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The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
Audiobook4 hours

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

Written by Marie Kondo

Narrated by Emily Woo Zeller

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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About this audiobook

Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles?

Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you'll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo's clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list).

With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house "spark joy" (and which don't), this international bestseller featuring Tokyo's newest lifestyle phenomenon will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home-and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire.

Editor's Note

Cleaning classic…

It’s a classic for a reason: Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo’s book on her KonMari Method — which involves clearing and organizing your items by category — sheds light on so much more than cleaning house. Learn the nitty-gritty after watching Kondo work her magic on Netflix’s “Tidying Up With Marie Kondo.”

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 6, 2015
ISBN9781494578947
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
Author

Marie Kondo

Marie Kondo is a tidying expert, bestselling author, star of Netflix’s hit show, Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, and founder of KonMari Media, Inc. Enchanted with organizing since her childhood, Marie began her tidying consultant business as a nineteen-year-old university student in Tokyo. Today, Marie is a renowned tidying expert helping people around the world to transform their cluttered homes into spaces of serenity and inspiration. In her #1 New York Times bestselling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying, Marie took tidying to a whole new level, teaching that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Marie has been featured in Time magazine, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Times, Vogue, The Ellen Show as well as on more than fifty major Japanese television and radio programs. She has also been named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World.

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Reviews for The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Rating: 3.929622177599465 out of 5 stars
4/5

2,991 ratings220 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    At its core this book is not really about tidying. It's about how and why you live your life, and uncovering what's important to you. The author gets into this in the second half of the book, and I found this much more thought provoking. Some of her later ideas can sound pretty out there, but if you listen without judgement you can just take what feels right for you beyond her basic 'Konmari' method. I found all the references to 'throwing out' quite jarring, instead of recycling or donating... I was imagining various landfills filling up with these (possibly) perfectly good '1 million items'. But then I realised I'm deluding myself about how much we waste making all the 'things' in this world and how broken and one-way our consumer system is - taking things to a charity shop doesn't solve much. If all the people reading this book learn what they really need and get off the consumer cycle, then Kondo is ultimately doing us a favour. It's also important to remember the culture it comes from - for instance many Japanese live an intensely urban lifestyle and don't have huge collections of DIY tools and materials.

    2 people found this helpful

  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Maybe I have a slight tendency to be a hoarder but this book gave me massive anxiety when she talked about throwing everything away , even books and important documents! I am 100% all about giving what you don't need anymore to charity, it made me sad that she said "throw away" to so many items that could easily be donated. Please donate your used items instead of throwing them away! Also rule of thumb: the second you throw that important document away you'll need it, there is nothing wrong with a home filing system for important documents!

    2 people found this helpful

  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Crazy OCD suggestions for "tidying up" such as speaking gratitude to your socks and placing them in a certain way in your drawer, not hanging tees in the closet but folding a very particular way and keeping them in drawers.... Most of the suggestions in this book are things I already do to some extent, but there's a certain animistic grounding in Kondo's suggestions that annoyed me. I happen to LOVE socks and am a bit of a sock freak, and I'm also a tad on the OCD side in terms of hanging all my tees by color in my closet, but Kondo pushes for a tidying up style that implies one must adhere to almost magical thinking to get tidy. The one take-away I gained from this book was to rid myself of paper records such as bank statements that are easily obtained and are not necessary to clutter my life. Her suggestions for books were outlandish, and reflect a very Japanese style of very small-space living. It's not that I disrespect that cultural reality, but as a creative person who sews, collects fabrics and supplies and patterns, who loves paper crafts and associated art supplies, there is no way I will ever diminish my books and creative supplies to adhere to Kondo's imperatives! I listened to the entire book and found myself bristling frequently like, "She doesn't have a clue!" The word "magic" in the title is the one clue you can rely on since Kondo is an animistic believer in the secret life of objects. I don't believe my socks have feelings as much as I happen to like them, for example. I can't understand why this volume is such a big success since it asks reasonable people to defy common sense and doesn't account for inventory of one's available spaces for storage such as when one has more closet than drawer space or sufficient book shelves and workspaces for creative endeavors. Clutter, I agree, is not a fun thing to live with, and it can squelch creativity, and gratitude is a wonderful virtue, but Kondo did not convince me that I should put my socks away -- just one example that stuck with me -- in a particularly folded way with a special "thank-you" addressed to them.

    2 people found this helpful

  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    This book was a bit repetitive and very pushy about selling the lifestyle of the konmari method. I wasn't sure if I was listening to the manifesto of a cult because of that. I would like to try the method anyway, but the flowery and repetitive language was not necessary and very off-putting.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Listening to this audiobook while I was packing my apartment to prepare for a move was such a great decision. It was very difficult to hold on to things while listening to someone repeatedly tell me to let go. I got rid of so much more than I would have if I had just thought about what I use often rather than what is actually important to me, or bring me joy.

    The book is so simple and makes so much sense. I had previously heard about her method of standing everything up and before listening to the book I remember thinking, "that sounds good, but I don't need that in my life." I even saw one of my friends adopt this policy and I still thought, "wow! that looks great, but I love the way I have been doing things." Then I listened to the book and now I am like, "why would I have ever believed I thought that was a better option."

    I would suggest reading this book if you have even the smallest feeling of your life being cluttered and wanting to add some organization. It is a quick read and you can always choose what you want to adopt and what you do not. You can adopt everything or nothing-- and it really is only about a four hour investment to help you decide what you will do.

