Do you have trouble locating that cute blouse in your closet? Do you feel pressure to find an outfit to wear every day? Does your partner get confused on where to find his/her shoes or other small items? Well here you have found the right solution to help you organize the clutter. Most organizing solutions may overwhelm people because they don’t know where and how to start decluttering.
The KonMari Method is created to help simplify your organization project with a mission in mind. It would make your life easier if you tackle the project by separating it into smaller steps. By organizing your home and letting go of unused objects, you can lead a happier and peaceful lifestyle.
Let’s get into explaining who Marie Kondo is and how she has influenced people around the world.
This cleaning method was created by Marie Kondo who is a psychologist, a cleaning expert, lifestyle guru, and bestselling author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. She started the tidying consultant business at 19 years old as a Tokyo university student. Marie also has a Netflix series called Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. The episodes will show Marie helping her clients to reorganize their homes from category to category using every step of the process.
“The Konmari method encourages tidying by category, not by location, beginning with clothes, then moving on to books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items), and finally, sentimental items. Keep only those things that speak to the heart, and discard items that no longer spark joy. Thank them for their service, then let them go.” (Marie Kondo)
If you’re interested in trying this process on your own, there are rules that Marie asks her clients to follow.
Six Basic Rules of Tidying:
1) Commit yourself to tidying up.
2) Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
3) Finish discarding first.
4) Tidy by category, not by location.
5) Follow the right order.
6) Ask yourself if it sparks joy.
As you imagine your ideal lifestyle, remember the KonMari philosophy which is to “Choose Joy.” Watch the video as she explains this philsophy. https://blog.konmari.com/marie-kondo-imagine-your-ideal-lifestyle/
To help you get started, Marie’s books will explain all the details to declutter everything. You can buy one of her books or the book set of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering & Organizing and Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing & Tidying Up. For reference, you can also buy them here: https://konmari.com/collections/books
Eduard analyzed the Konmari method and simplified the process into eight smaller steps. “Take each thing that you own and ask yourself if it brings you happiness." https://rhythmofthehome.com/konmari-method-home/
Chris Stiff, a lecturer in Psychology has explained his experience. He says he’s been following the KonMari method for his new year’s resolution and has found after two weeks he still has a clean office and feels energized from the cleaner space. Although, Chris also mentioned, “The KonMari method is rigorous and requires commitment, time, and energy to complete to its fullest.” Complete this journey if you know you will have the time, resources, and the mindset to go through each step of the process.
Myka Stauffer filmed herself and her family committing to the Konmari method. She has posted multiple videos of how she decluttered her home on YouTube. Myka also has some advice that you may want to consider before starting this journey. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeHX_8rdEcQ&list=PLY1tfvqbjkUKXLesFWI3TFUCnSod4H3gR
A couple decided to Konmari her childhood's bedroom which is full of memories. She was emotional but relieved in the end to let go of all the clutter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZgbJmkTU7I
After you have deep-cleaned your home or just one room, you can make donations to Chairitee. Contact Julie for more information at julie@chairitee.org. Want to learn about what Chairitee does with our donations? Learn more at https://www.chairitee.org/donate#!
Other options of organizations are the Salvation Army, Dress for Success, Career Gear, Big Brother Big Sister Foundation, or Homeless shelters.
You can also create a quilt for old pieces of clothing to remember those special moments. You can frame that special t-shirt or sweater and put it on your wall to look at every day. If the object is too important to you to release, you can take a photo or record a video and save it to a storage device. These ideas can help you commemorate those objects even though you are letting them go...... If the clothing is ruined, you can also use them as cleaning rags. My father cuts our old t-shirts and old towels into pieces to clean the cars and bicycles.
If you need support to begin the KonMari journey, you can choose a certified consultant from Marie’s website of https://konmari.com/pages/consultants
I am inspired by Marie’s method and want to try this in my bedroom. What do you think, will you go on the KonMari journey and clean out your home?
REFERENCES
KonMari Media Inc. https://konmari.com/pages/about
Stiff, Chris. (22 Jan. 2019) Marie Kondo: a psychologist assesses the KonMari method of tidying. The Conversation US, Inc. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/marie-kondo-a-psychologist-assesses-the-konmari-method-of-tidying-110217
Images all retrieved from Bing.com. Originally from Juju Sprinkles. http://jujusprinkles.com/2015-05-18-10-illustrations-that-perfectly-sum-up-the-konmari-method/