Hi friends.  Chances are, by this time, you've been home for several weeks.  You've either done all of the pending home projects you've wanted to address, or you're beginning to notice all the undone projects and tasks lurking in the hidden, deep, dark corners.  Are you sighing in frustration, not sure where to start?

Household “chores” and organizing projects can seem overwhelming when we look at them all at once. When we break them down into smaller pieces, then they don’t seem as arduous, time-consuming, or boring. I once timed myself to see exactly how long it takes to fold a load of laundry, something I don’t enjoy doing. It took three minutes. OK, it was a load of towels, which are easy, but even so, it was only three minutes. We can do pretty much anything for just three minutes. If we apply this “3-minute rule” to a larger task, imagine how much more we can accomplish in the long term!

What can be done in 3 minutes? Here are 45 tasks you can do in 3 minutes (or less!):

1. Pay bills online
2. Tidy a pocketbook
3. Use the bathroom
4. Make the bed
5. Feed the cats
6. Scoop the litter box
7. Take out the garbage
8. Put away a bag of groceries
9. Recycle old newspapers or magazines
10. Hang coats in closet
11. File a few papers
12. Read this article (!)
13. Respond to an invitation
14. Write a thank you note
15. Drink a glass of water
16. Change the batteries in your smoke alarm
17. Test the carbon monoxide detector
18. Cut up an avocado or apple
19. Eat a banana
20. Eat a yogurt
21. Prepare a healthy snack
22. Print labels for your file system
23. Scan and save a vital document
24. Schedule a doctor’s appointment
25. Create an online ID with your doctor’s portal to access your health history
26. Give a few dollars to charity
27. Help an older person across the street
28. Smile and wave at someone you pass
29. Text someone you love, just because
30. Sort your sock drawer
31. Download a good book
32. Unload the dishwasher
33. Change a light bulb
34. Download an emergency preparedness list from the Red Cross website
35. Line up shoes in an entryway
36. Sort and open today's mail
37. Change the sheets on a bed
38. Wash one window
39. Put a load of laundry in to wash
40. Transfer a load of laundry to the dryer
41. Toss old personal care products (makeup, expired over the counter medicines)
42. Toss expired pantry items on one shelf
43. Gather up garbage from your car at the end of the day
44. Talk with your kid before a practice or game
45. Play fetch with your dog or cat      

What else can you think of that you can do in 3 minutes or less?  Let me know!

Gayle M. Gruenberg, CPO-CD^® is the Chief Executive Organizer of Let’s Get Organized, LLC, an award-winning professional organizing firm based in Bergen County, New Jersey. You can reach her at 201-364-6833 or visit the Let's Get Organized website at www.LGOrganized.com.