Declutter in 10 Minutes a Day?!

Can you really declutter in ten minutes a day? Is that even reasonable to suggest?! 

You bet ya.  

If you declutter in ten minutes a day, you won’t see overnight results.  In fact, you may feel like you are spinning your wheels with no progress at all.  

There’s magic to daily decluttering though.  Slow and steady progress is happening.  It’s the perfect solution when you are overwhelmed by decluttering.

Decluttering in small bits is like a seedling just planted.  At first, nothing seems to be happening.  Then, days or even weeks later, a sprout starts to just barely peek through the soil.  Before you know it, you have a full-grown flower and wonder why you ever doubted if the seed would grow.  

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Decluttering 10 minutes a day may be all you can give

When I first started to declutter, I was working full-time outside of the home and had two toddlers.  My husband also worked long hours, so I was on my own much of the time.  

This constant feeling of overwhelm is why I had no choice but to simplify my home, my routines, and my life.  

I had no spare time.  When I did have spare time, I was tired and wanted to do nothing more than veg out in front of some Netflix for a whole show before crashing into the bed for another sleep-deprived night.  

Seeing no other choice but to do something, I committed to decluttering ten minutes a day, every single day until I saw the results I wanted.  It’s all I could give mentally.  

Every evening I would put my two toddlers to bed, and then I would set a timer.  I would focus on a small space and declutter for 10 minutes.

Sure, some evenings turned into 1 hour decluttering sessions, as I was feeling motivated and making progress.  However, most evenings were 10-minute decluttering sessions while I would grin and bear it so I could simply make it to my nightly TV show and a moment of peace.     

Commit to declutter for 10 minutes a day, and you WILL get really, really big results, really, really fast.  (It just won’t seem like it at first.)

How to start when you want to declutter for 10 minutes a day: 

Set a timer to declutter for 10 minutes 

It may not seem like much, but if all you give is 10 minutes of decluttering per day for a full year, you would have spent just over 60 hours decluttering your home.  That’s a whole lot more than ZERO minutes.  

Set your timer.  Put on some music or an inspiring podcast. Then, get to work.  

Need help staying on task? Try out a pomodoro timer. These little gadgets are so cool. You set a timer for your desired time, and they give you a visual reminder of the time left. This is perfect for those decluttering with ADHD too!

Declutter only one tiny area at a time

Sure, you can try to declutter your entire closet or pantry.  That will feel nice and productive, but it can also feel overwhelming.  

You aren’t just decluttering small spaces in ten minutes.  You are decluttering tiny spaces, and that’s OK.  

Tiny actions done consistently will get you BIG results.  

Don’t pick an entire living room to declutter. Pick a single shelf and declutter for 10 minutes. 

Don’t pick an entire kitchen cabinet to declutter in 10 minutes.  Look at just your mugs.  

Be ruthless when decluttering in just 10 minutes 

Either get rid of something or put it back where it belongs.  

Don’t use this time to avoid hard decisions.  Yes, go for the low-hanging fruit at first, but eventually, you won’t be able to delay decisions on clutter. 

If you work in one single area over the course of a week, you will make progress. 

Work fast 

The clock is ticking fast when you declutter in 10 minutes a day.  You are in a race against yourself! 

Don’t get distracted by social media.  

Don’t scan Amazon for a new organizing bin that will look perfect in this spot.  

Now is not the time to decide what to make for dinner.  

It’s just 10 minutes of decluttering.  You can do this, completely uninterrupted.  

If it motivates you, put on a fun playlist that pumps you up.  Whatever you do, keep all other distractions at bay once the timer starts.  

Keep a donation drop zone ready when you declutter 

I always have a donation drop zone in my house.  This is the box, bag, or area where anyone in my house can drop items, no questions asked, to be donated.  

Once the pile is big enough, we make a run to our local donation center.  

I keep a separate bag or box for used books.  We usually consign those for a store credit at a local bookstore.  

I keep a separate bag or box for my kids’ used clothes that are still in good condition.  I take these to the local kids’ consignment shop for a store credit.  Anything they don’t buy, I immediately take to a donation center. 

Your donation drop zone can be anywhere and look however you want.

I’ve previously kept one of those giant Ikea bags in a storage closet in our basement.  I currently have a couple of boxes in our garage where we keep adding things.   

I also have a chair in our bedroom.  This is the chair where my children can drop any clothes, toys, or books they no longer want to keep.  I love this system, as they no longer have to wait on me to help them declutter their room.  If they are playing and come across something they no longer want, it goes to the chair.  I immediately take it to the appropriate donation drop zone, book bag, or clothes consignment bag.  Easy-peasy. 

Make it a daily 10-minute decluttering habit 

Ten minutes feels like a lot until you do it.  It’s not. Most of us spend at least ten minutes scrolling social media each day.  

If you skip a day, no big deal.  If you skip a month, also no big deal.  Give yourself grace.  We go through seasons of busy.  

Maybe some days, you will have only 5 minutes of decluttering to give.  Other days, you may have thirty minutes or even hours.  

If you start now building a habit of working in tiny little increments of time on a consistent basis, you will see progress.  

Try decluttering for 10 minutes every day.  You may surprise yourself at the end of the week.

Declutter in just 10 minutes a day 

Go ahead and put your phone down.  Seriously.  Set a timer and go for it! You’ve got this.  

Once you are done decluttering for 10 minutes, let me know how it goes.  You can connect with me in the Simple Happy Moms Facebook group or leave a comment below with your progress! Let’s inspire others with your small wins! 

Need more inspiration on the areas you can declutter in 10 minutes a day? Check out this post: Super Easy 10-Minute Decluttering Tasks