Naturally, I am a very organized person. Ever since I had my own space in my house, I thoroughly enjoyed the concept of displaying all of my toys, tightly putting my clothes away, and keeping every memento I had ever came into contact with at the young age of six. And while I always had a method of organizing, it wouldn’t be long until my room would be cluttered and overflowing with various things. I would go back through and rehang all of my clothes, arranging all of my pens, crayons and pencils the same directions, and the various figurines and toys lined up perfectly. I’d do these “deep cleanings’ about every three months, and as I got older, I would be constantly cleaning, and would never feel like I was accomplishing much. I felt like I was flooded with my possessions and could never find a place for everything.

This year however, I started the New Year off with a book by Marie Kondo, a Japanese organizational consultant and the author of “The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up.” I won’t lie, but since I am less materialistic than most, I found the process of the book extremely easy, but many find it a difficult process to follow. Basically, her book calls for two steps for achieving a life of pure harmony with ones possessions: going through all of ones possessions, and keeping only those that spark joy, and then placing every item in a permanent place that it will return to.

Before the process even begins, it's necessary to question why having a tidy life is important and to imagine the ideal life that would follow. For me, I wanted to live more minimally and to focus more of my energy on learning new skills and bettering my interests. I was overwhelmed with my possessions, and I wanted to have more physical balance to eventually achieve mental and emotional balance, so I could pursue things I love (Like writing, painting, and pursuing yoga and aromatherapy). My ideal life contained a balanced room with a lighter feel. I wanted space to begin hooping and if I had more energy, I wanted to go and become certified as a Yoga Instructor and spend more time in my room relaxing and enjoying a calming atmosphere.

After taking time to really reflect and contemplate my desire for tidying, I followed the instructions set from the book. The KonMari method has four steps to follow from the first step of deciding what to keep: Clothes, Books, Komono (or miscellaneous items) and finally sentimental items. Its important to follow these steps and not skip around, or follow an area or location in your house or room. For example, don’t tackle the closet as a whole first. Begin with t-shirts. Gather all of your shirts to the middle of the room, and allow yourself to consider any other shirts that may be in other areas. Unless they are in the wash, they should be discarded if they aren’t in the pile once you begin sorting. If you come across another shirt after, it should be discarded. Considering that you didn’t remember this shirt initially, it wasn’t sparking enough joy to keep.

Once you have all of your shirts, take each one in your hand individually, and consider if this sparks joy to you. Does it fit? Is it in good shape? Do you enjoy wearing it? If not, discard it to donate or sell. Do this for every shirt. Every single one! Then move to pants, then shorts, socks, etc. Do this until there are no other clothing articles to consider, so this will include seasonal clothing and shoes. If the item is sentimental (for example, a wedding dress or jewelry from a late relative’s), put the item aside until last. But things like old school uniforms and sporting equipment, even if there are memories associated, should be discarded. If you’re not using these articles or they no longer fit, it’s not logical to hold onto them. They cannot spark joy to you.

Following clothes, move onto books. Using the same “Spark Joy” mentality, toss books that you don’t absolutely love. If you have books you never read, that was the purpose of that book in your life, to not be read. Maybe you’ll read it later, but its not the time to continue holding onto these books. The same with old textbooks. If your interest is sparked again, then make the effort to retake a class. But all these books, graded assignments and files are doing is taking up space. This also doesn’t include items like diaries or yearbooks; wait until the sentimental items to sort these.

Then, miscellaneous items, basically encompass all articles that aren’t clothes or books, but are still not sentimental and hold a lot of meaning. Marie Kondo recommends starting with papers, like bills, warranties and owners manuals. Bills should be sorted into three categories: Needs attention now (permission slips, assignments, appointments, etc. Handle these quickly, then discard or turn them in.), will need attention (order forms, forms you don’t have the answer to yet, etc.) and those papers that must be saved (home and car loans, insurance policies, tax returns, and contracts. Items like this should be stored in a clear plastic folder) Keep papers in the same place, so you’ll always know where they could possible be stored. You’ll come to realize that you hold onto many kinds of papers that you never needed or wanted.

Following, it is up to your situation. If you are just tidying your bedroom, categories like kitchen or bathroom items may not immediately impact you, but rather your whole family. However, once I began tidying and discarding, I noticed my family followed suit, and there is less clutter in the whole house.

Finally, move unto sentimental items. The KonMari method claims there are three reasons someone neglects tossing these sorts of items: attachment to the past, or fear of the future, or both. She explains that the space we live in should be for the person we are becoming now, not the person we were in the past. Now, don’t just throw things away because they’re old, but because you actually don’t enjoy their presence in your life and space. Consider every item and why you have kept it.

And that’s it! For the first step, that is. Once you have finished deciding what to keep, its then time to decide where to store everything. Giving every item a home and consciously remembering to return it when its done being used is incredibly important. Rather than using fancy organizing compartments, its more practical to use the storage you already have, then purchasing for maximum storage.

Since making the switch, my room is brighter. I have more energy and am making more plans for travel, nutrition and my health. Things surround me: clothing, books and memories, which bring me joy and I know how to bring only the most joyful items into my space. I have practiced more aromatherapy, purchased more plants and am doing more yoga. I know where all my hiking, skiing and festival gear is, so going on a whim is completely possible. I have the best of the best in my life, and I hope everyone follows Marie Kondo’s method of being excited about what to keep, and placing everything in the best location.

If you’re interested in reading the book for yourself (I finished it on a long 3-hour car ride!) here’s the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Life-Changing-Magic-Tidying...