Marie Kondo

3 BOOKS ON MINIMALISM

June 21, 2020 by Little Miss Honey

These days, we realised that we can definitely live with less things. We can make do with the things we have on hand. Most of the shops are closed anyway and the need to accumulate seem just too unnecessary & frivolous. Our situation today is a perfect time for us to embrace Minimalism with open arms and gratitude.

Minimalism is a lifestyle that embodies intentional living with only the things that you need and that would support your purpose to focus on the things that matter most & remove the distraction of excessive possession. Incorporating Minimalism in your lifestyle reaps so many benefits beyond just simple decluttering. It can give you peace of mind, allows you to save, create more time & space for your & your family and it even claims to result in weight loss, I am not kidding.

If you are interested to read more about Minimalism before you embark in your minimalism journey, here are 3 books I recommend for you to read:

L’art De Simplicite: How To Live More With Less by Dominique Loreau

If get to choose just one book to read regarding minimalism, this would be it. The author is French living in Japan writes how to embody the minimalism practice in all aspect of your life. She writes how we can live a simple life in our home, our beauty regimen and our mind. She is so specific and detailed in her writing. She provides helpful lists and wonderful DIY beauty recipes too. It is so beautiful written that it is the one of two book I brought with me to Oman (the other is a new book for me to read on the flight here). Please get this gem of a book. If only I can give this book to all my friends, I would.

2. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying by Marie Kondo

Credit by: Amazon

When you think of Minimalism, one of the people that brought this movement into mainstream is no one else but Ms. Marie Kondo. This pretty petite Japanese consultant got so big in the public consciousness after writing this book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying. It got so popular that people started decluttering their homes, letting go of unnecessary, material things, creating more rooms for harmony & space and practicing minimalism. I love tidying so I easily embraced her principles happily. She created such a successful brand for herself despite the fact that she can’t speak English fluently. She made several books after, namely Spark Joy (digs deep on how to organise, tidy up & fold clothes) and Joy at Work. She also have a cool mini-series at Netflix called Tidying Up with Marie Kondo where she helps families tidy-up their living spaces & transform their lives.

3. Goodbye, Things by Fumio Sasaki

Credit by: Amazon

The last one is again from another Japanese author. Japan seems to have perfected the art of minimalism so most of the inspiration is drawn from Japanese lifestyle. I got this as a free audiobook. Unlike Marie Kondo, Fumio Sasaki is not an international organising consultant. He is just an ordinary guy who is constantly stressed and often compares himself to others. He, then, decides to make a change by discarding the things he doesn’t truly need in his life which resulted to a remarkable change in his life. Sasaki found his life enriched by gaining true freedom, new focus and real sense of gratitude I love how he shares his personal minimalist experience and his specific process into minimalism. He shared how transformational minimalism can bring to anyone.

If you need tips on how to simplify you life and practice minimalism, check out my previous blog post: HOW TO SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE & PRACTICE MINIMALISM.

If you some time in your hands, get a hold of these books in an ebook or audiobook at Kindle , Audible or Scribd.

To be happy, live simply…” – L’art de Simplicite’ “

5 REASONS WHY EXPATS SHOULD PRACTICE THE KONMARI METHOD

February 15, 2019 by Little Miss Honey 5,720 Comments

Early this year, Netflix released the series “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo“. I was very excited because I am a fan of Marie Kondo, a well-known Japanese organising consultant & responsible for the explosion of the minimalism & decluttering trend. She created the KonMari concept for decluttering your space. I have read her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up and I am loving what she is preaching. She is all keeping stuff that only spark joy and discarding, giving away & throwing the stuff that doesn’t spark joy. It encourages minimalism to live a simple, uncomplicated lifestyle and bringing forth a peace of mind attributed lack of unnecessary accumulation.

Source: Netflix

The show has 8 episode of Marie Kondo going to 8 different households and helping them in their clutter, home mess or over-accumulation dilemma or trouble with hoarding & letting go. The show was a viral hit and everyone started to declutter their cabinets & homes, me included. I started folding my clothes in my cabinet in the KonMari way.

In the show, they have featured homes of couples with young children, a grieving wife, a couple about to have a baby but I also realised one type of family that need a little editing in the stuff they own: an expat family or a family living temporarily in a foreign land due to work opportunities. As an expat who is living in a place that is not permanently my home, I realised how much we need to learn and embody this KonMari way in our expat living.

