In thinking about this topic, I realized I have been an entrepreneur since birth. I started babysitting at the age of 12. Now, when I look at my 12 year old grandson today I think, wow, they really left small children with me at that age?? But it was a different time.
Then at 13 I started cleaning homes for my babysitting clients. At 16 I got my first real job, then at 17 (almost 18) I started working at a manufacturing company.
While working at the manufacturing company, I started selling Home Interiors. Do you remember that 'party plan'? A multi-level sales program like Tupperware or Avon, only we were selling home decorating supplies.
They tell you, in order to be successful you must host at least 3 parties per week. Hauling all the supplies and the plywood display board and then speaking enthusiastically to a room full of women, taking orders, separating and delivering, etc -- you can see it was a bit of work.
I worked during the day at the factory and hosted parties at night. One night I was so tired, I fell asleep at the wheel. That was the end of my two-jobs-at-one-time plan.
I stayed at the factory for three years; then I quit to starting cleaning homes again. It wasn't much of a decision -- $75/week at the factory -- $350 per week cleaning six homes. Um, yep. No brainer! And in 1978 $350 was a LOT of money.
I've always loved cleaning. There is a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment not only in the fact your home is clean, but how it feels to do physical labor. I love it!
But, in the 1980's, I was working again in manufacturing; often up to 14 hours per day and so I hired a housekeeper because as much as I love cleaning, I had two small children and didn't want to spend what little spare time I had scrubbing and dusting.
These days we (Executive Errands®) clean quite a number of homes. Some of our homes are weekly, others are just during season and still others are just once in a while. In fact, all of our cleaning is done 'on demand' -- which means when the client wants it.
We have two amazing subcontract cleaning services, both of whom are insured and dedicated to our standards of quality. One of them even cleans my own house!
When you let someone clean your home, there are two important things to know:
- Clearly communicate your preferences
- Leave your home in such a way as to maximize cleaning efficiencies
Communicating preferences is pretty easy -- if baseboards matter to you -- tell us! If you are bug phobic, tell us that too. If you prefer your bed pillows be arranged a certain way, we'll take pictures to make sure they are always that way.
Don't worry that some of your requests seem nit-picky. They are not. We totally understand you want things the way you want them. It's your home! You have every right to want each detail perfect, no matter how small. I once saw a client move a chair a ¼ of an inch after cleaning -- I never forgot it and we do our very best to make sure to put all items back exactly the way they were.
When I was cleaning homes, back in the '70's, I only did six per week but half of those homes had to be cleaned before I could clean them -- i.e. they were a mess when I arrived so I had to put everything away and pick up trash and half eaten food before I could clean.
We bid jobs 'by the house' not by the hour so it's important that we can be efficient and so you can receive the most cleaning during each visit.
Here are some things for you to keep in mind so you can get the most value from our housekeeping services:
--Clear floors and flat surfaces of toys, mail, shoes, clothes, etc
--Leave dirty beds unmade and dirty towels in a pile, either on the washer or in the hamper
--Place clean linens in a pile on the bed or tell us where you keep the clean ones
--Run the dishwasher or we can (we'll always put them away)
--Use a squeegee on your glass shower surrounds to help prevent hard water spots
--If you have an efficient washer/dryer, we will clean all linens. If it is slow or if there are excessive linens, we will take them to the laundry
--Leave us a note with any special instructions or requests
If you will keep these small etiquette items in mind; we will be able to thoroughly vacuum, dust and mop all surfaces.
There is nothing better than coming home to a clean house. It feels like aaaahhhhhh.
If you'd like a quote to clean your home or to set up an account us, please contact us today! The first four new people to sign up for housekeeping services will receive a $10 Starbucks gift card after their third cleaning (let's see how many people read this newsletter to the end!)
