Last month my kids spent a few weeks in Palo Alto, California with their Aunt and Uncle.
Me: Why does Jake have all new socks and underwear?
Sara: All of his socks and underwear were completely worn out, so Aunt Michelle bought him brand new pairs from Macys.
How wasn’t I, his own mother, unable to spot that her son’s socks and underwear were completely worn out?
Because I never do the laundry, I refuse. So, I don’t ever handle my children’s clothes, even the extremely worn out ones.
I know that’s not normal, but I really, really dread to do the wash and I really, really hate to fold.
The sorting and prepping and cycling and hauling of this never-ending chore is so mundane, so tedious, so omnipotent that it’s a joke for everyone everywhere.
Except that it will make you financially and spiritually poor. And that’s no laughing matter.
As a single mom (or anyone else for that matter), time and money are especially precious.
It was just yesterday when I was twenty-two years old, entering the workforce and today my daughter is sixteen and in high school, where did the time go?
We simply cannot be weighed down by sorting, prepping, hauling, washing, and folding (unless that’s your thing of course.) You are better than that.
When I get-going about this topic with my co-workers, they cry:
“Laundry is just an inevitable part of life!”
In the not so distant past, dying in childbirth was just part of life. Since then, advancements in science and technology no longer make that a valid point, and you are now free to unload life-draining tasks to people who want to earn a living doing them.
“I don’t know what the big deal is, laundry doesn’t take that long! So lazy!”
First, two hours (sometimes three or more) is a ton of time for me – as you will discover below my long list of things you might do otherwise with your precious minutes. Second, it is actually much more than just two hours of labor spent doing laundry. The reason being, you spend countless hours thinking about and remembering and dreading about when and how you will eventually do the laundry. Anxiety builds when you start the wash cycle and you completely give up when it’s time to fold, ending up with a wrinkly mess and a sour mood.
So it may seem like it’s only a few hours but really it is that and countless brain cells and energy and emotion wasted on laundry.
I always like to look at the bigger picture. And there it is.
“Yea, but doing laundry is just a part of life. I’d feel guilty letting someone else do it.”
Do you feel guilty for riding in a car instead of walking everywhere? How about not washing your clothes on rocks by a river – because you are already outsourcing 99% of the task to a machine in your basement / garage / laundry room / laundromat. So why not just take it a slight fraction of a step further and offload the chore completely?
“You are so snotty and entitled! Not everyone can afford spending all of their money on laundry service.”
Look! No one has ever become successful or rich without outsourcing some tasks. No one. Zero! You simply can’t do it all – I don’t care if you are a landscaper slaving away taming a hedge fund manager’s unruly shrubs in oppressive heat. You rely on various marketing channels and systems to bring on new clients, equipment and personnel to ensure demand is met and even an accountant or accounting software to gauge the health of your business.
You are one person. Successful people know what they are good at and they continuously build upon their core competencies, are wise and humble enough to pass along other tasks to those who are more competent and enthusiastic about those things.
If you spend your time and energy on separating and washing and drying and folding and ironing and separating and matching and folding, your energy is spent on a low-skilled task that fosters resentment and disdain towards life. I don’t know of a single super successful person who does their own laundry. Do you?
I often hear from close friends and colleagues, “You must not get any sleep! How do you get so much work done?”
The thing is, many nights I’m in bed by 9 p.m. (it is what it is, not proud of it) and I spend plenty of time scrolling through Facebook and Instagram. But it is true: I do produce a lot of meaningful work that I’m proud of, make a generous living, drop my kids off and pick them up from the bus most days, hit the gym or running trail five days a week and enjoy an evening out with my kids or friends once or twice weekly. Not to mention weekend trips every quarter, vacations with my kids and guests. I can’t complain.
My secret – the one my incredulous friends don’t want to hear: I outsource all the crap I don’t like to do. I even outsource many things that I DO like to do because it simply makes sense for someone else to be doing it.
How to find a laundry service near you
I’m adamant about not ever doing laundry. I send it out. I live in Rockville Centre, Long Island, where wash-and-fold laundry services that pickup and deliver charge from $1.49 per pound or more. Most laundry services will pick-up up your filthy laundry in the morning and have them delivered back to you the following morning, neatly folded, sorted and smelling fresh as your baby’s butt (that you just washed.)
That same bag of laundry would cost me about $12-$14 to do at the laundromat, not including detergent, softener, etc.
I figure it would also cost me about $12-$13 per week if I had my own washer and dryer, factoring in supplies (detergent, softener, dryer sheets, etc.) water, electricity and wear and tear on the machines.
