🧺 The 5 Things Tidying Method
Reset a messy room in five sequential steps.
Updated 2026-07-14
From KC Davis (Struggle Care), the 5 Things method reframes a messy room as just five kinds of things: trash, dishes, laundry, things that have a home, and things that don't. Doing them in order removes the 'I don't know where to start' paralysis that makes cleaning so hard with ADHD, and it's morally neutral: a messy room isn't a failure, it's a to-do. Work the five steps below in one focused session.
The list
- Grab a trash bag and collect all the trash in the space
- Gather every dish and cup and stack them by the sink
- Collect all laundry and clothing into one pile or basket
- Put away the things that already have a home
- Make one pile of things that don't have a home
- Don't sort the pile yet. Placement comes later
- Take one photo of the cleared space as your win
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