Recently, I was reading an article in BetterHousekeeper.com that discussed “Taking Better Care of Your Home in 2020”. The article focused on renovating, increasing safety measures like waterproofing areas, and even getting a survey completed on your home, which are all good ideas. However, I contend that there are smaller steps one can take to take better care of their home. Subsequently, there are very basic measures you can take to both protect and increase the value of your home or rental. Consequently, ASAC Jani recommends that you should first invest in some type of renter’s insurance if you are renting a unit, or additional MPI insurance if you own your home.

​RENTERS INSURANCE
When renting an apartment or other type unit for a prolonged period you are paying the owner to live in their unit. Subsequently, if the building is burned in a fire or affected by some other nature disaster the owner’s asset, the building, is protected through their insurance policy. However, as a renter your personal items are your responsibility. That means if you lose all of your possessions the owner has no responsibility to reimburse you for those losses.
However, you can purchase an inexpensive renter’s insurance policy that will reimburse you for your damaged personal items like electronics, furniture, clothing, etc. Check out the SimpleDollar.Com page for the best renters insurance of 2020.

MORTGAGE PROTECTION INSURANCE (MPI)
This year I turned 40 years old and for the first time I started thinking about what will happen to my girls if something were to happen to my husband and I. I started by purchasing life insurance, however, in speaking with my mother about her policies she directed me to consider protecting my home as well as providing financial resources to my daughters. Subsequently, she discussed MPI insurance with me. Mortgage protection insurance protects homeowner’s by paying off the mortgage on the home if the owner is to die. This means that if my husband or I die not only will my children have financial benefits paid out, but they will also have our home completely paid off. Therefore, the last thing my kids will have to worry about upon my untimely demise will be finances.

So there you have it, the first step in taking care of your home is protecting it for you and your off-springs. Furthermore, as you obtain more resources you have to ensure you have the correct resources in place to protect those assets. Subsequently, always do your research. Make sure that you set your budget, compare policies, and ask questions about coverage limits and durations. Following these steps are great proactive measures to ensure your greatest asset is always protected for you and your legacy.
 
 
 

As a young community association manager I was responsible for the management of 14 community associations simultaneously. Subsequently, being organized was key to performing my job well because you had to know when each owner wanted to review their financials, remember the different contractors and vendors, and remember which association members were on each boards. So of course I just had to be the Queen of organization right??? WRONG! I was a mess. One day my boss came to my desk and asked a great question, “how do you find anything in there”, to which I answered, “I know where I put my things”. Well, I didn’t know where I put my things, or more accurately some of the items may have been moved due to the barrage of debris inhabiting my work space. Subsequently, this began my journey into putting everything “in it’s place”.

​Looking back on my youth I would say that my dear Aunt Myra first introduced me to organization, and I believe I took it for granted. She would often scold me about putting her comb back in its spot, or cleaning up the sink and moving items back to their designated locations as soon as I was completed. I did not really understand how important and how useful this process would be in my home and for my business. The ability to have a designated location creates a clean, less confusing space that increases our capacity to thrive.

Most times when you are tasked with cleaning, maybe a messy room after a party, or an especially cluttered kitchen after a holiday meal, one quickly becomes overwhelmed and unable to even know where to begin. On the contrary, if you have a clear plan for organizing your space even the grand task of cleaning can become as routine as preparing for your day. Furthermore, organizing doesn’t have to be an expensive process.

View our 5 common household items that you can use to organize your home.

1) Use Corkboards to hang earrings and jewlery – Or basically anything you can stick to the board. Corkboards, old nets and/or screens are great alternatives.  

2) Use your walls for extra shelving – Go to Lowes, Home Depot or maybe even Wal-mart and purchase shelf brackets for as little as $3 each. Then purchase a board for your shelf and you are good to go.  

​3) Shoe racks are not just for shoes – Those cloth, behind the door shoe racks are my absolute fav for storing my combs, brushes, and bric a brac. There are so many compartments that are perfect for holding a nice bit of materials.  ​

4) Candlestick holders work great for medals, bracelets, and necklaces – I find myself adding bracelets, anklets, my Black Girls Run Running Medals, chokers, watches, etc. around any candle stick holder I can find. Not only does it hold most of my jewlery, it also looks so darn cute!
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5) Be creative – There are a number of items that you can use to store things from empty cans of peanuts, water bottles, or empty spice containers. Use your old noggin. You can always come up with another use for your common household things. 
 

