Make Paint Brushes Easier to Clean

One of the best ways to reduce paintbrush cleaning time is to stop it from completely filling up with paint. This is done before painting.

Steps

Make sure the brush is dry and clean.
Using duct tape, tape around where the bristles join the handle, making sure the tape covers about half an inch or more of the bristles.
Cut across the duct tape at about 45 degrees, as this will make it easier to find the end of the tape when it's time to remove it.
Soak the taped brush for a few minutes in water or mineral spirits (depending upon the type of paint). This will stop the paint from entering the ferrule area against the handle. When it is time to clean the brush, just remove the duct tape and there will be no paint to clean out from the ferrule area which effectively reduces cleaning time.

Alternatively when using latex or acrylics, before you paint, dunk the brush in a bucket of water ensuring the filaments or bristles are submerged past the ferrule (metal portion), allow bubbles to escape from between the brush filaments. Remove the brush from the water, squeeze the water out, then lightly holding the handle of the brush, tap the ferrule gently on the tip of your work shoe. This process will splash water under your shoe and behind you, be sure to do this outside or over a drop cloth. It is not your goal to fully remove the water as this water will remain between the filaments allowing easier cleanup.
Here is a simple way to make your brush hang on paint bucket. Take a nail or screw (or even better a C shaped screw) and just insert it in the handle of the paintbrush. This allows you to hang the brush in the bucket.