Adopt these 20 lazy habits for a clutter-free home so you can effortlessly have a beautiful, tidy house or apartment!
Keeping our homes clutter-free and tidy all the time can take a lot of effort and energy.
Many of us find it difficult to keep up with all the tasks that we need to do daily.
But one of the best ways to make it as effortless and easy as possible is to start new habits.
So if you think your home always looks messy and you want it to become a peaceful space where you feel calm and relaxed, read on.
Consider adopting some of these 20 lazy habits for a clutter-free home!
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Why do we need habits for a clutter-free home?
As humans, we are all creatures of habit.
What we do consistently shapes who we are and what our lives look like.
When we adopt a new habit, we start doing the task subconsciously and without much effort.
This is ideal if we want to do something we don’t particularly like, such as decluttering, cleaning, or tidying.
Adopting habits for a clutter-free home will make it effortless for you to eliminate clutter and keep it out of your home.
And to make it even easier, I made sure to only include easy, lazy habits in this article!
Read more: 11 habits you should break to live your best life
20 lazy habits for a clutter-free home
1. Use the container concept
Dana from A Slob Comes Clean came up with the container concept, which is brilliant.
She explains that all the storage spaces and solutions in your home can be seen as a limit.
They are a container in which you can add stuff until there is no room left.
And you should declutter everything from that category that doesn’t fit in the container.
For instance, you can decide that the top drawer in your chest of drawers is where you store your underwear.
You can keep as many undies as you want as long as they fit in this drawer.
If you have more than what fits, you need to let go of the excess.
Similarly, if you designate a bookshelf in your home as the only place where you store books, you shouldn’t have books anywhere else in your home.
Fill the bookshelf, but if you have more books and they don’t all fit on it, you need to declutter some of them.
2. Empty the dishwasher every morning
If you have and use a dishwasher, get into the habit of running it at night and emptying it first thing in the morning.
Doing so ensures that you and your family will be able to put all the dirty dishes in the dishwasher as you use them during the day.
You will be less likely to have them piling up in the sink or on the kitchen counters.
Read more: 8 morning habits for healthy living
3. Turn your hangers around
At the start of each season, turn all the hangers in your wardrobe around.
After you’ve worn and washed your clothes, rehang the items with the hangers facing the right direction.
You can revisit after a season, six months, or even a year and you’ll see which clothes you actually wear.
Consider decluttering any that you haven’t worn.
Read more: Closet declutter checklist: 17 things to get rid of in your closet
4. Set a timer for 15 minutes to declutter every week
Once a week, set a timer for 15 minutes or however long you want, and try to declutter as many things as possible from your home.
Grab a basket and fill it with trash, broken and worn-out things, or things you don’t use or like.
Doing these maintenance declutters will help you maintain minimalism in your home.
It might even help you get started if you want to become a minimalist.
Read more: 50 helpful questions to ask yourself when decluttering your home
5. Involve your family in daily tasks and chores
If you feel you are doing most of the chores in your home, consider involving your family if you can.
Ask your spouse to help you with some tasks or chores.
If your kids are old enough, definitely ask them for help as well!
We sometimes forget that it’s okay to ask for help, and we actually should do it to lighten the burden on us.
Split the responsibilities so that everyone participates.
You don’t have to do it all by yourself if others can help you.
Your home will be easier to keep tidy and clutter-free!
Read more: 10 minimalist hacks to live a simple life
6. Put your donations in your car straight away
When you’ve done a big decluttering session, try not to hold on to decluttered items for longer than necessary.
Otherwise, you might second guess yourself or other people in your family will start bringing things back.
Instead, put everything into boxes or bags, and put them in your car right away.
This will force you to bring the donations to the thrift store quickly.
And you’ll be able to reap the benefits of minimalism sooner!
7. Store off-season clothes away
One of my favorite lazy habits for a clutter-free home is to store off-season clothes away if you have the space to.
Before I did this, I used to have all my clothes in my closet and it was full to the brim.
It was hard to find what I was looking for and getting dressed in the morning was a hassle.
Granted, I wasn’t a minimalist yet.
But when I started storing my off-season clothes away and out of my closet, it created a lot of room and made it easy to find the pieces I wanted.
Of course, the best thing you can do is to declutter your clothes.
But once you’ve done so, make sure to only keep in your closet clothes that are currently in season.
Choosing what to wear every day will become effortless, incredibly easy, and enjoyable.
8. Don’t save your credit card information on Amazon
Amazon and other companies make it as easy as possible for us to buy things.
While it can save us time, saving our credit card information on those websites can be risky.
It means that we are only one click away from buying useless things we don’t even need or want.
We risk impulse buying stuff, which is not a great idea if we want a clutter-free home.
So make sure to never save your credit card information on Amazon or any other website where you like shopping.
Make it a little more difficult for you to spend your money.
Read more:
- 24 questions to ask yourself before buying something
- 11 amazing ways minimalism helps you save money
- How to do a no-spend month? 9 helpful tips for a successful no-buy challenge
9. Clean as you go
If you can, try to clean little things around your home as they get dirty or as you see them.
For instance, if you see some dust on your nightstand, take a minute to grab a rag and dust it.
When you’re preparing a meal, wash some of the dishes as you use them and no longer need them.