As a first time cleaning entrepreneur I thought the best way to kick-start my business was to run an ad with living social. The program stipulated that I offered up to a 50% discount for my cleaning services, but I could add certain other requirements that would justify that cost, like limiting the time to 2 hours. Subsequently, I worked with my Living Social Rep to come up with a fabulous cleaning ad which offered a two hour cleaning for a very low $55.00 (retail price $79.95). Although I would have to considerably reduce the amount I was paid for the service, I figured the chance to partner with Living social could increase my clientele substantially. Therefore, the profits from the coupon and new clients would justify the cost of the cleaning voucher. 

Consequently, although I was able to retain a few clients from the coupons, I wouldn’t say that it provided the number of leads I projected. However, it did generate a few, but very loyal and successful recurring client relationships, two of which lead to other profitable business partnerships. Subsequently, the amount I paid for the advertising was returned in the form of new business…which was the ultimate goal.


Today, my company has grown a bit larger and accordingly, so has my advertising budget. I found that as I attracted more clients and increased revenue, continuing that upward trend required me to obtain even more clients. On the other hand, I could not just throw all of my money into advertising costs (which could cost thousands) I had to create an advertising plan and budget. In an article featured in entrepreneur.com  the author Williams gives us a formula for calculating your advertising budget. You start by looking at 10-12% of your annual revenue, deduct for some expenses and other contingencies, and then you derive a number to focus your marketing expenditures for that period.

Therefore, once you have your advertising costs, my personal advice is to create a focus for your marketing efforts. After the living social campaign I joined social media groups to learn more about the cleaning business. I found out that some great options for advertising to a wide demographic was by posting ads on Facebook, Google, Yelp and other websites. Subsequently, I devoted a great deal to each of these platforms, marketing different services and products on different sites, unknowingly spending up to 30% of my annual revenue. Consequently, I had to regroup and refocus my marketing strategy so that it was very strategic and effective.

I started by looking at the search results for each of my campaigns to discover which ones were the most effective. I then decided on which marketing services that I wanted to concentrate. As a cleaner we can focus on residential or commercial, or both. Maybe Google for commercial and Facebook for residential services. Subsequently, we were able to reduce costs for advertising expenses that we deemed ineffective, and increased investment in more profitable ventures. This ultimately reduced advertising costs and increased revenue.

​All in all, I would say that the ROI on my marketing/advertising costs may not have been what I expected, but overall I would say it was necessary. Right now I can do a search of A Step Above Clean Janitorial, and you will see my company listed, maybe not first, but somewhere close to the top. However, sans any effective marketing efforts I cannot be sure that searching for my company would yield any results. Subsequently, although you may look at your P&L for the month and cringe at how much you paid Blue Book.com for your 1 page flyer, do a comparison of how many contracts you were able to pick up this year and do the math. If you are in the black keep going, if you are in the red maybe its time to reassess. However, don’t stop those efforts because without them you probably will not even remain in the game.  

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It’s 7:56 am and my alarm wakes me up from a peaceful slumber. I roll over to hit the dismiss button excited about getting up and starting my day. I work from home, I am working for myself, and I start working at a time most convenient for me (…as I am no morning person).


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• 8: 15 am - I start my morning with a date will Mr. Billy Blanks for 20-30 minutes of a kick-ass, heart pumping, taebo workout.
• 8:45 am – I head to the bathroom to wipe my face with a cold rag and sip some ice cold water from my thermal mug.
• 8:55 am – Then ready to be revitalized I make my descension into the kitchen to brew my mandatory, predictable, morning cup of coffee, heavy on the cream and sugar.

​I step foot in my kitchen and notice an innocent piece of paper left on the counter…ok, no problem, I’ll pick it up…
Then I see crumbs on the stove…ok, let me get the 409 and wipe it down…
Finally, I get to the sink and there are at least 4 dishes left in the sink, when I know darn well the kitchen was cleaned when I left the same location only a mere 6 hours prior. WTF!!!

One of the most annoying occurrences that has the power to absolutely send Andrea Moore into a frenzied, high pitched, dissertation about the ills of leaving a dirty kitchen, is LEAVING A DIRTY KITCHEN. Furthermore, what is even more frustrating is when asked to identify the culprit of such actions I am always presented with the same chorus of denials from the same perpetuators. “I didn’t have cereal”, the 15 year old explains. “I told them to clean that mess up before they went to bed”, dad chimes in. “It wasn’t my night”, the little one protests in her defense. And even, “I’m the elder. I been cleaning my whole life. Yall should be cleaning for me”, the old…I mean “elder” one speaks from her fixed position in front of the TV screen. So what happens, mom does it again of course.

