RRR with Rayan
By Rayan Abdulkadir
Q: I have a hard time keeping my dorm room clean, I am super unmotivated and I just can't seem to keep it under control. I have so many assignments, and responsibilities. What can I do to fix this?
Thank you for your question.
It's great that you are able to identify that there is a problem; now that you know there's an issue, we can come up with tangible solutions that work for you and your lifestyle. You're not alone in this. So many students deal with the same issue. It's the first time you're away from home, and trying to manage a course load, friendships and family all at the same time.
It seems like you might be having a hard time managing time and energy. This is common, especially for a student with a variety of responsibilities. It makes sense that you want to spend your time doing things that are time sensitive, like assignments or talking to family, rather than cleaning your room. What makes it worse is that once your room gets messy, it can continue to pile up and feel like a hole that's impossible to get out of.
Before you address your room, it's important you address the underlying issue: stress and overwhelm. Both of these issues deserve the necessary care and attention. Your room can wait, but you have to ensure you're taking care of yourself first. If you find yourself so overwhelmed that you're struggling to keep your room clean because of all of your responsibilities, maybe it's time to evaluate where you're spending your time and create a plan to effectively manage it. This might look like talking to your advisor, a counselor or a mentor. It might be helpful to take inventory of your resources and delegate accordingly.
Once you deal with the underlying issue, you can better manage the other things. When you decide to tackle the cleaning, it's important that you give yourself grace and create a plan to get it done and keep your room clean moving forward. I would suggest you start small by cleaning or clearing out a few sections a day. That might look like folding 10 items of clothing before bed and putting them away or clearing a section of your room each day until you start to see a difference. It doesn’t have to be this big thing you need to do all at once, but you can work out a process that works for you. Don't hesitate to reach out to a friend or family member and make it fun! Put on some music or a show while organizing, and reward yourself once the hard part is done.
When you finally feel like your room is clean again, what is going to make the most difference is creating a process that is sustainable. For example, you might start only doing laundry when you know you will have time to put it away or create designated spots for items you typically find lying around. Try letting go of items you don't use anymore rather than keeping them around. When you can stay organized and get ahead of the mess, it's less likely to get to an overwhelming point.
It's important to note that there is no one size fits all solution, and if something else works better for you I implore you to engage with it.
I understand that everything feels so overwhelming right now, but just know that you're not alone in your experience, and you deserve a clean space where you can decompress. I hope that you continue to make strides towards getting there!
