You like my title? I went a little crazy with that alliteration. So, the basic idea behind the Ten Minute Tidy exercise if getting something – ANYTHING – done so you feel calmer, more productive, and in control.

Sometimes it’s hard to set aside a whole afternoon to clean out your closet or a day to organize your garage. So don’t expect those kinds of tasks here. Instead, I’m giving a list of 10 quick tasks you can accomplish in 10 minutes or less – hence the name Ten Minute Tidy Tasks.

how to play 10 minute tidy TASKS

1. Pick a task at random. (Or you can choose one that sounds good; the choice is yours.)
2. If you want to make it completely random, use this number (it’s randomly generated): 8
3. Set your timer for 10 minutes and get started on your task.

10 MINUTE TIDY TASKS

Now, all of these tasks should take no more than 10 minutes to accomplish. (And some should take much less time than that.) That being said, don’t get hung up on completing the task. If you do, then great! But if not, at least you’ve spent 10 dedicated minutes working on it, and you should feel much better when you’re through.

1. Clean Out Your Car

Now, cleaning out your car doesn’t involve Armor All or Windex. This is a quick tidy of your car’s interior. First, though, you’ll need to grab a couple of tools: a garbage bag and a laundry basket.

Starting with the front seat, clear everything out of your car that doesn’t belong. Trash goes in the trash bag and everything else goes in the laundry basket. Don’t overthink it; just grab the stuff and go!

When you’re finished, throw away or recycle the garbage and put the laundry basket items away (if you have time). Yay for a clean car!

2. Choose Your Outfit for Tomorrow

If you work outside the home or have plans for tomorrow, it’s a good idea to lay your clothes out tonight. If you prefer to stay in pj’s all day, use this time to gather your children’s outfits for school or daycare.

This one is pretty straightforward: pick out the entire outfit, including shoes and jewelry. If something needs ironing, then you’d better hurry!

3. Sort Your Laundry

Do you have a backlog of laundry? Is it absolutely everywhere? You can’t possibly fix it all in 10 minutes, but you can get started! Grab a laundry basket and start at one end of your house, working towards the other end. Gather all the laundry you see.

When you’re finished, take the basket to the laundry room and sort it (darks vs. lights works for some; we prefer to sort by category so it’s easier to put away). If you have time remaining, start a new load (Or rewash the load that’s starting to sour in the washer. I know I can’t be the only one who forgets.)

4. Clear One Pile of Paper

Nearly everyone I know has at least one random pile of paper in their home. It’s time to find yours and clear it out.

I like to sort mine into three stacks:

• Trash
• Action Items
• Filing

Throw away the trash, file the filing, and move the action items to a designated spot for later.

5. Make Your Bed

A freshly made bed is a small thing, but it really does add so much to a room. Did you know that it only takes about 2 minutes to make a bed from start to finish? That means you should have plenty of time left for another task. Yay!

6. ORGANIZE Your Bag

Do you have a purse or book bag? It’s time to clear it out. Empty the whole thing onto the floor, then sort through all the clutter. Put away the items that don’t belong, throw away the old receipts and gum wrappers, and put the important stuff back inside. If you don’t see any lip balm, find some around the house because you know you’ll want it later.

7. Set Your Coffee Maker

I love to set my coffee maker up each night so I wake up to the scent of freshly brewed coffee. It’s literally the difference between getting up and sleeping in for me some days. If you’re blessed with a “schedule” button on your coffee maker, go ahead and program it to start brewing just before your alarm goes off. If you don’t have the schedule function, you can still set everything up so all you have to do is push a button in the morning.

8. Load or Unload Your Dishwasher

This one is pretty simple. If your dishwasher is full of clean dishes, unload them and put them away. If it’s empty, find all the dirty dishes in your home and start a new load. Can’t remember whether the dishes inside are clean or dirty? It’s best to err on the side of caution and wash them (again?)

9. Declutter Your Nightstand

I’m not sure exactly why nightstands gets so messy and cluttered, but I have some theories. I’m assuming it has something to do with the fact that we’re already in bed when we use our nightstand for storage. And no one likes to get out of bed to clean. That’s why you should straighten yours up right now.

Just clear all the extra stuff off the top, empty the drawers, and only put back the stuff you need. The rest of it should be put away.

10. Set Up a Donation Box

Would you love to Marie Kondo your house if only you had somewhere to put the extra stuff? Well, now is your chance! Grab an old box or garbage bag and set up a donation center. Whenever you come across something you don’t want, add it to the container. When it’s full, you can drop it off at your local donation center (or call for a pick up). Easy peasy.

Play TEN MINUTE TIDY TASKS Again

If you finished your task and have time to spare, consider playing another round of Ten Minute Tidy Tasks. You can also join again when I post a new list. Thanks for joining the fun!

{Psst! Ready for a more difficult organization challenge? Try my Marie Kondo Spring Cleaning challenge. I’ll even give you a free printable!}