By Marie Kondō
"Life truly begins after you have put your house in order."
No matter how you have understood that idea in the past, Marie Kondō wants you to take it literally. Tidy up that place where you live! She is going to help you, not berate you. I think you will feel that helpful spirit as you read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Are of Decluttering and Organizing.
Marie Kondō is a Japanese cleaning consultant, whose KonMari Method has won her a host of clients (and fans) in her own country and, through this book, around the world.
The KonMari Method . . . is not a mere set of rules on how to sort, organize, and put things away. It is a guide to acquiring the right mind-set for creating order and becoming a tidy person.
You have to have the mind-set notes Marie. Without it you will rebound, i.e. your house once again becoming a mess. This is all but guaranteed.
The KonMari Method is a blitzkrieg approach, not an incremental one. "My clients do not develop the habit of tidying gradually. Everyone one of them has been clutter-free since they undertook their tidying marathon." (17).
While I am not going to hire Marie to help me tidy, she offered me many tidying insights:
1. Tidying begins with discarding. This is a must read, and why you may need someone to help you.
2. Tidy in one fell-swoop.
3. Tidying up as a pleasant "change of pace" from other anxiety-producing work does not address possible underlying issues. She writes, "While it may help you feel refreshed temporarily, the relief won't last because you haven't addressed the true cause of your anxiety." Don't let physical tidying your physical space deceive you from tidying your psychological space. (21)
4. Storage methods don't work. She contends storage systems mask a hoarder mindset. Interesting point. Read her rationale and you may find yourself agreeing even if you think "that's not me!"
5. Think category before room. Very helpful!
6. Why we don't discard: "But when we really delve into the reasons for why we can't let something go, there are only two: an attachment to the past or a fear for the future." (181)
7. "Detoxing" the house (of clutter) has a detox effect on our bodies as well. (193)
Will you agree with everything Ms. Kondō proposes? I doubt it. Take discarding for instance. What to keep and what to toss. Marie urges us Look more closely at what is there (41). As you handle each item, ask, "Does this spark joy? If it does, keep it. If not, dispose of it." I appreciate this. There is something about physical touch that helps me "see" what I may not otherwise. Still, as a researcher, there are many things that don't "spark joy" but will definitely spark an ethical quagmire if I toss them too early.
I agree with Marie. We need to tidy up and there is great joy that comes from it. But if I look deeper, I think the real reason we want to "feel organized" is that we are created in the image of an organizing and orderly God, who spoke order into chaos and gave us the beauty we see.
I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Are of Decluttering and Organizing a few months ago, but I am glad I am writing the review now. We are relocating (home and office) to another state. My office holds books galore, magazines, years of files, doctoral research, other "Important Papers," and carefully documented classes taught -- much of it having been untouched for over a decade. Maybe I need to give Marie a call after all!
If you want to get your house in order -- literally -- read this book. I think you will be glad you did.