For so many primary homemakers (single moms, stay at home wives/husbands, nannies, caregivers, etc.) this scenario can be replayed in their homes over and over again. Moreover, often times the violators don’t see their actions as violations or “big deals” as my family loves to label their transgressions. However, it may not be a big deal to pick up a paper towel off the floor, sweep up a few crumbs, or throw a load of laundry in the machine. However, this means that it’s not a big deal for ANYONE in the house to do those minor things without being asked!

Subsequently, to all the MEN, WOMEN and CHILDREN  out there that may have heard a stream of expletives emit from their primary homemakers lips due to a dirty room, husbands that have that would rather throw clothes beside the hamper than actually in it, and/or guests that are told to “feel at home” but act more as hotel guests, STOP THAT ISH! Unless you are tipping you don’t have no darn maids.

​Nevertheless, I LOVE being a mother and homemaker. Furthermore, if the dishes are dirty before I start cooking there is a 90% chance that I will just start washing them, without saying a word to anyone. However, just because someone does not argue, scream and yell a request doesn’t mean they don’t feel ignored, undervalued and unappreciated. Therefore, if you are guilty of walking past that crumb on the table, see the 3 dirty dishes in the sink and move on, or see your homemaker multi-tasking but still ask “what’s for dinner”, try this step….Do it your damn self!
 
                                                                                                                                  By: Andrea Moore

Well let me start by posing this question, can any company make you rich?? To which my reply would undoubtedly be, Yes! However, since we are specifically discussing the cleaning industry let’s focus on how a cleaning company can make you rich. Moreover, there are many steps to becoming rich that have been suggested by many experts within the business world, to which I have seen some work and some that do not.
Subsequently, here goes my 5 top strategies that I think are good steps to perform if one wishes to become rich within the cleaning industry.

1. Define Your Level Of “Being Rich” – Would you like to make enough money so you will not have to work a second job, or are you trying to increase your part time revenue to supplement your current source of income? Do you want to own a large facilities management firm, or a small, local janitorial company? The idea is that you don’t have to create a fortune 500 company to reach your personal level of success. Everyone is different. Therefore, develop an amount of cleaning revenue that you would like to attain each week. Then strive to reach that goal. As you attain small milestones that may lead to larger victories and more cleaning revenue.
2. Invest in an Effective Cleaning Marketing and Advertising Campaign – The old saying goes “if a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear, does it make a sound?”. Well, this stands true for your janitorial company as well. If you have an awesome product or service but no one knows about it, you are just wasting your time. Subsequently, marketing should be your first steps. Start with free business listings, then move on to paid social media ads. On the contrary, if websites, social media posting, flyers, and postcards are not your strong suit hire someone to do it for you. Although marketing and advertising expenses may take up more than 30 – 40% of your annual budget, that investment may contribute to 80 – 90% of your cleaning revenue. Subsequently, the more you invest in quality leads, ads, and traffic to your website the greater potential to make it rich in your cleaning business.
3. Listen to the Experts….the Cleaning Experts That Is  – When I first started my cleaning company I purchased many books on how to start a cleaning company. I paid for websites to send me leads, I purchased a lot of flyers and went door to door passing them out until my feet grew permanent calluses. I spent all of my budget on items that “business” consultants informed me that I should focus. However, this strategy just cost me more time and money and derived very little results. Subsequently, I stopped listening to business experts and started listening to people in the industry. Prior to social media it was harder to talk to actual janitors, cleaning companies and actual cleaners about their best practices and cleaning tips. However, today you can join cleaning groups on Facebook or Twitter, there are meet-up groups for cleaners, and there are even webpages devoted to growing your cleaning revenue. The exchange of ideas from actual cleaners within the industry is invaluable as you can hear from successful janitorial companies, ask questions, and receive critical feedback that can help grow your own company.
4. If You Can See It You Can Achieve It – Before you can be rich you have to see yourself rich. When I first started my cleaning company my husband and I both lost our jobs, we were in risk of losing our home, and we had depleted all of our savings and $8,000 401K. Nevertheless, it never stopped me from dreaming of having my 6 bedroom mansion with my pool and 2-3 car garage. I imagined going to work everyday in my home office, employing several hundred workers at our headquarters, and looking to create other opportunities for low wage workers in the name of ASAC Janitorial services.  Therefore, whenever I went out to speak with companies or just went out in general, I always looked my best. I made sure my clothes were well pressed and my vehicle was clean; basically I tried my best to look at close to 1 million bucks as possible. Even back then I dressed the part of what I wanted, and not what I had. Subsequently, although I am not quite at 500 employees, I have defined and met my level of success often. However, as you reach one level that only encourages you to go after another. Then before you know it you are wealthier and more successful than you ever thought possible!
5. Never Give Up! – You probably won’t be rich quick. I say probably because yes, there are those 1 in 1 million chances that tomorrow you will build a website, attract thousands of customers, and become an overnight success. On the contrary, for the rest of the 99% of entrepreneurs success does not come quick. Warren Buffet attained his wealth in his 50s. Elon Musk discussed being fired from what is now PayPal before starting his own company. Even Colonel Sanders saw his original gas station business deplete overnight due to the invention of the highway. Therefore, I say to you, don’t give up. Maybe you will not become rich overnight, it may take a few years. However, if you can see it, invest in it, and continue to pursue it no matter what, I have every certainty that you will become rich in cleaning!!! 

