Step 1: Starting sweep

  • Grab a trash bag, and start in one room. Put in any obvious trash, and continue through the whole house. When one is full, close it up, and place it by the front door.
  • Once you filled your trash bags, take them to the container before you do anything else. Sometimes there will be a LOT, and that is okay. Don’t feel ashamed for being in a rough spot, be proud of the progress you are making.
  • Next, put all dirty laundry in the laundry basket. Sort the laundry, wash the laundry, and put it back in the closet. It don’t need to be put away neatly, it just needs to be clean. Don’t focus on anything else until that is done.
  • Next, do a very non detailed tidy of each room. Just put everything where it belongs. If there are any ‘homeless’ objects, or things there are no room for in the closet, invest in one or two decorative baskets, and put them in there to deal with later. Move any dirty dishes to the kitchen. Any bathroom products you don’t use regularly, store away to deal with later.
  • Lastly, you focus on the kitchen. Do all the dirty dishes. (if you don’t have a dishwasher, invest in a good dish strainer. It WILL be your best investment of your life.)
  • Clean the kitchen counters and sink with dish soap. Clean any spills that need to be taken care of.
  • Clean the sink and toilet. If the shower is very bad (mold or similar things), take care of it. If it is just minerals, leave it for now.
  • If you need to repeat the laundry step, do this. Laundry gets out of hand quickly.
  • You should now have a semi tidy and semi clean slate to start with.


This step is crucial to give you a clean slate to work with. It will help you feel less overwhelmed in the long run, and implement the routines faster. If it is possible, take a week off work, or dedicate some weekends to this. How long it will take depends on where your house is at the moment, and how much mental energy you have. So never be ashamed for not completing as fast as you would like to - be proud that you are now taking steps to deal with it.


I would recommend taking some before pictures before you start, and save them to an album. This is not to shame yourself. But when you feel down on yourself in the process, they can be a helpful reminder of how far you have come, even if you feel like you are failing. And help you feel proud of how much you actually managed to deal with.


Through all of this, keep this in mind: Progress, not perfection. You don’t have to do everything perfect, just make it better than before. That is the goal. Perfection comes later - first, you need to master the basics.

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