The key to change is to devote all of your efforts to creating the new instead of trying to destroy the old. When you organize your home, you automatically organize your affairs and past.
If you’re looking for strong decluttering quotes to uplift and encourage you, Marie Kondo’s are the best. She is one of the most well-known decluttering experts of all time, and her words have inspired millions of people to organize their homes and lives.
Her message of joy and life simplification has also struck a chord with many people. Stay tuned to enjoy the best Marie Kondo quotes.
Who Is Marie Kondo?
Marie Kondo is a decluttering and organization expert. She has written several best-selling organizational books, facilitates conferences using her KonMari Method, and currently stars in the Netflix original series Tidying Up With Marie Kondo.
Her Roots
She was born Kondo Mariko in Tokyo, and as a young girl, she would go through homemaking publications for fresh organizing ideas while honing her skills at a neighboring Shinto shrine where she worked.
Even in college, she wrote a thesis on organizing, titled “How to Declutter Your Apartment—From a Sociological Perspective.” She frequently offered cleaning assistance to acquaintances while she was a sociology student at Tokyo Woman’s Christian University, and at the age of 19, she started her own cleaning consulting company. She was able to start cleaning full-time after a brief job at a staffing company following graduation. She quickly had a long waiting list, people were begging for her services.
Kondo’s focus is on more than just new ways to sort, store, and make decluttering more efficient, in contrast to other organizational experts like the declutterers of America’s National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals. She is also well known for her almost spiritual cleaning method, which always starts with a welcome to the area.
Her Most Popular Book
In 2014, Marie Kondo’s best-selling guide to minimalism, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up—a neat fusion of candid autobiography, life philosophy, decluttering techniques, and clothing-folding advice—arrived in America. Since then, it seems to have given a million and a half (and counting) American book buyers with too many things a desire to abandon. The book has sold more than four million copies globally (and counting).
The origins of Marie Kondo’s methods are described in her first book. There are many stories regarding the numerous people she assisted in Japan. The English translation of Marie’s material is not just educational. It offers viewers a beautiful window into facets of the Japanese family and home culture.
Everything that Marie described in her first book in a lovely, winding manner is presented in a clear framework with categories, subcategories, and drawings of how to fold, among other things. There is still plenty of space for Marie’s uniquely Japanese anecdotes, but this is a user guide.
An Overview of Marie Kondo’s Method
‘Konmari’ is a mix of Marie Kondo’s first and last names. This approach has a good impact and leads to a simple way of living (minimalism), especially in terms of neatness and order.
Instead of telling us to throw away things we don’t need, as is the case with other methods, this method advises us to give those things away.
When you read her books, you feel like you are receiving much-needed advice from a close friend at your preferred coffee shop.
She is creating an empire based on the magic of an organization. Marie Kondo is a tidying expert, the author of a best-selling book, the star of the popular Netflix series “Tidying Up With Marie Kondo,” and the founder of KonMari Media, Inc., according to her website.
She also conducts live workshops where she demonstrates how to become a tidying consultant to her best followers.
There is a list of uncompromising standards in the KonMari Method. You, the reader, are expected to adhere to Marie Kondo’s philosophy since she preaches that there is only one path to success with it. You run the danger of missing out on the life-altering magic of tidying up if you choose to skip steps or choose not to adhere to some of her plan’s instructions. Once more, read the book to learn all the juicy specifics regarding this procedure.
20 Of Her Most Inspiring Quotes
Marie Kondo’s phrases are a great place to start if you seek motivational sayings to help you on your path to minimalism. Remember to strike a balance between cleaning up and concentrating on what matters most to you. You can be confident that you are acting in a way that benefits you and is consistent with your way of life.
