“The question of what you want to own is actually the question of how you want to live your life.”
Marie Kondo is a Japanese cleaning consultant who has developed a system for decluttering and organizing, which she has used to change the homes and lives of her many clients. The KonMari method tackles the task of decluttering by category. Rather than focusing on one room at a time or tidying little by little, you do it by category (clothes, books, etc.) and all at once. Marie Kondo believes that clutter masks the true source of disorganization and disorder, and by facing your stuff all at once you can let go of what has kept you in a state of clutter.
She also provides a list of the order in which to tackle each category, the easiest being clothing to start and eventually finishing up with sentimental items, which are usually the most difficult to discard. Ultimately you are choosing what you want to keep, not what you want to discard. The goal is to create the lifestyle you want by surrounding yourself with things that “spark joy.”
This book is smart, easy to read and as you would expect, well organized. I find the general task of decluttering to be quite overwhelming. Even with best intentions I was never able to get rid of things in a way that truly organized my space. The KonMari method of going through your items by category, compartmentalized and simplified the process for me. The really valuable part of this book is that it has the reader think about the kind of lifestyle they wish to create, and what the physical space needs to be in order to achieve that. It also provides advice for times when we are not sure wether to keep an item or not. The explanations given as to why we have a hard time letting go sometimes and why it is okay to do so are very helpful. Overall, I found the KonMari method to be effective and the book itself to be a good and enjoyable read.
Favourite quote: “Every object has a different role to play. Not all clothes come to you to be worn threadbare. It is the same with people. Not every person you meet in life will become a close friend or lover. Some you will find hard to get along with or impossible to like. But these people, too, teach you the precious lesson of who you do like, so that you will appreciate those special people even more.”
About a Book 