The “One-Room” Decluttering Rule Is the Most Efficient Way to Get Your Entire Home Tidy

Decluttering your home can feel daunting, especially when you’re looking at it as a whole project that needs to be taken care of. That’s why one of the most effective ways to actually get things done is to break it down into bite-sized tasks. Today, we’re going to use the “one-room rule” to help us get one step closer to a completely clutter-free home.

The “one-room rule” is exactly how it sounds: All you have to do is clean one room at a time. “This is the most efficient way to get your entire house done really fast,” says ex-professional cleaner turned cleaning inspector Cindell Kimbrough, who shared this method in a TikTok video. Here’s how to use it.

• Choose a room. This can be an actual room in your home — like a bedroom, guest room, office, or entryway — or you can choose a hallway area as your “one room” or go smaller like a closet that’s in dire need of decluttering. Avoid choosing a spot you’ve already worked on, as well as the living room (since we have a dedicated reset day for that!).
• Pick up all the clutter off the floor. For anything that doesn’t belong in the room, you are not going to take it where it belongs. You will set it right outside the room, so you can work on it later. You want to remain in the one room!
• Work your way around the room. Choose a corner to tidy up first — pick up trash, make the bed, etc. — then work your way around the room.
• Dust everywhere. Again, go back to the first corner, but this time just focus on dusting. If you have a door, work top to bottom.
• Vacuum and/or mop. Clean the floors, carpets, and rugs in the room.
• Return misplaced items and take care of trash and recyclables. With the room clean, you can head out the door and address the items waiting to be returned to their designated areas. Throw away any trash and deal with recyclables, too. For anything you don’t want to put back and instead want to think about if it’s worth keeping, put it in your outbox! 

What room did you work on today? Share what you did, along with any before and after transformation photos, in the community forum.

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