I do five things at a time - take 2 mugs to the kitchen, put 3 things in the dishwasher. Or take 4 things out of the dishwasher, and fold 1 piece of laundry. Every episode or chapter or hour (insert something that works for you) I do one round. If I get more enthusiastic or energetic, I might do 5 per room or category. It works for me because that's all I need to do for now, and the rest will come later. The tendency is to do the easiest first, which actually cleans up most of the clutter. Trash, dishes, and laundry are the quickest way to get to 5, so I am done in about 2 minutes for the first 'rounds'.

Basically, it's a simple homemade form of gamification :)