1. “The best way to choose what to keep and what to throw away is to take each item in one’s hand and ask: ‘Does this spark joy?’ If it does, keep it. If not, dispose of it. That is not only the simplest but also the most accurate yardstick by which to judge.” ― Marie Kondo
2. “Caring for your possessions is the best way to motivate them to support you, their owner. When you treat your belongings well, they will always respond in kind. 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.” ― Marie Kondo
3. “If we can have confidence in our decisions and launch enthusiastically into action without any doubts holding us back, we will be able to achieve much more.” ― Marie Kondo
4. “Keep only those things that speak to your heart. Then take the plunge and discard all the rest. By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.” ― Marie Kondo
5. “Clutter is caused by a failure to return things to where they belong. Therefore, storage should reduce the effort needed to put things away, not the effort needed to get them out.” ― Marie Kondo
6. “But when we delve into the reasons why we can’t let something go, there are only two: an attachment to the past or a fear for the future.” ― Marie Kondo
7. “Life becomes far easier once you know that things will still work out even if you are lacking something.” ― Marie Kondo
8. “Never discard anything without saying thank you and goodbye.” ― Marie Kondo
9. “When your room is clean and uncluttered, you have no choice but to examine your inner state.” ― Marie Kondo
10. “Clutter obscures what’s most important. Discarding that which doesn’t support your ideal lifestyle creates space for treasured possessions to truly shine — and leaves room for future joy-sparking additions.” ― Marie Kondo
11. “I believe that tidying is a celebration, a special send-off for those things that will be departing from the house, and therefore I dress accordingly.” ― Marie Kondo
12. “Tidying is a special event. Don’t do it every day.” ― Marie Kondo
13. “This process, in turn, helps us identify our values and reduces doubt and confusion in making life decisions. If we can have confidence in our decisions and launch enthusiastically into action without any doubts holding us back, we will be able to achieve much more. In other words, the sooner we confront our possessions, the better. If you are going to put your house in order, do it now.” ― Marie Kondo
14. “What was it that motivated you to tidy in the first place? What do you hope to gain through tidying? Before you start getting rid of things, take the time to think this through carefully. This means visualizing the ideal lifestyle you dream of.” ― Marie Kondo
15. “Many people have equated my tidying method with minimalism, but it’s quite different. Minimalism advocates living with less; the KonMari Method encourages living among items you truly cherish.” ― Marie Kondo
16. “To truly cherish the things that are important to you, you must first discard those that have outlived their purpose. To throw away what you no longer need is neither wasteful nor shameful.” ― Marie Kondo
17. “Every piece of clothing has its own ‘sweet spot’ where it feels just right.” ― Marie Kondo
18. “All you need to do is take the time to sit down and examine each item you own, decide whether you want to keep or discard it, and then choose where to put what you keep.” ― Marie Kondo
19. “Truly precious memories will never vanish, even if you discard the objects associated with them. No matter how wonderful things used to be, we cannot live in the past. The joy and excitement we feel here and now are more important.” ― Marie Kondo
20. “The question of what you want to own is the question of how you want to live your life.” ― Marie Kondo
FAQs
What Does Marie Kondo Mean By “Spark Joy”?
It’s the sensation you have when something feels right. It comes from the heart, not the mind. Only you are aware of your YESes. Each person’s is unique. Marie Kondo makes emphasis on that phrase because she wants people to keep what they truly cherish when they’re decluttering. It’s not about just throwing everything away.
What If My Family Isn’t Into My Tidy?
Marie Kondo advises only organizing your belongings or those that our partners have approved of. Nobody is forced to tidy up if they aren’t ready. Setting an example for others is the finest method to motivate them.
Does Marie Kondo Encourage Minimalism Through Her Books?
No, that level of minimalism is not the intended outcome (unless, of course, that is what you want). A happy home is the ultimate ideal. Everyone’s sources of happiness are varied. There is no set limit on the number of things that are “allowed.” You have complete freedom to follow your heart.
The Wrap-Up
Marie Kondo has changed thousands of lives with her method and her books. She forever changed the way we see tidying and decluttering, because she added a spiritual point of view to them. These Marie Kondo phrases might be helpful when we become stuck or require some inspiration and motivation while tidying. We hope you can find the inspiration to start picking what sparks joy through these!