You won’t end up with a huge pile of dishes at the end!
And after you’ve done the dishes, quickly wipe down the kitchen surfaces.
Your future self will be so thankful you’ve done it regularly!
10. Put things away immediately after using them
When you’re done using something, put it away immediately.
Avoid putting it down on the nearest surface, because doing this with everything will make your home look messy and cluttered.
I know it’s easier said than done, but this is one of the best lazy habits for a clutter-free home!
Read more: 14 life-changing minimalist rules to live by
11. Don’t bother folding kids’ clothes
I know it might sound counterintuitive.
But if you start putting your kids’ clothes in baskets or drawers without folding them, you will make your home easier to keep tidy and clutter-free.
Your children will be able to put away their clothes by themselves, even if they’re little.
They will also be able to choose what to wear in the morning without making a big mess in their closets.
This will simplify your life!
12. Shop your home first
If you need something, first see if you don’t already have it in your home before heading to the store.
We sometimes forget we already own something and end up buying it again.
As a result, we accumulate duplicate items in our homes, adding to the overall inventory we need to manage.
So the next time your kids say they need new pens for school, check if you don’t already have some at home.
Read more: How to stop being materialistic and overconsuming?
13. Have a basket in your closet for donations
Keep a basket or a box in your closet to put things you no longer want to keep as you come across them.
For instance, if you put on a pair of jeans and you realize it doesn’t fit you anymore, you can effortlessly throw it into the donation box straight away.
Don’t put it back in your wardrobe.
That way, your seasonal decluttering sessions won’t be as overwhelming since you’ll have fewer clothes to get rid of!
14. Regift unwanted gifts
I still struggle with this one a lot, as many people do.
But there is no point in keeping a gift we didn’t end up using or liking.
The person who gifted it to us wouldn’t want us to hold onto something we don’t enjoy just because it was a present.
The best thing you can do to honor it is to be grateful for the nice gesture and find a new home for it.
Don’t let it clutter up your space!
Plus, you’ll save money because you will have one less gift to buy the next time you want to give a present.
15. Put away clean laundry immediately
Are you guilty of having piles and piles of clean laundry cluttering up your space?
That’s okay, it happens to everyone!
But get into the habit of putting them away as soon as they are dry.
I know we sometimes don’t feel like doing it, but doing so will make your home clutter-free and tidier in no time.
Take the time to do it and don’t let them sit for days.
16. Take 10 minutes every night to empty surfaces and tidy your home
At the end of each day, I like dedicating 10 minutes to tidy my space.
I put away things that ended up on flat surfaces, like my bedside table or kitchen counters.
I fold the blankets and rearrange the throw pillows on the couch.
In a nutshell, I do my best to make my home as tidy and inviting as possible for the next day.
That way, when I wake up the next day, I don’t feel bogged down by these tasks.
I can start each day feeling great in a clean, tidy space.
Read more: How to make your home cozy and minimalist?
17. Don’t keep empty boxes and bags
Let’s be honest, we are all guilty of this.
We sometimes keep boxes or bags in the hopes of reusing them.
While reusing boxes and bags instead of buying them is an amazing way to be more sustainable and reduce waste, we often go overboard with it.
We end up collecting far too many boxes and bags, which then pile up in a corner of our homes.
Avoid collecting empty cardboard boxes and plastic or paper bags unless you have an immediate plan for them.
18. Do one-minute tasks right away
If something takes less than one minute to do, do it straight away.
Don’t put it off for later.
These tiny one-minute tasks accumulate over time.
And while they are usually easy and quick to do, they can become a huge chore if we have too many of them.
So take the trash out as soon as the trash can gets full.
Recycle junk mail as soon as it enters your house and put a “no junk mail” sticker on your mailbox.
19. Make your children tidy their room every night
If your children are old enough, make them tidy their room every night.
The thing is, children can create huge messes in their rooms in a short amount of time.
For parents, it gets difficult to keep up and always keep their rooms tidy.
But the good news is that if they are old enough, they can tidy their messes themselves.
So help them get into this habit.
They might even be more careful not to create so much mess during the day, knowing they’ll have to clean up after themselves!
Read more: 9 things to get rid of for a minimalist bedroom
20. Get rid of empty products immediately
Many of us tend to put empty products back in the cupboards or drawers instead of getting rid of them.
I’m guilty of this at times!
So if you’re like me, make sure to recycle or throw away empty products and packaging as soon as you run out of them.
These are some of the easiest things to declutter in your kitchen or bathroom!
Final thoughts on these lazy habits for a clutter-free home
There you have it!
I hope you’ve found these 20 lazy habits for a clutter-free home helpful and that you could pick at least several of them to clear the clutter in your space and keep it tidy.
Maintaining a clutter-free home doesn’t have to be complicated.
If we adopt some tiny, simple habits and stay on top of them consistently, we shouldn’t accumulate clutter and create a lot of mess.
If you enjoyed this article, you will also love reading the following ones:
- 10 ways to practice minimalism for a clutter-free life
- 27 easy minimalist habits that will change your life
What are your favorite lazy habits for a clutter-free home?
Feel free to share them in the comment section!
Don’t forget to share this blog post with your friends to help them get rid of clutter and mess effortlessly so they can live in a beautiful, tidy home too.