For the past few years, I’ve been using Woodfield Laundromat Express to take on the task. I have tried their in-store wash and fold service and was sold. I never looked back and in fact started using their laundry pickup service when it launched a couple of years ago.
But all this outsourcing really isn’t about the $15 saved or the extra $15 or the wear and tear.
Wash and fold laundry service is about economizing energy and time.
Investing in laundry service makes me wealthy because it makes me happier.
What if you invested a fraction of the time saved in your career, personal development or relationships?
That $30 weekly could easily be worth thousands monthly. Take it from someone that experiences it.
For me, permanently scratching laundry off my to-do list has been incredibly liberating.
Before, it was a constant fly swarming around the back of my mind – what was clean when, when was my absolute dead-line before I had to do laundry, when to haul the soaked sheets into the dryer and to take the delicates out to air.
Now, I spend none of that mental energy worrying about anything laundry. I have a subscription plan setup with Woodfield Laundromat Express, they stop by every Wednesday morning and return all of my laundry cleaned Thursday morning and this way, I’m ready for the weekend.
Here are 20 things you can do while all that damp and filthy laundry is being handled by someone more qualified than yourself:
- Check in with yourself. (How are you? How have you been?)
- Hit the gym.
- Read a book (or two.)
- Revisit (and maybe revise) your goals.
- Double-down on personal development.
- Call your parents (and your long-time friends but not your “friends.”)
- Get (and then give) a massage.
- Have sex.
- Take a great, long bath.
- Nap.
- Practice Gratitude. Start and maintain a gratitude practice.
- Volunteer.
- Mentor someone. Officially through a community program.
- Listen to someone close that needs to be heard.
- Help someone reach their dreams.
- See #8
- Attend live performances – music, art, theatre, dance.
- Stroll the streets of a neighborhood you never visited. I stumbled upon the streets of Forest Hills in Queens – just wow!
- Travel. Go! Go now. You’ve always wanted to go somewhere, don’t wait any longer.
- Dream. But Dream BIG! Write those dreams down, create a dream board, tell your mastermind group, your partner, your dog! Spend those extra couple of hours a week teaching yourself to believe that you can and you will fill those hours with more incredible life-fulfilling opportunities than any top-loading, energy-saving washer or dryer ever could.
Consider outsourcing your laundry to a laundry service to nurture your relationship with yourself!
A service that can help you outsource
Ready to outsource but not sure where to start? Fortunately, thanks to technological advances and a mindset shift towards efficiency and a higher quality of life, there are some great options that are affordable, and super easy to use.
I’ve tried a handful of laundry services serving Nassau County and my favorite by far is Woodfield Laundromat Express.
Woodfield Laundromat Express – what is it?
WoodfieldLaundromat.com is a full end-to-end laundry service out in West Hempstead, Long Island.
They offer:
- In-Store Services:
- Drop-off Wash & Fold Service
- Drop-off Dry Cleaning Service
- Pickup & Delivery Service:
- Wash & Fold Service
- Dry Cleaning Service
Out of all the laundry services I’ve tried, Woodfield Laundromat Express provided the best service at the lowest cost (which is also why I’m guest writing on their blog.)
Compared to other laundry services, my clothes came back:
- Noticeably cleaner
- Smelling better
- Folded uniformly
- Packed & sealed
This isn’t surprising considering they are strict on:
- Maintaining a clean & hygienic facility
- Vet & train all of their attendants
- Only use filtered water
- Have a Happiness Guarantee
They are also cheaper ($1.39/lb.) than the other services I’ve use that charge $1.65+/lb. for by-request laundry pickup.
How does Woodfield Laundromat Express’s Laundry Service work?
To use the site, go to WoodfieldLaundromat.com and navigate to the services you are interested in. The site is very specific and does a great job of categorizing services customers are most interested in.
Instead of dropping off my clothes at their location every week, I use their pick-up & delivery service. If you are interested in their pickup & delivery service, first time customers receive 25% off their first order. It’s a great way to try out their services at a steep discount.
Scheduling a pickup on their site or app is simple enough but I took it a step further and signed up for their weekly subscription service. I don’t even think about my laundry anymore.
I have my laundry picked up every week on Wednesday mornings and delivered the following day on Thursday mornings. I simply leave my laundry outside my front door where it is picked up and returned cleaned and neatly folded.
They charge $1.39/lb. and their turn-around time is usually 24 hours but if you need your laundry back the same day, they do offer same day service.
I cannot recommend them enough. To try their laundry service and receive 25% off your first order, click here.
