Make Peace With Housework – Review and Giveaway Contest *CLOSED*

Danielle Raine, author of Make Peace With Housework, Strategies To Keep You Sane, is on a one-woman mission to bring peace to the hearts of women who hate housework. She is a work-at-home/stay-at-home mother to two noisy, messy and utterly gorgeous boys, who has recently made peace with housework after a 15-year struggle. She has documented this mental domestic journey in a bid to help other undomestic goddesses. The resulting blog and eBook series is designed to tackle the many aspects of Housework Blues and is packed full of easy-to-implement strategies to keep you sane. (In other words – How to keep your head when all around you are MESSING UP YOUR HOUSE!) Her dream is to help women everywhere achieve better relationships at home and calmer domestic karma – simply by making peace with housework.

5 Really Good Reasons…To Make Peace With Housework

For over a year, I’ve been working on a project entitled Make Peace with Housework.  Along the way I have discovered many simple, enlightening or fun ways to reduce the mental angst that comes with much domestic work. But one question occurred to me recently: Why? Why bother to make peace with housework? What difference does it make? Does it really matter whether we just get on and do the work through clenched teeth? (Or fists?). How does it help us to approach it with a more positive mindset?

So, in answer to my own ponderings, I offer you my top five reasons for coming to terms with the ‘unique challenge’ of keeping a home.

1.  Health

Perhaps the top reason to make peace with housework is your health. Health is often taken for granted. But ask anyone who suffers from ill-health and they will tell you that your health is perhaps the most precious thing you possess. With this in mind, how does your relationship to housework affect your health?

Well, if housework is a regular part of your life, how you feel about it will have an impact on your health. Does the prospect of looking after your home induces bitterness, anger, resentment, despair or any other negative emotion? These negative emotions are a serious health hazard. And if you’re dealing with these distressing feelings on a regular basis, your housework – or rather your approach to it – will slowly but surely, drain your natural vitality, vivacity and ultimately, your health.

By contrast, positive emotions – joy, happiness, generosity, gratitude – are great health-boosters. They strengthen your immune system, delay the signs of aging, promote longevity, improve your natural bodily functions and make you glow with wellness.

Though I’m not suggesting you ought to skip gaily through your domestic chores with a big grin on your face, once you accept that reducing your strife will be good for you, you can then see how making peace with housework is in your best interest.

2.  Relationships

For many years, my attitude towards housework was rife with resentment. Why should I do it? Why was it always down to me? If I did the work, it was usually with a sense of begrudging fury. Or if I couldn’t face it, I’d feel bitter or angry about my circumstances that had lead me to this mess. Not exactly a recipe for domestic bliss.

When you harbour destructive feelings about your domestic work, it’s not long before these feelings spill over to the source of you workload – your family. Being human, it’s only natural that you’ll get annoyed with the people you live with, if they are causing you excessive strife. But what if there was another way…?

I believe, in fact I am living proof, that it’s possible to reduce resentment and family friction just by reassessing your approach to housework. Presumably, you have chosen the people in your home (and hopefully you wouldn’t have it any other way), so wouldn’t you prefer to enjoy more harmonious relationships? Again, I’m not advocating you become a doormat or House Slave, but there are ways, small mental adjustments you can make, that will reduce your anger. This will make it easier to express your positive feelings about your loved ones – which leads to a much more loving and rewarding home-life for all.

3.  Happiness

Following on from the health issue, happiness is good for you. But not only that – it’s a lot of fun, too! Wouldn’t you prefer to be happy more of the time? You’re probably wondering where this is going in relation to housework. Well, believe it or not, some people do find joy in their domestic regime. No really, it’s true. Personally, I’m not one of those people but I have learned it is possible to glean more happiness from housework when I focus on the result.

For example, my home is a source of comfort and joy – even more so when it is clean and tidy. So the pursuit of this happiness is a powerful motivator for me to take care of my home. Equally, I find pleasure in providing a nutricious home-cooked meal for my family. And I like to send my children off to school in smart, clean clothes. I may not delight so much in the work required, but the resulting happiness is, in my view, worth the effort.

So, by getting over my ‘issues’ with the work involved, I get to experience these happy results more often and with a lot less angst.

4.  Like attracts like

It’s a commonly accepted theory that whatever you focus on, you get more of. It’s also true that dwelling on something, with intense feeling (good or bad) acts like a magnet – bringing you more of the same. You will be familiar with this process if you’ve ever had a day that went from bad to worse.

