How to pick up the house without getting distracted

How many times have you flittered from room to room, picking up random things, half-way doing various chores, only to discover at the end of the day you couldn't figure out what you had actually accomplished?

Here is a possible helpful strategy for picking up your house. Take a laundry basket with you and pick a room to start in. Put away things that are out in the open and not where they belong. If anything goes to a different room, put it in the basket. Then move on to the next room. Empty the basket of anything that goes in that room, then put in anything that doesn't go in the current room. You can take a break between rooms, or even do one per day if it's really bad. But this will keep you focused. Feel free to share any ideas you use.