A few weeks ago, I was feeling overwhelmed in my home and was noticing random things for days on end that needed to be decluttered. I kept pushing them off saying I would come back to it on the weekend. With soccer, family time and gardening needs ramping back up, I kept forgetting to come back to it. So in the middle of the week, while my kids were at school and I was taking a break from my home and work to do list, I set the timer for 30 minutes to declutter. Today I’m sharing the process and the results.

A bit more background on this - I spent my time in only a few zones in my home; this was not a full house effort. Because the timer being on for only 30 minutes, I had to merely scan for items I could easily declutter, without much thought. They had to be quick, easy decisions. The overall goal of this challenge is to get things out of the house I already knew needed to go, and maybe find a few treasures along the way!

Another tip - I did not spend time reorganizing things in the spots I was decluttering during the 30 minutes. I circled back after to tidy things up and reset / reorganize any spots that needed it. Focus on speed decluttering for those 30 minutes only. Reorganize if need later on.

Alright, well do you want to see the results?

TIP: Decluttering your every day bags are a great place to start to make quick, mindless decluttering decisions in a snap!

Reminder: This is not a full house declutter. This is what I call “hit the highlights in a few zones for 30 minutes” decluttering. Or you can focus on just one zone. It’s totally up to you! I had a few spots in mind that I knew needed my attention and that I could make quick decisions in, so those were priority for this quick decluttering session.

My favorite Time Timer to get set up.

Our ThredUp collection box for decluttered items.

A peek in on our declutter box a few minutes in!

A hallway zone before I decluttered some decor.

What items to look for while you’re decluttering:

✔duplicates not in use ✔broken items ✔things no longer in use or outgrown ✔items and extra packaging/paper that can be recycled ✔items that are just trash ✔things in good shape but you’ve fallen out of love with to donate ✔collect items that need to be put away elsewhere in the house or given away/returned to someone ✔remove expired items like toiletries and food items (that’s as mindless of a decision as it gets!) ✔take note of wasted items that you won’t buy again or will buy less of in the future ✔take note of anything you run across that needs to be restocked

Categories to sort your items into as you declutter:

Donate (clean, in good shape, someone else can use the item)

Recycle (can be recycled in your area, check locally)

Textile Recycle (I do this separately with various companies like For Days or Ridwell might be in your area - check locally for other free options close to you)

Sell (for this round, it’s only books we’ll sell to Half Price Books)

Relocate (items removed from one area that you want to keep but need to go in another area of the house or given to someone/returned)

Trash (well, it’s just trash and it is the last resort if it doesn’t fall into any of the above categories)

You can have bags, boxes or baskets dedicated to each category as you go, or just throw everything in one bin (like in your laundry baskets for example) and sort things when you’re done. Use what you have and keep it simple!

Here’s the breakdown below of what I decluttered. After the 30 minutes, I sorted everything into categories then totaled them up.

✔Donate: 25

• 3 oven mitts

• 1 unscented candle

• 2 over the door hooks

• 1 kids tshirt

• 3 vase/vessels

• 1 glass cleaning

• 1 drawstring bag

• 1 bag Velcro pieces

• 1 bag extra headphone ear covers

• 3 key chains

• 1 birthday necklace

• 1 mini sewing case

• 1 mystery cord

• 15 hair new accessories

✔Sell: 8

• 8 books (will take to half price)

✔Recycle: 32

• 4 tea bag boxes

• 1 Empty vitamin bottle

• 12 paper towel/toilet paper rolls

• 1 plastic yogurt container

• 2 magazines

• 1 cardboard box

• 1 paper item

• 1 plastic tray

• 2 spice jars (clean out first)

• 1 empty spray vitamin bottle

• 6 random pieces of paper

✔Textile Recycle: 1

• 1 old kitchen towel

✔Relocate: 12

• 3 kids bracelets

• 2 packs of seeds

• 1 clip

• 6 large shells

✔Trash: 61

• 3 receipts

• 34 tea bags

• 1 bag sugar sprinkles

• 1 empty super glue bottle

• 19 plastic knives

• 3 pieces random trash

✔Decluttering total: 139

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You can see the full break down of this Declutter Challenge, with short videos, more photos and details in my Challenge Highlight on the gram.

Check out our donation resources and more HERE.

See more Sell, Donate, Recycle + Toss Resources HERE

My donations from this round went to Leukemia of Texas Resale Center.

So what’s next?

Now it’s time for YOU to dive into your own (short burst of time) declutter challenge! Use whatever time you have, 10, 15, 20 minutes or 30 if you’d like, and see what you can do! This is how decluttering in real life actually works, when we can sprinkle it into our everyday, when we can, as time permits. But don’t obsess about the number of items leaving your home, just aim to remove things you know you no longer need, in as little time as possible (with as little mental effort as possible)!

I know I’ll be back with another round of this soon because my garage has been calling my name…see you then!

If you’d like MORE HELP decluttering + lightening the physical + mental load in your home, here’s a few great places to start.

Free Declutter Guide

Learn the basics of Decluttering

Parents + Kids Guide To Decluttering

No B.S. Guide To Decluttering

Declutter Your Home Masterclass

Work with Kristin