That magical dreamboat of a cleaning lady is practically the only thing saving your sanity these days. One problem: Your behavior might just be driving her up the wall. We checked in with two cleaning professionals, Joseph Passalaqua, customer experience specialist at MaidSailors, and Melissa Homer, chief cleaning officer of MaidPro, for some tips on how to make her life easier. Here, eight annoying habits to stop right this second.
8 Ways You're Probably Annoying Your Cleaning Lady
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Published Mar 2, 2017
Twenty20
Shadowing Her
Your cleaning lady is a trained professional, and hovering as she goes about her work doesn’t give her the space she needs to demonstrate that expertise. The “helicopter” or “drone” maneuver is not only uncomfortable; it also removes the trust factor, which is vital to a long-term working relationship.
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Springing Surprise Houseguests
Imagine walking into a room to make the bed, only to discover a body sleeping in it. If your nephew is coming into town tomorrow and will be in your cleaner’s way, shoot her a text giving a heads-up. Knowing she’ll need to work around another person will make it easier to plan her attack, and with minimal disturbance to your guests.
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Promising Supplies And Not Delivering
When you tell her you have a vacuum, she will (reasonably) assume it’s a working one—not a mostly broken handheld from 1994. Ditto empty bottles of Windex. Set your cleaning lady up for success by having a fully stocked cleaning closet of functional items. (And have her write down anything that’s running low at the end of each visit.)
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Leaving The Place A Mess
There’s a difference between housekeeping and house cleaning. Your cleaning lady is there for the latter, and the more time she spends organizing your mess of bills or pile of old pizza boxes, the less time she has for scrubbing and buffing.
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Not Getting Dressed
It’s your house and of course you should be comfortable, but greeting your cleaning lady at the door in a robe, nightgown or towel (yup, it happens) can make her super uncomfortable. At the end of the day your relationship is a professional one, and dressing as such will be appreciated.
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Lying About Your Satisfaction
Don’t tell her things look “fine” when you’re really seething about the fact that she missed the baseboards in the living room. Next time you see something that doesn't meet your standards, thank her and politely ask if she can devote more time to the offending area in the future. Nine times out of ten, she'll address the problem on the spot.
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Leaving Out Anything Super Gross Or Private
Cleaning someone’s home is an incredibly intimate experience, but please be discreet about your vices. Whether it’s an old snotty tissue or your, erm, personal massager, if you’d feel embarrassed letting your mom see it, don’t leave it out for your cleaning lady to deal with.
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"helping"
Please, just put down the duster. Whether well intentioned or not, assisting your cleaning lady while she’s on the clock is not a part of the deal.
