Dog Do Right
Related Articles
What’s the secret to dressing better, falling in love and feeling happier overall? It can be as easy as cleaning your house.
That’s according to professional organizer Marie Kondo, who developed a decluttering technique now known as KonMari. His first book, “The magic of storage that changes your life: the Japanese art of decluttering and organization”, Was originally published in Japan in 2011 and North America in 2014. It became a New York Times bestseller and over 1.5 million copies have been purchased in the United States.
She has since published several other books, totaling 5 million copies sold worldwide.
In his books, 32-year-old Kondo suggests that decluttering’s biggest challenge isn’t deciding what to throw away as much as what to keep. Organizing the KonMari way means sorting housewares into categories, such as “books” and “T-shirts,” holding each item, and deciding whether it makes the owner happy, a feeling Kondo calls “gushing joy.” . If the owner feels happy to hold it, or at least decides the item is useful, it’s worth keeping it. Everything else can be given or thrown away.
On June 27, Kondo published “The life-changing manga of storage: a magical story. “She has the same advice as her first book, but it’s more of a graphic novel; “Manga” is a Japanese style of comics.
‘Manga’ is a style of Japanese art.
Courtesy of Penguin Random House
It features Chiaki, a woman who lives in a crowded apartment in Tokyo, feeling stuck in a rut in her career and love life. That is, until she meets a fairy-tale version of Marie Kondo, who helps her organize her apartment, and subsequently, her personal life.
MarketWatch asked Kondo about love, loungewear, and what has changed since “Life-Changing Magic” was originally published. We spoke by email, with the help of a translator. This is a slightly modified version of the exchange.
Market surveillance: Your original book was incredibly popular. Why did you decide to publish the book in manga version?
Marie Kondo: This project started when Yuko Uramoto, a manga artist, mentioned on Twitter that she had read my book and wanted to create a manga version. In Japan, it is not uncommon to publish a manga version of a bestselling book. Through manga, children often learn subjects such as history and math, and adults use manga to learn more about subjects such as marketing and business management.
This book is useful for people who haven’t read “The Magic of Tidying Up That Changes Your Life” as well as for people who have tried the KonMari Method but have not yet finished tidying up.
““A reluctance to let go of an item from a former lover may indicate that one is still emotionally attached to an aspect of the past.”“
Market surveillance: What is it that a lot of people still don’t understand about tidying up?
Kondo: Some people who have not yet finished tidying up their own things and spaces are frustrated with the tidying habits of others. They need to understand that the source of their frustration is not with others, but with themselves.
There have been significant changes in the way consumers view storage. For example, more and more people are now using the criterion of whether a membership “arouses joy” to decide what effects to retain. Also, I have the impression that people have started to remove their things from where they were stored and put them away at the same time.
Before NASA can send humans to Mars, it must fix these issues
Thanks to the storage, people were able to reflect and focus on their personal development; their values became clear and their lives changed as a result. By encouraging individuals to view joy, tidying up – which was once considered a boring chore – has turned into a fun and dynamic process that changes people’s lives.
Market surveillance: The manga version of the book contains a love story. How are storage and love related?
Kondo: I had a real client whose relationship with her partner improved dramatically after cleaning, and another client who was able to separate from her partner after deciding he was not right for her. I believe sharing these positive life changing stories will help motivate many people to clean up.
A reluctance to let go of an item of a former lover, for example, may indicate that one is still emotionally attached to an aspect of the past. With tidying up, individuals can confront and sort out their feelings while making active decisions about what to throw away. Over time, their attachment to a former lover may start to fade. Then a change will occur and you can become more proactive in pursuing new relationships.
““By wearing something that inspires joy even when there is no one around, your self-esteem will improve and you will become confident.”“
Market surveillance: The main character in the manga version, Chiaki, often says her situation is pretty good “for now”, and KonMari says we shouldn’t be living for “the moment.” What is wrong with “living for now” and what should we do instead?
Kondo: The term “for now” is useful but should only describe the temporary. Most of the time, our temporary self is different from the real self we want to be. When you ask yourself what you really want or how you really want to live, is “for now” really okay?
To live your life without compromise, there are two things you need to do: The first is to confront your desires with your intuition. The second is to have the lightness to move quickly when you clearly know what you want to do.
I truly believe that storage is the safest and most powerful tool to accomplish both.
Market surveillance: The book also mentions that time spent at home should be special and that we should not refer to clothes as “loungewear” that really wouldn’t be worn otherwise. What should we wear at home? Why is it important to spend special time at home?
Kondo: Just a point of correction: the book actually says that “we shouldn’t designate clothes that don’t bring joy to loungewear.” (If this arouses joy, it is quite normal to designate clothes as loungewear).
How you treat yourself when spending time at home has a lot to do with your self-image. By wearing something that brings joy even when there is no one around, your self-esteem will improve and you will become confident in your daily actions and words – you will feel relaxed.
You should wear something with a design that you like, that is comfortable, ideally made from natural materials, and that enhances your self-image just by wearing it.
Market surveillance: Chiaki’s life changes in many ways after she settles down. How can our lives change after we have cleaned up? Can storage make us happier?
Kondo: The effect of storage on our lives is enormous.
First, living in a tidy house provides a feeling of relaxation. Your self-esteem will improve, and you’ll save time that you previously spent looking for things.
Additionally, by repeatedly confirming whether each item brings joy to you – in other words, if an item makes you happy in the present – the values that are really important to you will become clear. Eventually, you will be able to make decisions about what makes you happy with certainty in various scenarios in your life, such as work and relationships. As a result, your whole life will turn into a life that brings joy.
