New year, new goals! One of mine is to live a life with less: less “stuff,” less stress, and less wondering what I want to be when I grow up. It may not seem like a natural fit, but tidying has actually been a great start to fulfilling this goal.

Weird, right?

Related: How to Make (and Reach) Bigger Career Goals Through Habits

I finally finished reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing* by Marie Kondo. The author created the KonMari method of tidying, which proves to be long-lasting and effective in not only tidying but also in organizing your career goals. Let me tell you the key points of her method, and then I’ll share how it has helped me clarify my life.

As a bonus, be sure to grab my free worksheet! If you, like me, have a million money-making ideas, this worksheet will help you tidy them up and prioritize them.

Summary

Kondo made her living as a professional organizer. She must have been amazing because you could not make a living in that industry unless you were life-changing. In the book, she says that she has never had a repeat customer, so she sounds pretty effective to me!

Why do you want to tidy?

Go through the mental exercise of finding out why you want to tidy. Act like the annoying child that constantly asks, “Why?” several times in a row.

My thought process went like this:

• Why do I want to tidy? Because I have a lot of stuff.
• Why do I have a lot of stuff? Because I hate getting rid of things.
• Why do I hate getting rid of things? Because I am unsure if I will need or want them in the future.
• Why am I unsure? Because I do not know what I want to be when I grow up. (Half joking)
• Why do I not know? Because I have a million ideas but cannot bring myself to actually focus and commit to one. So I hold on to everything.

My unease about my career has led to a clutter-filled home. If I can make decisions about the physical things around me based on joy, I can make better decisions about my career.

Does it bring joy?

The first thing you should know is that this method is not for the faint of heart. You need to be ready to minimize your home and your stuff. The premise is that you only keep the items that bring you joy.

When I told my husband this, he said, “Well what about the stuff you need but don’t love? Like medicine?” I had no answer at the time, but after going through the process, my answer is this: for the items that are a necessity, you have to consider if they are instrumental in bringing joy to your life. Medicine makes me healthy, therefore helping me be joyous.

Tidy by category, not room

Contrary to every other time I go through my things, the KonMari method has me go through my house by category and not room. If clothes are in three places, then go through the clothes in all three places before moving onto another category.

There is a prescribed order for going through the categories. You should go from least emotional to most. Muddy’s Bake Shop has a great summary you can download with the recommended order.

Consciously create a home for every item

As you put your things back in place, say to yourself, “This is your home.” Take a mental picture of what is where before you move on. This will not only help you remember where you put things, but it will also encourage you to return items to their homes rather than let them pile up somewhere else (like on my dining room table).

Reduce clothing space

I have a tendency to keep clothes that are just meh for me. I spent the money so I should wear it, right? No. I should do a better job of shopping in the first place, but I also shouldn’t hang on to clothes I do not love wearing. The sunk-cost fallacy should not keep me from feeling joy.

The next point related to clothing is that you should store them in a tidy, compact way. Fold almost every item tightly to reduce wasted space and easily see which items you have available to wear. It does take more time when doing laundry, but the ability to see my clothes each morning makes my heart happy. I do still have button-down shirts, dresses, and skirts hanging in my closet, but I have made it much easier for myself to leaf through my options. Here is an illustrated guide to the folding technique Kondo recommends.

Donate and trash all of the items you discard quickly to avoid bringing anything back in. No tidier’s remorse, folks.

The Benefits of the KonMari Method

I create less of a mess on a daily basis. Instead of piling my things on the dining room table automatically, I take a few more seconds to put my things in their proper places.

It is also embarrassing to admit that during the tidying of my garage, I found a bag that I had missed when unpacking…18 months ago.

Ready to tidy your life? Put the two-day project on your calendar, gather supplies (trash bags, boxes, etc.), and get rid of all distractions.

Tidy Your Ideas

Okay, now it is your turn! Take a weekend to really tidy your home. Believe me, it feels great. And the best part is that daily tidying and decision-making is easier afterward. If you, like me, have a million business ideas, tidy them up with our free Excel worksheet. Just sign up and download yours. Good luck!

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*This post contains an affiliate link for the book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying. As a bookworm, I only recommend the books I love. I hope you like it, too!