    The narrator is also good, always a benefit.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The basic ideas are good - tidying may help you find out what you really like to do and what is important to you and making many many small decisions what to keep may help you get more assurance next time around, and when making other decisions. In addition, you will save time looking for things, tidying and cleaning and - you will acquire less stuff in the future, becasue you will probably make sure that the things do not accumulate in your home again. It all makes perfect sense. However, like most self-help books, this one keeps repeating itself, and that is difficult to digest. I suppose it would have been very short otherwise, and/or some people may even need it, who knows?

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Like !
    Good ideas and new motivations was this book for me

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I've read books and articles on organization and decluttering. Just like crash diets, those books do not lead to long lasting weight loss. Kondo offers a philosophy about owning items. She has changed my perspective on items and helped me live a less stressful life through organization. This book really changed my life and mindset. I had a problem keeping items because I had always thought I would need it in the future. Keep in mind that the book often repeats main concept and can feel repetitive.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Simple ideas: the whole book explains the philosophy so worthwhile

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This method works amazingly well. I would absolutely recommend it to other clutterbugs :D.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A lovely read, a (sometimes) challenging audio book. The narrator's voice and delivery sometimes caused me to zone out and cease listening. Once I acknowledged more attention need be paid to what was being said, I was able to reengage.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    After listening to this book I’m sold on tidying up the KonMari method. Gets a bit kooky near the end but still, this is a fascinating book.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Anyone else wonder if Marie Kondo is ok? She spent so much of her life decluttering and cleaning that I found myself worried about her.

    Either way, there’s a lot to learn from this book. I would say just check in with what’s doable for you. Her methods are helpful, even if you have to tweak them a bit to fit into your life.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It has many great advices in it. These are very encouraging to move towards.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    There are some good ideas in this book, and it was easy enough for me to read. (Which is not all that common for me with self-help books.) However, a lot of the ideas in the book aren't ones that I'm planning to ever implement into my own life. I will say, though, that it provided me with a helpful list of things I need to tidy up, and a recommended order in which to do that.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Marie Kondo's book is a must read. I learned so much more than tidying up my belongings. Kondo's methods gave me a new perspective!
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Too repetitive and condescending. No practical, advice for households with children or busy adults. Disappointed.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    She talks a lot of common sense - there are some great quoteables 'Storage experts are hoarders' etc.BUT in between it all gets a bit flighty - she anthropomorphises a customer's sock drawer, she advocates forming memories over sentimental items rather than leave a personal history to those who follow. It's all about 'me', those you share a space with are excluded. And I cannot believe her views on books. I have just read a novel that stood on my shelves for 21 years - and it was one of my reads of the year. She advocates that if you keep an unread book, it's time to be read has passed. That's so often wrong - its time may be yet to come!Read with a pinch of salt - just take the good bits, there's no need to be tidy forever - I love my intermittent bouts of imposing order on my possessions.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I’ve listened this book for 5 times and starting my 6th time right now. In my opinion, this is the best book in tidying out there. I highly recommend it to everyone who want to improve their homes. :)
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I am really glad I listened to this book. I had heard some of its philosophies summarized into very small chunks but these had no context.

    While I was happy to hear phrases like “keep what sparks joy” in the lessons Marie gives, I found the challenges to understand the root of hoarding and collecting much more.

    I strongly recommend that anyone who struggles with why they or family member keep acquiring goods when they should have enough.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Must read for any human. No one really teaches you the real reasons to tidy up and be organized though everyone knows it’s good to and expects you to- this book is a true manual for tidying. This is truly from the expert, a empathetic, passionate, and very wise one. Im great full to have found this book. Thank you Marie Kondo
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    What a change in perspective. Love the breakdown of energy and how it affects the flow of your home and your personal happiness. So excited to change my life ❤️
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I only knew Marie Kondo from memes and “Does this spark joy?” But I’m so glad I went beyond the surface. I’ve heard some people complain about repetition of advice in the book but I felt it helped me actually retain the information. The book also isn’t just about tidying in a purely physical sense. There’s a philosophy about better overall living underpinning the practical advice. Some Americans, like me at first, might balk at some of the more spiritual Shinto-inspired advice of thanking objects or thinking about them almost as living things. And while I am not at all a spiritual person, I think that perspective can help you better conceptualize what you need to part with and eliminate your guilt. It made me realize we already bring an almost spiritual attachment mindset with our items even if we would describe ourselves normally as non-believers. We don’t want to abandon our items but instead relegate them to a dusty corner in our closet. So why not keep an open mind to her advice flip that mindset the other way? Feel like you’re “freeing” the item from storage purgatory by discarding or donating. I’m glad I read this book. I’m tidying myself now and feeling great!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It was so insightful and candid. It allowed me to think about how I can individually yet collectively creat a tidy place to call home
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Really great book! I didn't like the narrators voice at first but it quickly faded. Can't wait to tidy tomorrow.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I love this book but the narrators voice is absolutely awful extremely annoying in this sarcastic weird lifeless way
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Life changing book, in absolutely so many beautiful ways. Much more than a “clean your house” book. MUST read no matter who you are!!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A lovely book with a simple, actionable concept. If it weren't for a few disappointing comments about women needing to dress prettily and be feminine, or a section extolling the trimming/slimming effects of cleaning (I believe that organizing can change how you physically relate to a space, but the narrative has undertones of fat shaming), would have given it 5 stars.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    What an amazing read I had! I’ll definitely read it over again. Highly recommended!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book caused in me a 3-dimensional ayahuasca purge of my flat. Highly recommended for anyone who finds themselves concerned or affected by any kind of ambience to their flat.... As well as freeing spade and calming the mind with practical organizational skills. From micro all the damn way to macro.