There are two idioms that I keep in mind with my bedroom.
The first is that you should always invest money in a good bed and a good pair of shoes, because if you aren't in one you're in the other.
The second is that the bedroom should be for two things only: sleep and sex.
When you're young, the second one is an impossible task. Whether you live with your parents or even with friends or housemates, your bedroom is inherently more than somewhere to sleep and screw - it's your only genuine piece of privacy. Until I moved into a house on my own, I ate meals in my bedroom, worked on my laptop in there, and did all of my entertainment away from where I might bother other people - cleaner as defined the dictionary certainly did not apply!.
But you also have the problem at that age that your bedroom is an inescapable part of you - it's where you take your friends to chat where parents can't overhear. The funny thing is that now I'm an adult, and actually have a bedroom I'd be willing to show to a friend, I don't need to invite people in there: most of my friends know what my living room looks like but not necessarily my bedroom. Not that there's much to see anyway.
Keeping on top of your bedroom can be helped significantly by just a few moments of thought
- Put dirty clothes in the hamper! I'm the worst at just throwing my clothes on the floor at the end of the day, and if I get something out of the wardrobe I suddenly decide I don't want to wear, it goes on the floor too. It makes much less of a mess if I just put the dirty clothes to wash up, and hang up the clean ones I rejected.
- Make the bed as soon as you get up. It just makes the whole room look much more pleasant, and means I can't have left any clothes or jewellery lying on it.
- Keep food out. As I said, I used to eat meals sat up in bed all the time - this meant I had constant crumbs and dirty forks hiding behind the bedside cabinet. I very occasionally take the ashtray in, and I'd consider having a breakfast in bed, although I never have yet.
- Keep as little in your room as possible. This harks back to the second cardinal rule of the bedroom - you don't want anything stimulating in there that will stop you from sleeping (or the other). That means no beside books, no laptop, no handheld consoles. Again, this is significantly easier if you have the space to spare - I don't even keep any makeup in my room anymore.
- Reward yourself! If I don't get a treat for doing a boring adult thing like cleaning my bedroom, I'm not interested. It doesn't have to be external, just allow yourself something you usually wouldn't, like maybe a dessert or a bottle of beer when you're done.
The first is that you should always invest money in a good bed and a good pair of shoes, because if you aren't in one you're in the other.
The second is that the bedroom should be for two things only: sleep and sex.
When you're young, the second one is an impossible task. Whether you live with your parents or even with friends or housemates, your bedroom is inherently more than somewhere to sleep and screw - it's your only genuine piece of privacy. Until I moved into a house on my own, I ate meals in my bedroom, worked on my laptop in there, and did all of my entertainment away from where I might bother other people - cleaner as defined the dictionary certainly did not apply!.
But you also have the problem at that age that your bedroom is an inescapable part of you - it's where you take your friends to chat where parents can't overhear. The funny thing is that now I'm an adult, and actually have a bedroom I'd be willing to show to a friend, I don't need to invite people in there: most of my friends know what my living room looks like but not necessarily my bedroom. Not that there's much to see anyway.
Keeping on top of your bedroom can be helped significantly by just a few moments of thought
- Put dirty clothes in the hamper! I'm the worst at just throwing my clothes on the floor at the end of the day, and if I get something out of the wardrobe I suddenly decide I don't want to wear, it goes on the floor too. It makes much less of a mess if I just put the dirty clothes to wash up, and hang up the clean ones I rejected.
- Make the bed as soon as you get up. It just makes the whole room look much more pleasant, and means I can't have left any clothes or jewellery lying on it.
- Keep food out. As I said, I used to eat meals sat up in bed all the time - this meant I had constant crumbs and dirty forks hiding behind the bedside cabinet. I very occasionally take the ashtray in, and I'd consider having a breakfast in bed, although I never have yet.
- Keep as little in your room as possible. This harks back to the second cardinal rule of the bedroom - you don't want anything stimulating in there that will stop you from sleeping (or the other). That means no beside books, no laptop, no handheld consoles. Again, this is significantly easier if you have the space to spare - I don't even keep any makeup in my room anymore.
- Reward yourself! If I don't get a treat for doing a boring adult thing like cleaning my bedroom, I'm not interested. It doesn't have to be external, just allow yourself something you usually wouldn't, like maybe a dessert or a bottle of beer when you're done.