Everyone wants to live in a more organized home, but actually carving out time to file, sort, and otherwise de-clutter can seem next to impossible. Bethesda-based home organizer Rachel Strisik says it can be done–often in 20 minutes or less.The Washington Post recently ran a piece featuring some of Strisik’s helpful tips to getting organized. Her own home is an enviable model of absolute order (her refrigerator shelves are labeled!). But, for those who are just jumping into the realm of home organization, she offered three quick and manageable projects: one for the office, another for the kitchen, and a third for a children’s play area or bedroom. Check out the full article, Organizing in 20 Minutes or Less.

Getting out of the door faster in the morning and being less stressed in general are just a couple of the benefits of a better organized home. And here’s another important bonus not mentioned in the article: If you use a professional cleaning service, organizing your home allows your cleaning crew to optimize their time.

Maid to Clean crews are happy to pick up and straighten when visiting your home, but the less time we spend picking up, the more time we can devote to actual cleaning.

Here are just a few examples:

  • Time spent picking up clothes from a bedroom floor could be devoted to dusting a ceiling fan and baseboards in that same room.
  • Time spent stacking a large number of newspapers and magazines on a table could be spent cleaning every nook and cranny of that table.

Oftentimes, spending just a few minutes organizing and picking up before a visit from your Maid to Clean crew means the difference between a clean house and a house so clean that it sparkles like a brand new home.