FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHAT CAN I EXPECT DURING MY FIRST ORGANIZING SESSION?
At your first organizing session, we'll spend the first 20-30 minutes doing a walk through of your home and discussing your ideal vision for your home/life. The remainder of the session will be spent getting to work on the first category (it's recommended that you start with clothes). Together we'll gather all of your clothes in one place, which will allow you to see how much you own. Then we'll do the "joy check" of your items - keeping only what sparks joy and gently discarding the rest. After going through all of the clothing we will carefully fold and put away the items you chose to keep in an organized fashion in your closets, drawers, etc. Once we finish with the first category we can move on to the next ones (books, papers, komono/miscellaneous items, and sentimental items).
HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR MY FIRST ORGANIZING SESSION?
Please don't feel the need to clean up for our first session! It helps me to see your home in its natural state in order to understand how you normally live. Before our first session, I recommend reflecting on your ideal life and how you want to experience that in your home. Create a vision board (with paper or on Pinterest), journal, or whatever else seems natural to you to articulate this vision. Be specific and imagine the details about what you're doing, feeling, and seeing in your ideal space and life. We'll discuss this vision at your first session.
HOW LONG IS EACH ORGANIZING SESSION?
Each session is typically five hours long. Organizing is rewarding, but also physically and emotionally taxing. Five hours is enough time to see significant progress, but not too long to lead to exhaustion. After the first 5 hour session we can discuss plans for shorter/longer sessions based on your schedule.
HOW MUCH WILL WE GET DONE IN EACH ORGANIZING SESSION?
This is where I say "it depends" because it's true. It depends on how much you own, how organized your space already is, if there are any outside distractions, how quickly you can make decisions, etc. I will move at your pace and help you set appropriate expectations for your unique situation.
WHAT IF THE PEOPLE I LIVE WITH ARE NOT INTERESTED IN TIDYING UP?
This is the beauty of the KonMari Method - it's your own personal journey independent of anyone else in your life. You will only be making decisions about your own belongings, so whether or not the people you live with are on board does not impact your progress. By focusing on yourself, other people will not feel as threatened and, many times, after watching one person go through this process others in the home also want to participate.
CAN I HIRE YOU TO ORGANIZE SOMEONE ELSE IN MY LIFE (PARTNER, PARENT, CHILD)?
One of the tenets of the KonMari Method is that "we can only transform our lives if we really want to." As much as we wish we could change other people, our loved ones must choose to make the change on their own terms…but if someone you know would like to undertake this process you can purchase sessions for them as a gift by contacting me directly.
WILL YOU MAKE ME THROW THINGS AWAY?
Whether to keep or discard is your own decision. As Marie Kondo says, "if it makes you happy then the right choice is to keep it confidently, regardless of what anyone else says." Over time, by working through the established categories of KonMari, you will develop your sensitivity to joy. By the end of the tidying process, you will be able to quickly discern what brings you joy and what does not - a skill that is helpful in many areas of life.
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE ITEMS I CHOOSE TO DISCARD?
You'll practice gratitude when discarding things. Whether it's a scrap of paper or a box of photos, you'll thank the object for serving its purpose. My goal is to keep as much out of the landfill as possible, promoting reuse (through donation or consignment) and recycling as much as local resources allow. When going through a big purge, local donation pick-up services can help ease the logistical burden. Before you begin the tidying process, think about where you want to donate unwanted items and carve out a space in your home to temporarily store items that are on their way out. I can help you with the logistics for donations, of course.
