Four Takeaway's form the KonMarie Netflix Series

The new Netflix series Tidying up with Marie Kondo enables all people to begin their tidying up journey, and here are the most important takeaways

Other than the fact that Marie Kondo is the cutest ever in person, the new show on Netflix provides insight into the Konmari method of tidying and organizing that you would otherwise need to read her book to understand. I love her books and highly recommend them but I can understand that not everyone loves decluttering as much as I do and maybe you just want someone to tell you what to do so you can do it and be done. I get that.

The KonMari Method Summarized 

In case you have never heard of this method before or this series, here's a quick summary. The idea of Konmari is that you tidy by category, not by room. In this ordered process, you touch every item you own and determine whether or not it sparks joy, starting with the “easiest” category of identifying joy, clothes, to the hardest, keepsakes.

The general categories - if you want to try it out for yourself without needing to watch the show or read the book -  are as follows:

1. Clothes
• Under this category is the Konmari method of folding clothing
2. Books
3. Paper
4. Komono (miscellaneous)
• A few examples of Komono are electronics, kitchen, office supplies and keepsakes.

The idea is to start with the first category and collect everything in your entire house that falls under that category into one space in one room. For example, starting in the first category, place all of your clothes on your bed. Within each category there are many other things to consider; for example, when tidying your clothes start with tops and dresses etc. and end with shoes. However, for now, I just want to provide you with a general concept of the method in case you have literally never heard of it before!

In the show, Marie Kondo visits individuals or families who need help and guidance tidying and the viewer follows them on their decluttering journey.

Four Main Takeaways from this show and decluttering in general 

So the real reason I wanted to write this post was to just outline the most important takeaways from this show and her method because I think it is able to highlight some very important aspects of decluttering.

1. Categories.
   
   Tidying by category helps you understand what sparks joy so that you are conscious of what you want to keep and why and it saves you from keeping things “just in case”. It also forces you to take a good look at everything you own and realize just how much stuff (the shit and the important stuff) you own. Seeing everything laid out in one place puts things in perspective and perhaps you will start to be more picky about what you choose to keep and bring into your life and home in the future.
   
   
2. The folding.
   
   The folding method allows you to see everything, know what you have, love what you have, use what you have. I shared my feelings on my post on 'colour pallets based wardrobes', where my ultimate goal is to be able to reach into my closet and love (and actually want to wear) whatever piece I pull out.
   
3. Treat your belongings with love and respect
   
   I really love this one, and I had never really considered it until I read her book. In the Konmari method, you thank each piece of clothing that you are giving away. As consumers, we place inherent meaning on our material belongings. This is also one of the reasons why we have become such great consumers! The marketing and consumer world knows this, so they advertise to us by tying meaning and material items together. For this reason, it can also be difficult to let go of our belongings.
   
   Marie Kondo, therefore, suggests thanking your belongings for whatever purpose they have served you. Maybe you thank a pair of worn out shoes for keeping your feet warm and protected. Maybe you thank a top with its tag still attached for helping you identify what isn't your style. This practice will help you part with your material belongings more easily and treat the ones you do have with respect.
   
4. Tidying is a therapeutic journey.
   
   This is the most important one to me and why I have such a deep passion for decluttering and tidying. Decluttering ends up being a way in which you can really serve a deeper meaning for a person through helping them declutter. Through decluttering,  we have to come face to face with things that we have been holding onto. There are always reasons for why we hold onto material items, and through this process, we have to acknowledge what those reasons are. Sometimes they can be deep, painful and emotional, which in turn allows decluttering to act as a form of therapy to let go of the emotional weight or move on from a situation. Decluttering does not just need to mean the tidying out of clothes but I also use it to refer to the cleaning out of emotions.
   
   A while back I wrote about how decluttering is directly linked to your emotional state and mental wellness which can be influenced by things you hold onto that might not be serving you anymore. Read the post here, which discusses this more in-depth for letting go of this weight as a year comes to an end, but it can be applied to any day of the year!
   
   

Decluttering is so much more than the physical stuff you get rid of and I love the way in which the show is able to highlight that. It provides evidence for the way I discuss decluttering on D3, as you can truly see how individuals work through their emotions and seem to have a physical and emotional weight lifted off their shoulders by the end of their tidying journey.

Have you decluttered or watched this series on Netflix? Do you feel an emotional aspect to the process? Share your insights and journey with me!