So, if for no other reason than this – stop brooding on your hatred of houswork! Refuse to give in to despair. Don’t engage in ranting and raving – it will only bring you more to rant and rave about! Try to ease up on the strong (negative) emotions surrounding your domestic schedule. Get into the habit of nipping negative thoughts in the proverbial bud. By all means, accept that it’s not your most favourite aspect of your life, but then turn your attention to solutions, finding ways to improve, streamline or become more efficient. In this way, even if you can’t manage to enjoy it, at least you will feel more neutral – which will break the cycle of attracting more and more of it into your life.

5.  Resistance is futile

Perhaps the most logical reason to make peace with housework is the fact that resistance to domestic maintenance is futile. Where does your complaining get you? Does it reduce your workload one iota? I’ll wager that it actually makes the work feel much more arduous. It undoubtedly makes it more unpleasant.

If there is little hope of escaping your domestic work, you will be doing yourself a favour in reaching a degree of acceptance. If you resent it and resist it, yet still it needs doing – perhaps it’s time to find a less stressful approach.

In the words someone far wiser than me, ‘Do not fight battles you cannot win.’

So, for the sake of your health, home and harmony, at least consider the idea that there just might be some benefits to making peace with housework.  However likely it may seem at the moment, it really can be done. And your life will be so much the better for it.

By: Guest Author Danielle Raine

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The Housework Haters Club would like to thank Danielle Raine for her contributing post.  For more information, please visit www.MakePeaceWithHousework.com.

Danielle is also sponsoring a giveaway contest giving five (5) readers a chance to win their very own eBook download of “Make Peace with Housework: Stategies to Keep You Sane.”

CONTEST GIVEAWAY

**CONTEST CLOSED**

Official Rules:

• Contest Dates:  November 11, 2009 through 12:00 noon (Eastern) on December 7, 2009
• Contest is open Worldwide
• Winner will be determined using Random.org and will be announced on Twitter using the #HHC hashtag no later than 12:00 midnight (Eastern) on December 8, 2009
• Winner will also be notified by email so be sure to include a valid email address.
• In the event of invalid entry, invalid email address or failure to claim prize within 72 hours, a new winner will be chosen.
• Leave one comment for each entry. 
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Enter to Win “Make Peace With Housework” E-Book from @DanRaine73 and @HouseworkHaters #Giveaway #Contest  www.HouseworkHatersClub.com #HHC

• ALL ENTRIES WILL BE VERIFIED

Note of Disclosure from Decotta, Founder of Housework Haters Club: The sponsor, @DanRaine73 and MakePeaceWithHousework.com, is providing the winners with the above prizes.  I have received no compensation for this post.  A sample selection of “Make Peace With Housework” E-book was made available to Review Board Member “Tracey” for the purposes of review.

Review

By: Review Board Member “Tracey” (also @StockersWife on Twitter)

Making Peace with Housework: Chapter 2 Injustice
One of the first lessons my grandmother taught me was to pick my battles wisely. Reading this brought back fond memories as I thought my grandmother was one of the most amazing women I have ever known. This lesson has stayed with me into my adult life and has helped me in marriage, motherhood and in my professional life.

What I like the most about this chapter was that, while it was geared toward Making Peace with Housework, it applies to so many different areas of life. This would help one in marriage, parenthood, relationships with others, civic duties, professional life or just personal insight. The writer gives insight into human behavior and attitudes and ways to deal with both.

With everyday living getting more hectic with each passing day, I cannot help but wonder what a different world we could live in if more people would follow the advice found here. Something so simple as just asking yourself “Have I ever” and being honest with the answer.

I think this should be a must read on everybody’s list.

Making Peace with Housework: Chapter 3
This chapter begins with defining “philosophical” as having or showing a calm attitude toward disappointments or difficulties. The writer continued in a philological manner. It provided different ways to rethink housework and the impact it has on ones life. From being able to put everyday chores into perspective to taking on the tomorrow is another day approach, this reminded to me to take pleasure in the accomplishment of getting housework done. But, more importantly reminded me that it is OK that I did not get something done just right. Housework is a job that will never be finished, as it is a never ending process.

Another important aspect of the chapter was to take time to enjoy life, family and home.  While the pictures that make you happy may be something else to dust, take the time to really look at them and remember.

I would give this chapter a recommendation to read. I found it to be informative and helpful.