Day 1
Grab two bags and set a timer or move as quickly as you can through the house to remove 50 items of obvious trash and clutter. Focus on things that are broken, empty, moldy, or simply no longer wanted—items that belong in the trash or recycling rather than taking up space.
Examples:
Empty shampoo bottles
Soda cans (consider a separate recycling bag)
Random candy wrappers
Plastic bottles (recycle if possible)
Junk mail
Old magazines
Empty tissue boxes
Broken toys
Rags that are worn out
Business cards you no longer need
Moldy bread or fruit
The list can go on—if you have a lot of obvious trash, you can complete this in five minutes or less. I tracked steps while I did this at home and ended up with over 2,300 steps, so you may get a little exercise too.
Next step: empty every trash can in the house. Once bins are emptied, the clutter you collected should be consolidated in the proper receptacles instead of scattered around. Remind family members to put trash in the bins rather than on counters or tables. If you have older children, ask them to help empty the bins and collect clutter; involving them increases the chance they’ll form better habits about where trash belongs.