10 Answers
Zones of responsibility. My room was always a mess until I choose to change how I thought about the room. It was a rat hole...really. "Clean it up!" "Clean it up!" was often yelled to me as I opened the door. I would yell back... " But it's suppose to be a rat hole!" Tiring of this I decided to change my ways and do the apparently impossible task of inventory and organization. With my room, the problem has been an excess of ideas and a lack of time to complete any of them resulting in clutter on clutter in clutter...hence, nothing gets done. Then, sitting amid the heaps in quest of what to throw out were all of the reminders of the interesting little project I had started two years ago and never got around to completing. This could take a lifetime..."dinner's ready" she calls to me and I'm out of my self imposed prison of snafu. The correction of this calls for some reasoning. I went for moving the big stuff to the garage first. The motorcycle, drum set were hauled out first then I found my chainsaw hiding beside the dresser under a lamp shade. I had brought it in to sharpen the teeth on the chainsaw two years ago but was interrupted when the Rose Bowl came on and two of my buddies showed up to watch the game with a case of beer. .... Has anyone seen my truck keys?
13 years ago. Rating: 3 | |
13 years ago. Rating: 3 | |
Jeffs right imo. They don't care. Tell them no cleanup no dinner?
13 years ago. Rating: 1 | |
Iswear I am not dumb. It happens all the time. But today my husband drove up for lunch and drove past 65 bials of pine straw in he usual parking place and had know idea it was there. I told him "papa" said hey. And he was like why was papa here. So I assume he was blind.
Actually they so see it, but if you have been doing it for years they don't see it as something they should do. If you really want them to change then you have to change as well and stop picking up after them. My motto is if you made the mess then you clean it up. If we make the mess together then we both clean it up. Tell them we all live here and I am not responsible for everything and everybody. It does take a bit of patience but it does work eventually. Be prepared for resistance.
Ask the children if you make a mess at school who cleans it up not the teacher. If the teacher assigns homework and they don't do it are there consequences. I bet there are. So enforce some consequences.
As for you husband same thing. Does his boss clean up after him. If he's asked to do something can he just play stupid or step over it. I bet that wouldn't fly with his boss.
Hey and I bet you work outside the home as well,and even if you don't you need to call some shots and set some rules. Again expect resistance in the beginning, but if you don't do it (and you can stand the mess) and they learn to do it you have taught them some life lessons about living in the real world. But again use baby steps and it will take some changing on everyone part. Good Luck!
13 years ago. Rating: 1 | |
13 years ago. Rating: 0 | |
I have the same problem...have gone on strike and let it grow, have nagged to the point I hate to hear my own voice, have put the pile on the kids beds finding it on the floor later, have put it in garbage bags and hidden it for weeks, so far I have realized that either I figure out the importance of it for myself and pick it up or drive myself and everyone else nuts...you pick!
13 years ago. Rating: 0 | |
please... they can live in crap for all I care at this piont. My little space (my bathroom and the kitchen) is clean they are on thier own... However they can not do ANYTHING if there is a mess.
I would like to agree but I have a salon in my home so living in crap outside of their own bedrooms and personal space,I have to deal with it
Jenn,
Good question but I must tell you, I know girls and women do the same thing. What I find is that I have as much to learn about HOW to handle a situation as they do in correcting their errors. If it is your specific job to correct, make sure you do it while honoring the person and not personally attacking them. Hope this helps a bit!
Austin
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