As I went through my own KonMari journey and am now helping clients tidy their homes, I’ve identified key factors that make for a successful decluttering project. Today, I’d like to share 9 tips that can make the difference when it comes to pulling through with your decluttering your home.
1) Remove Everything
If you tidy according to the KonMari Method, you already know that you should tackle everything by category. This means you gather every item of a given category in one spot (e.g., floor, bed, table). Make sure you actually do this rigorously. I emphasize this because you might come across a storage unit whose contents you know you want to keep for sure. And this might be the case. However, it’s ALWAYS recommended to take everything out of its current storage.
Only then you’ll be able to look at your things and space with fresh eyes. On the one hand, checking if an item sparks joy is easier once it’s out of its storage. On the other hand, you’re able to re-organize your belongings and put them back in a way that makes the most sense. Thus, I strongly recommend removing all items during tidying – even if you’re 100% sure that you’ll put them back in the exact same spot. Because more often than not, you won’t. Trust me.
2) Start In The Morning
If you can, I highly suggest starting your tidying sessions in the morning. In general, you have a clear mind and more energy than later in the day. Starting later in the day or at night (maybe even after a full day at work) is typically not the best idea. Your energy levels are usually lower and you might find yourself progressing at too slow of a pace and just not as efficiently as you’d like to.
Another downside of starting (too) late is that you might not be able to finish the category(ies) you intended to do. This might not be a problem if you have a large space, are able to designate areas for gathering/sorting purposes and walk away and leave it as you please. However, if you don’t have this extra space, you might find your bed covered in unsorted clothing for example and unable to go to sleep. Therefore, make sure to start as early and fresh as possible.
3) Large Chunks Of Time
There’s a reason why The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo says that you should tidy your home “in one go.” Of course, it’s typically not possible to do it all in one day. But the point here is that it makes sense to set aside a larger amount of time for each tidying session. Recommended are 5 hours. Typically, if you can make your sessions 5 or 6 hours long, you progress at a pace where you can see results and this very fact keeps you going. If you dedicate less time, you might not experience the results you were hoping for. You’re more likely to get into the flow and accomplish a lot if you give yourself a good chunk of time where you only focus on one (your tidying) task. Thus, keep in mind that you will accomplish more by reserving large amounts of time.
In fact, you’ll likely progress more slowly with five 3-hour sessions than if you did three 5-hour sessions. Why is that? First of all, for each session, you have a little warm-up phase where you’re slower and just need to get “into the swing of things.” That is, overall, you’re losing time when you’re doing 5 sessions as opposed to 3. Second, you’re more likely to get a momentum going and get into the flow where you work extremely focused and fast within a long stretch of time. Thus, keep in mind that you will accomplish more by dedicating large amounts of time per session.
4) Give Yourself Time
You probably want to finish decluttering and organizing your home as fast as possible. However, you should keep in mind that if you intend to apply the KonMari Method (and you should if you want to do it once and for all), you’ll have to make a decision about every single item you own. You’ll have to decide whether you want to keep or discard it. And this can take time.
Truthfully, everyone is different. How long it takes depends on several factors like speed of joy check, amount of items in your home and much more. However, I recommend that you allow yourself a reasonable amount of time to complete your tidying project. I think the most important thing is to enter this project with an open mindset. That allows you to make adjustments to the time frame you give yourself as you progress in your journey.
5) Category Checklist
Create yourself a checklist with all the categories and various sub-categories you’ll have to tackle (especially helpful for the huge Komono category). Spark Joy provides a pretty extensive list in the content section. I recommend you type off this list and add any sub-categories as needed. Also, if you’re like me, checking off a list can bring a lot of satisfaction 😉
6) Get Used To Temporary Messiness
Be prepared that it might look unorganized and messy for a while. As you’re going through all of the things in your home by category, it’s unavoidable that things get taken out of closets and piled up for sorting through. Also, you will find yourself filling trash bag after trash bag with things to discard, donate or sell. Don’t let this discourage you! It’s a process and this temporary messiness is part of it. Dedicate an area for the bags that need to leave the house. And do your best to clear this area on a regular basis.
Also, keep in mind that all storage is temporary for the entire duration of your tidying project. Things might “not feel right”, even if it’s categories you’ve already completed. Just keep at it. In the end, when you’re only left with the items that spark joy for you, you’ll be able to organize and store your things to your utmost satisfaction.
7) Shopping Not Allowed
Don’t buy storage items. As mentioned above (and continuously by Marie Kondo in her books) all storage is temporary. Trust the process and wait with going shopping for organizational items until after you’re completely finished. Because you might not need them. You typically come across suitable storage boxes/bins/items during the tidying process.
Only after you’re completely done, you can adequately assess your storage solutions and items. Then you can make an educated decision whether you truly need to buy additional or replacement organizational items.
8) Second Rounds Are OK
You might go over certain categories a second time. And that’s ok! Yes, ideally you make your “final” decision whether you want to keep or discard an item fast and only once. However, if you feel like you could go over some things again, feel free to do so!
The most important thing is to “not freak out.” Make decisions quickly – yes. But revise them later on if you feel the need to.
9) Keep A Running To-Do List
It’s helpful to keep a list of things that you can do at a later time. For example, jot down that you want to sell a certain piece of furniture. Or that you need to get a lamp fixed. Or you need to buy photo albums for your loose photos. Writing such things down helps you to keep your momentum and focus on tidying. All the while keeping a record of tasks that need to be done in the future to contribute to a home that sparks joy for you.
Did you find this list helpful? Are there any tips you have to share?
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