Written By: Andrea Moore​

The term “living in clutter” is not just referencing your state of being but also your state of mind. A cluttered mind is full of ideas, but has very little direction on how to implement those ideas. You may know that you have 10 tasks that need your attention, but which task should be first? Should all those tasks be completed today or can one wait? How should those tasks be handled? All of these questions are floating around in a cluttered mind the same way clothes, shoes, and trash are thrown about around a messy room. When entering a messy room most people quickly become overwhelmed. There is no place to sit, little room to walk, and just no sense of structure. This type of disorganization can affect our sight and our minds. Subsequently, a cluttered space is a cluttered mind.

According to the American Psychological Association, one third of Americans are living with extreme stress. Adults and children that have to deal with issues at school and work, social issues affecting our economy and environment, and just the daily difficulties of life can quickly become stressed and overwhelmed. On the contrary, our homes are supposed to be the one place in which we find peace and solace to effectively deal with life’s volatility. Subsequently, by starting with the cleaning and organization of your living space there is strong chance your life will follow.

In the morning I wake up, make my bed, and make sure there is nothing on the floor. After getting dressed I place my toothbrush in the holder, wipe off the toothpaste, and my aunt always reminded me to use a paper towel to effectively remove all hair from the sink. This routine helps me to mentally prepare for the day, even on Mondays. I am not rushing around trying to figure out what and where to begin. My undergarments are in the top drawer, dresses are hung in the closet, and my shoes are by the door or hanging in the shoe compartments in my closet. I am ready to take on the day because I have a clear plan and can quickly execute without confusion. I feel safe, organized, and sure of myself. This energy can only carry onto the other tasks I have planned for the day. I am ready to go.

Yes, I know most people don’t have time to clean every single day. I also understand how easy it is for rooms to become messy quickly. Subsequently, try implementing these 4 tricks below that will help you to maintain a clean and clear space everyday of the week!

1. Make up your bed as soon as you rise – A freshly made bed always makes a room tidy. Just make sure that you don’t throw items back on your bed. Just keep it clear and neat.
2. Give all items their own space – My husband always said his mother told him to give everything a space because then you always know where to find it. In addition, it allows you to quickly clean because you literally don’t have to think about where to stick something. Haircare products go in the small drawers while jewelry goes in the jewelry box. Socks in the top drawer, pens and pencils in the holder, trash in the can, dirty clothes in the bin…
3. Empty trash every other day – Nothing is messier than garbage spilling over into the floor. In addition, it makes it easier to leave wrappers and unnecessary paper around, making areas unnecessarily cluttered. THROW TRASH AWAY IMMEDIATELY!
4. Clean your Floors Daily – Clean floors are another feature that contributes to the cleanliness of a unit. Many of my clients don’t consider floors vacuumed unless they see the lines (….with which I can agree). However, if you don’t have a vacuum you would be surprised how well and how great it looks to use a broom on carpet. Growing up in the south during the summers, my grandmother showed me how to use a broom to clean when no vacuum was available.

Obviously no one, right? Well, maybe not. Some people actually do like to clean. Actually, many cleaning company owners really love cleaning, and would do that job instead of doing something behind a desk!

I can remember my mother starting me on my cleaning journey when I was a young girl about 6 or 7 years old. She would wake me up early on Saturday morning, turn on our radio to her favorite gospel station, open the windows and start to clean our entire home from top to bottom. She would use Windex and newspapers to clean the windows, our old yellow broom to remove cobwebs and dirt from the narrowest corners of our home, but the highlight of the cleaning experience for me was when she dusted with lemon pledge. My mother would spray down every end table, dresser, drawer, and/or wooden piece of furniture in the house. I would be allowed to carefully remove all of the items off the tables in order to clean the entire area. When my mother was sure that I could use the pledge without depleting the entire bottle in one cleaning, I began completing the dusting all by myself.

