The Lazy Genius Podcast

Host: Kendra Adachi
Episode: 450 – What to Do Before a Winter House Reset
Date: December 29, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Kendra Adachi (“The Lazy Genius”) explores the crucial steps to take before launching into a major winter house reset. Her focus is on reconciling the urge to reorganize after the holidays with practical, sustainable strategies that reduce overwhelm and support gentle transitions into the new year. The episode also features the Lazy Genius Honorable Mentions and Lazy Genius of the Year, Kendra’s Word of 2026, and closes with a mini pep talk for those feeling discontent as the year ends.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The House Reset Urge: Context and Compassion

• Timing the Urge:
  After the hectic fall and holidays, many feel compelled to “reset” their space—clear out decorations, declutter, and reclaim calm.
• Compassion for Yourself and Others:
  “The people you live with might not have the same house reset needs that you do.” (21:47, Kendra)
  • Recognize that your desire for calm may not be shared or felt as intensely by other household members.
  • Extend compassion both ways: advocate for your needs while understanding theirs.

2. The Magic Question: Helping Your Future Self

• Focus on Next Year and Next Month:
  Ask: “What can I do now to make winter in my home easier later?” (24:03)
  • Apply this to decorations, storage, and routines, e.g., only store what you actually use; pack accessible items on top; take photos of decor placement for next year.
• Keep the Reset Manageable:
  Scale thinking to monthly needs rather than forever. “If you keep your thinking smaller, you'll keep your choices smaller.” (26:58)

3. Reset with a Strategy: Start Small and Be Specific

• Do a “Reset Walkthrough”:
  • Go room by room with a notepad or your phone.
  • List everything you want to tackle, but for each room, also note: “What’s the smallest thing I can do here to make this space feel better?”
  • Example: If shoes and coats are everywhere, resist the urge to reorganize the whole kitchen—just sort those items (29:42).
• Avoid “Project Pinball”:
  • If you don’t name and prioritize, you risk bouncing from task to task without meaningful progress.

4. Choose Wisely: Busy Work vs. Helpful Work

• Discern Your Efforts:
  “Is this busy work or is this genuinely helpful?” (31:24)
  • Kendra shares her own tendency to create “busy work” (e.g., reorganizing digital photo albums) rather than tackling truly beneficial tasks like regular “daily delete.”
  • Identify and focus on the most essential project—the “best bang for your buck” in terms of energy and satisfaction.

5. One Room at a Time – The "One Sane Space" Principle

• Focus and Finish:
  Inspired by Myquillyn Smith’s “one sane space.”
  • Aim to completely reset one important area (such as the living/kitchen “L”) before moving to the next. (34:35)
  • This prevents piles and unfinished projects from spreading and maintains a sense of calm.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On family’s differing reset needs:
  “No one’s ever going to care about my house being tidy or calm as much as I care. And that’s okay.” (22:52)
• On avoiding endless projects:
  “We don’t need accidental projects that will just like stick around all January long." (33:13)
• On organizing by purpose:
  “Any time that you can hear permission to organize or put things in a place that makes sense for your life—as opposed to convention—I’m just all for it.” (41:54)
• Pep Talk:
  “Good is always here, and when you’re discontent, it’s such a gift to yourself to look for it. So grieve what you don’t have, absolutely. But also look for the good in what you do. It’s there. I promise you, it’s there.” (45:00)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00–03:41: Sponsor reads (skip)
• 03:41–04:54: Episode introduction and overview
• 04:55–19:25: Honorable Mentions – Lazy Genius of the Year, 5 runners-up tips
• 19:25–21:44: Mindset reminders before a house reset
• 21:45–26:57: Compassion for differing needs; the Magic Question for your future self
• 26:58–32:37: Practical reset tips – name your tasks, look for the smallest impactful change, avoid busy work
• 32:38–33:12: “Daily Delete” example and differentiating busy from meaningful work
• 33:13–34:35: Picking what actually matters; avoid accidental big projects
• 34:36–36:49: “One Sane Space” concept; reset one space before starting another
• 36:50–37:30: Recap of the “what to do before a reset” steps
• 37:31–46:26: Extra features:
  • Word of the Year: “Flourish” and the reasoning behind it – “I think I'd like to flourish.” (35:37)
  • Lazy Genius of the Year: Lexi Frankhauser—organizing pantries by cuisine, not container
  • Mini Pep Talk: If you’re feeling discontent, find “the good that is here right now.”
• 46:27–end: Closings, credits, sponsor outro (skip)

Honorable Mention Lazy Genius Ideas (Highlights)

1. Blake Bacara: Adapted meal matrix-style “buckets” for what to watch, reducing decision fatigue (07:16).
2. Bethany Crumb: Keeps a “birthday bin” stocked for four kids’ birthdays, refreshing contents each year (09:32).
3. SJP122: Puts a “Cheers” flag on the lawn to indicate neighbor happy hour—easy, effective community builder (11:47).
4. Jess Knox: “Kid President” system in the home for small decisions, with rotating presidential weeks (13:46).
5. Abby Noyce: Library trips on Fridays, with kids’ book limit set by age—routine and autonomy (15:03).

2025 Lazy Genius of the Year

• Winner: Lexi Frankhauser
  • Tip: Organize pantry ingredients by cuisine rather than by container (“Italian,” “Asian,” “Latin,” etc.)—makes cooking more enjoyable and inventory easier (40:23).
  • Why: Adaptable for any household, saves money, supports joyful and efficient cooking.

Kendra’s 2026 Word of the Year

• Word: Flourish (38:07)
• Meaning: “To grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way, especially as the result of a particularly favorable environment.”
• Why: Transitioning from survival to personal growth; seeking more than equilibrium—aiming to flourish, not just to maintain.
• Memorable analogy: “Plants flourish when they're regularly watered, when the dead leaves are cut off, when they're spotted, when they're turned 90 degrees to get like another angle toward the sun. I tend to my plants this way because I don't want them to just survive. I want them to flourish. I'd also like to flourish this year.” (39:55)

Mini Pep Talk: If You’re Feeling Discontent (44:10)

• Acknowledgment: Endings and beginnings may cause unease, disappointment, or grief that things aren’t as you hoped.
• Encouragement:
  “Hold fast to the phrase: ‘good is here right now.’ Look for the good in your life, in your days, in your moments... It is absolutely there. I guarantee it.” (45:00)
• Example: Frodo in Mordor—Even when life is dark, “there was still good, you know, there was still Sam... there was still conviction and purpose.” (44:38)

Actionable Steps Before Your House Reset

1. Check your mindset and extend compassion.
2. Ask ‘What can I do now to make it easier next year?’
3. Focus on the next month, not forever.
4. Walk through your house, list all reset desires, and identify the smallest impactful change for each room.
5. Discern busy work vs. genuinely helpful work—let go of the former.
6. Choose and complete the most important reset task first.
7. Reset one room at a time. Designate a “sane space.”

Language and Tone

Warm, conversational, permission-giving, and gently humorous—Kendra invites listeners to lower the stakes, extend grace to themselves and others, and focus their energy where it matters most, all while embracing the Lazy Genius philosophy of being “a genius about the things that matter, and lazy about the things that don’t.”

This summary captures the substance, warmth, and practical wisdom of "What to Do Before a Winter House Reset," a gentle but strategic guide for moving into the new year with more calm and less chaos.