I wait all winter for the day that I can stop wearing my painfully practical (but very warm!) parka and start preaching about spring cleaning. I’ve been braving the cold sans parka and according to the equinox, spring has sprung so here we are (!!!!). Folks, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting. The winter is leaving and the warmth of the summer is breathing down our backs. But most exciting of all, we now have another socially-created excuse to take a deep-dive into our lives and tidy up. SPRING CLEANING IS HERE.

Here’s a game plan for tackling every nook and cranny or just one nook and cranny because that’s what you have the bandwidth and headspace for this season. No judgement - Real Life Tidy.

1) Create small, attainable goals so you can accomplish them like a champ. Before you set out on the massive task of “cleaning your home,” take a few minutes to write down some small tidy task-related goals. Keep them small so you can be checking them off all day long and awarding yourself like a kid at their first haircut. Instead of aiming to “clean out your closet,” make bite-sized goals like “purge old underwear” and “reconsider sweater collection.”

2) Be ruthless in your attack. We’re here on a mission to succeed so have no mercy. When in doubt, throw it out! If you find yourself making up excuses to hold onto things, that’s fear talking and you gotta put it in place! The goal is to lighten your load so that spring air has more room to breeze through your life. So say goodbye to the old and uninspiring things that have been holding you down.

3) Keep your sentimental items in check. Too much sentiment means nothing has a special purpose so hone in on the things that truly paint a picture of your life. Let go of generic cards (“love, grandma”) and focus on the ones that have meaningful notes and truly make you happy. Less is more!

4) Let go of broken items that you “haven’t gotten around to fixing.” It can be incredibly liberating to rid yourself of projects or repairs that are simply never going to happen. Since we’re in the big leagues now, take the plunge, close your eyes tight, and erase those tasks that are bogging you down!

5) Clean the insides of drawers, cabinets, and closets. For extra bonus points, wipe down any surfaces or generally hard-to-reach space as you systematically work through your home. This’ll bring things to the next level and bring lots of satisfaction (“look at the size of that dust bunny!”). So keep some rags and water+vinegar spray on hand as you perform your clean out.

6) Embrace the fear but more so, the thrill! It can be scary to let things go but it also feels AMAZING! Embrace all of the feelings but try to focus on how rejuvenated, light, and accomplished you feel. Remember those goals that you were setting out to reach? Celebrate them! Drink on me.