My mother always instructed me to dust the entire circumference of the item, not just the top. I would wipe down the legs of the object, under the table, I would even use a pin or straight edge to clean deep inside the indentures and crevices of the object until every inch was thoroughly dusted and clean. I took great pride in my mother being able to apply the white glove test to the areas I cleaned. (Although she did not do it very often).

​I then carried this attention to detail to grade school. In class, it absolutely disturbed me to see books thrown about on shelves, or toys scattered around the play area. It just bothered me to no end to see items sitting anywhere but neatly in the corner. I would then ask the teachers if I could straighten up. “Sure”, was always their response. Awesome! I would take my time to remove all the items, clean the shelf with whatever cleaner they had laying around (or just a paper towel to remove the visible dust), and then reorganize the items in a neat fashion. I took great pride in seeing how beautiful I could make an area. I also felt a sense of calm and peace while cleaning. Cleaning allowed me to focus on one task and complete it to the best of my ability. I also had quiet time to de-stress and momentarily remove myself from the activities of the other students. 

Furthermore, I still feel the same way today. I love being able to beautify and sweeten ones homes. I also love the solitude and tranquility that cleaning provides to the cleaner.  People think of cleaning as a task to be dreaded and completed as quickly as possible to get on to more important tasks. However, to me cleaning is my starting point to creating an atmosphere of productivity. I feel that when your home is organized and neat it follows your life. Therefore, my goal is to create an atmosphere of peace and productivity for my clients. And yes, I actually enjoy it. Nothing makes me happier than coming into a disorganized space and making it neat and tidy. So to me, yes, I LOVE to clean!
 

 

When I first bought my home in 2006 my cousin made a great suggestion, make sure people leave their shoes at the door. "Why?", I asked. Wouldn't people feel uncomfortable walking around your house in their socks or bare foot? That couldn't possibly be ok for adults could it? Actually, yes! That could be the right move for your house.

In 2016, researchers at the University of Arizona found nine different species of bacteria on the shoes of randomly selected participants. In a period of two weeks, they found 440,000 units of bacteria on a single pair of shoes. (Today, 2019). Furthermore, this bacteria was transferred to clean surfaces in your home and around your family. Now, this is not to say that your shoes are the only germ producing materials that help spread diseases. Your clothes have germs, your coats, and any other products that you take outside with you. 

Therefore, the goal is not so much to eliminate outside germs, but to help reduce them as much as possible. Leaving your outside shoes, coats, and even clothes by the door, in the laundry, or mud room may not create a complete sterile, laborotorial type environment for your home, but it can help reduce the amount of harmful germs that invade your home.

E Coli and fecal matter can float around in the air, and can be transferred to clean flesh and internally. Although, we cannot stop microorganisms from floating around and invading our bodies we can try to reduce the number as much as possible. Subsequently, will removing your shoes ensure that you will never get sick in your house? Maybe not, however, taking off your shoes and outer wear and leaving them by the door will reduce the spread of those germs around your home, and you can focus on the fun invaders that are already there :-)

So its raining outside and you have nothing to do? Here are a few ideas that you can do to keep yourself occupied and keep your unit looking great!

1. Create a Photo Box 
Take this time to collect all of your photos and keepsakes and decorate a old shoe box for storage. You can use old wrapping paper to decorate your shoebox and attach anything you would like. You can then label your box to easily retrieve your fav pics!

2. Make/Create a Gourmet Meal
Many times there will be plenty of items in our refrigerators that are in minutes of the expiring. On a rainy day it's always fun to surf the web or read a book. While reading, look for interesting recipes. Then go into your kitchen and try to recreate those recipe with the items you already have. If you don't have something, just use something different. You never know you may stumble upon something extraordinary!

Yes, I said it. I absolutely hate cleaning toilets as a residential or commercial cleaner. The dirty toilet water sometimes splashes back on you, not many people clean the outside and base of the toilet so it's dried urine and who knows what else around the exterior, and let's be honest it will take an extraordinary act of a superhuman force to get the upper interior of the inside bowl clean.

However, the bathroom is one of the most important areas to clean in your home. Staph and E Coli  are the most common germs that develop in bathrooms due to the warm moist air the makes the environment perfect for diseases to incubate and thrive. Subsequently, I never feel more clean then when my toilets are white, my sinks sparkle, and my floors smell like fresh pine.

Moreover, having a clean bathroom reduces the chances of mold and the growth of other bacteria that contributes to allergies, asthma and other respiratory illnesses. Subsequently, I as a cleaner love to make sure I clean the hell out of a bathroom. (...Yes, I said it). I remove all the gunk around the fixtures, make the tub sparkle, and make the chrome fixtures nice and shiny. 

My mission is clear, clean every bathroom as if my bum was going to be sitting/washing/cleaning in it!!!