Summary
Marie Kondo explains her background and introduces the KonMari tidying method as a concept. She shares some testimonials from former clients who are now âsurrounded only by the things they love.â Reorganizing your home can shift your entire lifestyle and perspective in ways that are âtransforming.â
Itâs assumed that we all know how to organize possessions and physical spaces naturally. After all, shelter is one of the most basic human needs. But, as with learning how to cook, this is a skill one needs to be taught.
With the KonMari method, you will undertake a âtidying marathonâ of your entire home that should be completed within six months. This mission should be treated as a special event, not a chore, because itâs the first step in shifting your mindset and creating the lifestyle that you want. If you aim for perfection the first time, you wonât rebound. Kondo claims that if you tidy a little each day, youâll be tidying forever. But if you go through the KonMari process, you will reset your lifestyle once and for all.
The KonMari methodâessentially, discarding, then storingâworks for everybody, regardless of your personality, because it empowers you to make your own decisions.
When tidying, a common mistake is to sort by room. In the KonMari method, you âsort by category, not by location.â Because people often keep the same type of thing in more than one room or place in the house, tidying by location means youâll always be tidying.
Set goals for tidying one category at a time: clothes, papers, etc. Furthermore, itâs important not to be distracted by fancy storage methods. There can be no proper storage method without first discarding the things that you donât needâotherwise youâll still have clutter, it will just be out of sight.
Once youâve gone through this process and put everything in its place, the only thing youâll have to do on a daily basis is put things back where they belong.
Need to Know
Tidying is an important life skill that most of us donât have by natureâand many of the things that we have been taught about tidying are actually holding us back. The KonMari method of doing a big tidying overhaul, which includes first discarding, then storing properly, works for everyone and only needs to be done once.
âBefore you start, visualize your destination.â Think about why you picked up this book, and visualizeâin concrete termsâwhat it would be like to live in the space that you desire. Then, ask yourself why this is what youâre looking forâbecause this will help you determine âthe reasons behind your ideal lifestyle.â For most, itâs some variation of being happy, but each of us needs to realize this for ourselves.
The selection criterion during the discarding process is simple. âThe best way to choose what to keep and what to throw away is to take each item in oneâs hand and ask: âDoes this spark joy?â If it does, keep it. If not, dispose of it.â This is perhaps the most famous tenet of the KonMari tidying philosophy, and it is absolutely necessary to the process. Marie Kondo believes that your body reacts to the things you love, that you can feel it. You instinctively know the items that you want to be surrounded by.
Tidy in this order, one category at a time: clothes, books, papers, komono (miscellany), and mementos. Kondo designed this list from easiest to most difficult to ...