If your house is a mess but you don’t really know where to start, it’s time to create a daily cleaning schedule, but don’t feel the need to do it all at once. It’s a well-known fact that working in short bursts can keep you motivated when you’re feeling overwhelmed, and cleaning in 15-minute bursts will do the trick. There are a lot of places in your house where that’s all you need, so start today and thank yourself in a few weeks.

First, dedicate 15 minutes a day to cleaning. This can be in the morning or evening or whenever you like, but ideally it should always be at the same time of day. (More on that here.) Choose a new spot to clean each day. I’ll share some ideas below, but generally, look for a small section of a larger room to avoid feeling overwhelmed. It can be helpful to divide rooms into groups, so you tackle spots in the bathroom one day, then spots in the kitchen another day, etc., but you can also focus your energy on the spot that needs it most on any given day.

Whatever you choose, it’s important to be decisive and actionable. Select a cleaning or decluttering method that fits your situation and apply it to each of the areas you’re focusing on. Regardless of which method you choose, you’re essentially clearing out the space, making choices about what stays and what goes, and then reorganizing what you keep.

Use the principles of time boxing and limit yourself to just 15 minutes per day. When you time box, you dedicate a predetermined amount of time to a specific task and work on it without distractions, but stop when the allotted time is up. If necessary, pick up the task again in the next time box. Even if you are really into the cleaning routine, try to stay within 15 minutes each time to avoid burnout and challenge yourself to stay fully focused on the task the entire time.