📖 72.0% done with The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo

One thought on “📖 72.0% done with The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo”

1. Title:

   The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing


   Author:

   Marie Kondo


   Genre:

   House & Home


   Publisher:

   Ten Speed Press


   Release Date:

   October 14, 2014


   Format:

   Kindle e-book


   Pages:

   226


   Presents a guide to cleaning and organizing a living space, discussing best methods for decluttering and the impact that an organized home can have on mood and physical and mental health.

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   I originally picked this up on April 18th when my brother Steve had asked me if I could track down a copy for him. Last week another friend mentioned it at brunch with her recommendation, so I thought I’d give it a shot.
   Kondo does an excellent job of highlighting the most important parts of the book as she goes along, so it’s rather easy to skim back through the book for important parts.
   The basic gist is to get rid of everything in one’s home that doesn’t “spark joy” when physically holding it. It’s not too dissimilar to the philosophy set forward by designer/artist William Morris who once said, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”
   Most of the book is devoted to some of the basic philosophy as well as recommendations about how to go about paring things down and storing them. In particular I found some of her ideas about folding things interesting and I was a bit surprised at how one can differently fold things to not only save space in drawers, but to also make them easier to see and choose.
   I went so far as to watch some videos about how she folds:
   [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=videoseries?list=PLWO_78eueoOWV6TjQjWY95_kVkJ15rs_d&hl=en_US&w=840&h=473%5D
   This series of short videos and a few longer talks do a relatively good job of encapsulating the contents of the book.
   An interesting thing I find in what I’m supposing is a translation from Japanese is that though the translation is strong, the flavor of the writer’s Japanese culture still burns through the philosophy and story of the work. To me these were some of the most interesting parts of her story.
   Reading Progress

   05/06/17 started reading

   05/06/17 72.0% done; “A quick and breezy read with some simple prescriptive actions.”

   05/08/17 100.0% done
   Finished book on 05/08/17

   Highlights, Quotes, & Marginalia
   Why can’t I keep my house in order?

   If you tidy up in one shot, rather than little by little, you can dramatically change your mind-set.

   Highlight (yellow) – Why can’t I keep my house in order? > Location 247
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   Tidying is just a tool, not the final destination. The true goal should be to establish the lifestyle you want most once your house has been put in order.

   Highlight (yellow) – Why can’t I keep my house in order? > Location 300
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   Putting things away creates the illusion that the clutter problem has been solved. […] This is why tidying must start with discarding.

   Highlight (yellow) – Why can’t I keep my house in order? > Location 320
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   …the space I live in is graced only with those things that speak to my heart.

   Highlight (yellow) – Why can’t I keep my house in order? > Location 402
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017
   Finish discarding first

   Start by discarding, all at once, intensely and completely

   Highlight (yellow) – Finish discarding first > Location 407
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   The urge to point out someone else’s failure to tidy is usually a sign that you are neglecting to take care of your own space.

   Highlight (yellow) – Finish discarding first > Location 620
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   In fact, that particular article of clothing has already completed its role in your life, and you are free to say, “Thank you for giving me joy when I bought you,” or “Thank you for teaching me what doesn’t suit me,” and let it go.

   Highlight (yellow) – Finish discarding first > Location 698
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   To truly cherish the things that are important to you, you must first discard those that have outlived their purpose.

   Highlight (yellow) – Finish discarding first > Location 706
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017
   Tidying by category works like magic

   You may have wanted to read it when you bought it, but if you haven’t read it by now, the book’s purpose was to teach you that you didn’t need it.

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location 1013
   This is essentially sacrilege to me, but then again most all books give me a spark of joy.
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017
   Storing your things to make your life shine

   …storage “solutions” are really just prisons within which to bury possessions that spark no joy.

   Highlight (yellow) – Storing your things to make your life shine > Location 1426
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   Never pile things: vertical storage is the key

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location 1551
   Added on Saturday, May 6, 2017

   Never hang on to them in the belief that you might use them someday.

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location 1602
   Added on Monday, May 8, 2017

   This is why I urge you to refrain from stocking up on things.

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location ####
   TOKUMNOTE
   Added on Monday, May 8, 2017

   This is why I urge you to refrain from stocking up on things.

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location 1759
   She’s talking about socks/stockings here. Pun intended? 🙂
   Added on Monday, May 8, 2017

   When you treat your belongings well, they will always respond in kind. For this reason, I take time to ask myself occasionally whether the storage space I’ve set aside for them will make them happy. Storage, after all, is the sacred act of choosing a home for my belongings.

   Highlight (yellow) – Tidying by category works like magic > Location 1831
   Added on Monday, May 8, 2017
   The magic of tidying dramatically transforms your life

   I truly believe that our possessions are even happier and more vibrant when we let them go than when we first get them.

   Highlight (yellow) – The magic of tidying dramatically transforms your life > Location 2044
   Added on Monday, May 8, 2017
   Guide to highlight colors
   Yellow–general highlights and highlights which don’t fit under another category below
   Orange–Vocabulary word; interesting and/or rare word
   Green–Reference to read
   Blue–Interesting Quote
   Gray–Typography Problem
   Red–Example to work through
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• 💬 Chris Aldrich