

Whether at work, at home or elsewhere, we spend as much as 90 percent of our time inside and increasingly, that time is spent in less than optimal IAQ environments.

Now think about how many labour days are lost annually through employee illness caused by poor air quality and how much it costs the company. And then there are the associated health care costs to the community and, depending on the use of the facility, there are other factors to consider.

Whether the facility is a school, hospital, shopping centre, factory, airport, warehouse, problems such as poor attendance, lower patronage, higher secondary illness rates, complaints, and even litigation could arise.

Factors influencing Indoor Air Quality

Cleanliness standards are just the beginning. Other factors can include:

Gases emitted by paints, floor coverings, construction materials and treated furnishings;
The use of harsh chemical cleaning products; and
Cleaning methods that contribute to the problem.

Choose Environmentally Preferable Products (and methods) wherever possible

One of the ways companies can be more proactive in improving IAQ is by opting to use environmentally preferable products and utilising more environmentally-friendly methods wherever possible.

Choose cleaning products that have zero or low odours.
Use cleaning chemicals that are water-based, not solvent-based.
Explore engineered water products such as ozone, hydrogen peroxide and electrically converted water technology.
Outfit cleaning equipment with telemetry that provides key performance metrics and intelligent insights.
Invest in cleaning robots or autonomous floor care equipment to enhance efficiency and optimise productivity and safety.

Reduce exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

VOCs are present in fragranced cleaning products and many other substances and products as mentioned above. They are responsible for impacting on indoor air quality, resulting in irritation in individuals who have asthma or reactions to chemicals.

Choose unscented cleaning chemicals.
Only use solvent-based cleaners for tasks that can’t be achieved using gentler products, and only use in well-ventilated areas.
Instead of using VOC-laden artificial air fresheners to mask unpleasant odours, explore other options such as natural products or look at ways to prevent odours in the first place.

How cleaning processes can improve Indoor Air Quality

Technological advancements have made cleaning smarter and more effective and the result is vastly improved indoor air quality. An American study* revealed the following results concerning facilities cleaned thoroughly with the assistance of technologically advanced supplies and equipment:

As well as using low- or no-VOC cleaning products and employing thorough cleaning practices and technologically advanced equipment, it’s important that facility managers regularly monitor indoor air quality by:

Examining air quality on a regular basis and recording any issues;
Heeding, recording and responding to complaints and recommendations made by the workforce and visitors; and
Supporting the owners, occupants and employees in their efforts to maintain a healthy indoor environment.

Facility safety is part of Cleaning for Health too

Airborne dust and toxins are only part of the problem faced by facility managers. Slips and falls are among the leading causes of workplace injuries in Australia, and many are entirely preventable.

How to reduce the risk of slips and falls

Standing water must never be left behind after cleaning.
Machines that feature powerful water recovery systems leave floors dryer and less hazardous.
Using equipment that doesn’t rely on chemicals to clean means no build-up of excess chemicals which can cause slippery surfaces.

Tennant Company is a recognised leader in designing, manufacturing and marketing solutions that help create a cleaner, safer, healthier world. With a vision to become a global leader in sustainable cleaning innovation that empowers our customers to create a cleaner, safer and healthier world, Tennant creates solutions that are changing the way the world cleans. Tennant products include equipment used to maintain indoor and outdoor surfaces, as well as TennantTrue® financing solutions, equipment parts, service, and maintenance to help ensure superior cleaning performance from your Tennant machines.

Safe, clean facilities boost employee happiness and productivity, according to new survey findings released by Essity’s professional hygiene brand, Tork USA.

The survey, conducted in November 2018, found the majority of manufacturing employees identify operational efficiency (96 per cent), safety and hygiene (94 per cent), and organisation of work environments (93 per cent) as top enhancers of their happiness on the job.

The study also concluded efficiency, organisation, safety and hygiene rank considerably higher than other factors in a facility, such as advancements in technology and machinery (87 per cent).

According to the study:

Nine in 10 manufacturing employees believe quality on-the-job tools, such as cleaning products, impact their productivity (90 per cent) along with their happiness (91 per cent)
71 per cent of employees believe operational efficiency strongly impacts their productivity, 96 percent believe it boosts their happiness
94 per cent of employees find that a hygienic, healthy and risk-free work environment impacts their happiness (57 per cent strongly agree)
60 per cent of workers find that organisation of work environment strongly influences their productivity, and 93 percent find it affects their happiness

For plant managers and facility supervisors, improving hygiene and safety are critical for boosting employee morale in addition to facility efficiency.

Maryellen Anastasio, marketing manager, Essity said happiness and productivity go hand-in-hand, particularly in fast-paced, high-risk environments like manufacturing.

“Facilities should consider the tools they are using and adopt safe and hygienic solutions that will not only improve operational efficiencies but motivate and engage employees. By making these changes, employers are sending a message that they care about their workers’ happiness and well-being.”

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