After a particularly trying day (a late bus, an unexpected downpour, a coworker who insisted on listening to “Thriller” on a continuous loop), who really wants to play a game of housewares Jenga to get a pan out of the kitchen cabinet? It might just be enough to bring your simmering blood pressure to a rolling boil.

Your home should be the ultimate place of restoration, not a field of stress-inducing booby traps or reminders of tasks left undone. “When you walk through the front door, you should feel as though you are stepping into a clearing,” says Gail Blanke, motivational speaker and founder of Throwoutfiftythings.com . “Stress-free living is not about decorating or spending money to live up to someone else’s idea of Zen design. It’s about revealing the good stuff and being free of anything that weighs you down.”

And while it’s true that what soothes one person might grate on another (swinging desktop clicky balls, we’re looking at you), experts swear there are universal ways to boost a home’s good vibes in just minutes — no feng shui makeover or sage-burning required. To rid your home of stressful energy, just follow these 10 easy steps to serenity.