From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishclear the decksclear the decksWORK HARDto do all the work that needs to be done before you can do other things I’m trying to clear the decks before Christmas. → clear
Examples from the Corpus
clear the decks• And Lawrence wasted no time responding to that challenge and clearing the decks at Ayresome Park.• We're trying to clear the decks before Christmas.• Still, it was time to clear the decks, time to get things sorted.• Hankin cleared the decks when in temporary charge and team-strengthening is essential. 