About the book
Japanese organizing consultant Marie Kondo presents the KonMari Method, which replaces gradual, room-by-room cleaning with one thorough tidying event. Possessions are sorted by category rather than location, in a fixed order: clothes, then books, papers, miscellaneous items known as komono, and finally sentimental objects. The test for keeping anything is whether it sparks joy when held, and whatever fails is thanked and discarded. Only after the discarding is finished does each remaining item get a permanent place, often using Kondo's vertical folding and storage. She reports that none of her clients have lapsed. Translated into more than 15 languages with over 10 million copies sold, the book was also adapted into a 2013 Japanese television drama.
Basecamp co-founder David Heinemeier Hansson found it repetitive but said its simple core patterns work and that decluttering at home made him feel much better. Content marketer Andra Zaharia read it while moving apartments and ended up throwing out or giving away a third of her belongings.
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This book has 4 recommendations
Andra Zaharia (Freelance Content Marketer/The Content Habit)
I’ve gone through quite a few experiences brought on or shaped by what I’ve learned from books. [...] a more frivolous example is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying. I read this one when moving apartments a few years ago and it made me throw or give away ⅓ of my stuff. The result: freeing up space, both physical and mental, and acquiring some home organizing skills that have stuck with me ever since. My home is tidier and my mind is clearer because of this book.
David Heinemeier Hansson (Co-Founder/Basecamp)
On a lighter note, I finished The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo. It’s a short book, but it still manages to repeat itself a lot. And yet the core patterns it covers are as effective as they are simple. I’ve been on a decluttering kick at home and feel so much better because of it. It was also the kickstarter for the conversation with JF that lead us to sell WWR.
Recommended by Chelsea Frank (Founder/Life and Limb Gel)
Source: Chelsea Frank, Founder of Life and Limb Gel, on How Books Revealed the Path to Self-Improvement
Benjamin Spall (Co-Author/My Morning Routine)
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo [...] I started reading on vacation. I interviewed Marie for my own book and while the translation is somewhat quirky in places, her book is worth the hype.
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Andra Zaharia, David Heinemeier Hansson, Chelsea Frank, Benjamin Spall
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