If cleaning feels overwhelming, creating and sticking to a schedule is one of the best ways to get it done slowly and efficiently. But even if you do it that way, it can be hard to just get started. There’s no shame in working your way up to a bigger goal. Here’s a way to gradually build up your cleaning schedule.

I’ve been a proponent of cleaning in small chunks of time for a while now. In most cases, 15 minutes a day is enough to make a big impact on the cleanliness of your home over time. If you have a big mess, you might need more time. That’s why CleanTok influencer @MommyHasntShowered suggests the “one hour rule.” It’s what it sounds like: you clean non-stop for an hour, focusing solely on tidying up, then stop when the hour is up and reward yourself with something you enjoy, like ice cream or a favorite TV show.

That methodology is similar to many other methods I advocate, such as the Pomodoro Technique or time blocking. In general, whenever you are doing a task, whether it’s studying, cleaning, answering emails, or anything else that is boring and resource-intensive, you should block out a time period, commit to only doing the task for that period of time, and stop when the time is up, then give yourself a reward. Regardless of how much time you give yourself to do the task, it is extremely important to have a hard stop and a reprieve at the end to stay motivated.

What I love about the Mommy Hasn’t Showered technique is that it combines those rigid rules with something a little more flexible. The cleaning influencer doesn’t expect you to just start with an hour on the first day you try it. Instead, she says to work your way up to that number, starting with five minutes. While the goal of using timed bursts is to help you stay motivated and focused, that doesn’t mean it’s easy to just squeeze in an hour, especially on a task you don’t enjoy. If cleaning is a real struggle for you, don’t try to do an hour right away.