Decluttering your life in 13 weeks (10 minutes at a time): weeks 5 & 6

Are you getting used to the idea of doing a little at a time to clean up your stuff? Here are your next two assignments for decluttering your life. Hope you enjoy them!

Week 5: Clean out your car. This one might take thirty minutes instead of ten, depending on what you want to do. But even ten minutes will make a big improvement!

You’ll need a trash bag, a damp cloth, some window cleaner (or you can put a tablespoon of white vinegar in 2 cups of water), and a few paper towels.

First, take a picture of the inside of your car. Try to get as much as possible but you probably won’t be able to see all of it in the pictures. Open all the doors and the trunk and give your car a good airing-out. Then take three minutes to throw out all the junk in your floorboards, trunk, and under the seats. (My college roommate once found a carton of milk under her front seat — talk about stinky.)

Next, take a damp cloth (wet it under water and wring it out pretty well) and go over every plastic surface inside your car. This will get rid of all the dust, fast-food residue, stickiness, and other gunk that might be lurking about. This should take you about two minutes, but if your car is really dirty, it’s worth doing some extra credit to get it clean. Examine the cloth and take a second to say “ick” at the brown grossness that was once all over your car!

Last, use your window spray or vinegar water and paper towels to wash the inside of your windows. Vinegar is stinky, but it also naturally absorbs and neutralizes odors and after your car airs out a little it will smell fresh and clean. Start with the windshield, then do the front side windows. This will take you about three minutes. When you finish, decide if you like the results enough to spend another five minutes cleaning the rest. Technically, you're finished...but we hope you keep going for just a few more minutes.

Now look at your car and be really honest about the condition of the seats and floors. If they’re awful—or if they are starting to bother you now that the rest of your car is clean—do a little more extra credit and give them a quick vacuuming. Ask your parents if they’d rather you use the shop vac or the house vacuum. If they say “neither” try to dig up a dollar in quarters and go to the nearest car wash or gas station and use their vacuum.

Take another picture of the inside, and compare your shots. It looks a lot better, doesn’t it! If you like having your car this way, try keeping it clean for a week. Try to get through the week without leaving trash, clothing, papers, or anything else in your car. When the week is over, decide if you like having a clean car enough to keep it clean for good.

If you don't have a car: Take a few minutes to make sure that all of your junk is out of your parents' car, then spend a few minutes cleaning it out as listed above. Your parents like a clean car as much as you do, and this will make them really happy.

If your car and the family car are already clean: Sit in the car and play music or relax for about ten minutes. (Just kidding. You get the week off!)

Week 6: Now that we’ve seen how much of a difference ten minutes of doing little things can make, do a little cleaning and freshening up in your relationships. Take ten minutes to make a list of three people you can spend time with this week, and list something nice you can do for them that they wouldn’t expect. One of these people should be related to you, and one shouldn’t be. (The other is up to you.) Can you pick a few flowers for your mom? Watch the game with your dad? Leave a nice note on your friend’s Facebook wall, or play catch with your little brother? Fill the dishwasher for your sister on her night to do chores? Making the list should take about ten minutes, but the actual list items can take however long you choose.

One rule: don’t make this about buying them stuff. That’s too easy. Instead, think about ways you can show your love for these people through your actions. Get as creative as you want, but try to make it something you know they’d like.

It will take a little time, but it’s worth spending time with/on the people you care about. I promise. At the end of the week, decide if you like this little ten-minute habit, and whether you’ll continue it.

So now you have a clean bathroom, you’ve made strides into cleaning your closet, you’ve cleaned up your backpack and your car, and you’ve made a real effort to show love to important people in your life through your actions. Take a few minutes to feel good about your accomplishments, and meet me back here in two weeks for another round of decluttering!