Here are 5 reasons why expats should practice the KonMari method by Marie Kondo:

1. Expat living has no permanence

Most expats leave our home countries and live in a foreign land usually due to work opportunities, the need to new adventures or following a fellow expat lover or friend. The expat life are often a comma rather than a period (not unless the expat decided that he/she wants to apply for citizenship in that country & make his/her temporary sojourn a permanent one). So if that contract ends, the need for novelty of experiences has been quenched and the relationship with that lover ended or your expat friend is heading to a new country, don’t you think it is futile to be accumulating so much in a temporary home when there is always the possibility you will be heading back home or moving to a different country?

2. Expats must edit their belongings to fit a 30kg heavy suitcase

I have moved to 2 different foreign countries in my lifetime. First in Saudi Arabia with my mother & siblings when I was in secondary school to live with my father who is working and in Singapore in 2012 when I got a job offer to work as a doctor. In both instances, the companies (my father’s in Saudi Arabia and mine in Singapore) often would sponsor the travel ticket to the country with a 30kg baggage allowance per person. I have asked some of my other expat friends who are now living in other countries for work and they told me that they were sponsored with an airfare with 30 kg baggage limit. I don’t know if some companies offer more or other adventure-seekers splurges on 60kg baggage allowance in their transfer to a new country. But if I would want to move to another country or another tempting job offer in a different country is in the horizon, shouldn’t I make sure that I can edit my belongings & possessions to a 30 kg suitcase without any sweat when I decide to move?

3. Expensive Cargo Fees

Ok, so you can’t help it. You decided to accumulate stuff and shop nonstop in your new home country. It was just too tempting especially if you are living in countries that would allow you to indulge in shopping easily like in Singapore, Dubai, outlet stores in United States, etc. You decided the things that couldn’t fit in your 30 kg luggage when you decided to move back home or to another country, you decided to ship back to your home country. Most often than not, boxes of belongings you have tidy up to keep are sent in your home country and never to your new home country. Some generous companies offer their employees you have finished their contract allowance for cargo shipment. But you still have to be practical. It is way to expensive to ship your Lamborghini car abroad or that large and heavy detailed wooden cabinet. We had a car in Saudi Arabia and my parents sold it when they retired. I know of friends who sold their tv, washing machines, elaborate chandelier, pianos, bikes because buying a new one is cheaper than shipping it.

4. Possible Limited Space

If you are preparing yourself to live away from your home country, never expect the conditions to be identical to your life back home. Expect the unexpected. Some countries have high cost rent. There is a possibility you will be sharing an unit with some housemate. Some companies provide their expat employees accommodations but some units provided may not be spacious enough for your 20 shoe boxes of Jimmy Choos or your collection of StarBucks tumblers from all the countries you travelled to. It reminded me Episode 3 in Tidying Up with Marie Kondo of this family who had to downsize their belongings because they moved to a smaller apartment. Don’t you think it is useless you accumulate too much or bring along excessive items in a possible space that would be too cramp for comfort?

5. Keeping & creating memories by careful curation

One reason why I enjoy expat living is the opportunity to get out of my comfort zone and experience a different kind of life from the one that I grew up into. It builds character, it creates wonderful memories and I gain friendships & insights that I wouldn’t have if I stayed in a place that I am accustomed to. And I am happy I get to bring along my family for the ride. But hoarding & accumulating stuff from the current country you are living at to create and keep these fond memories derails its purpose. Hoarding and amassing too many stuff creates instead anxiety, irritation and fatigue. To preserve and celebrate the memories of experiencing a life in another country, be selective instead in what to keep and bring forth in the next chapters of your life. This is a perfect time to assess what spark joy. Keep momentos that make you smile and warms your heart. Practice the art of feeling the item if it truly sparks joy. It may be hard at first but as time goes by, it will be second-nature. Thank the items that had served its purpose but are not needed anymore and let go.

When you are living in another country, learn to live a minimalistic life. You are there to collect experiences, knowledge, friendships, insights and memories, not to mindlessly hoard material goods to be placed in any space of your temporary home and worry how to bring all of them along in the next journey of your life.

BOOK OF THE MONTH: THE LIFE-CHANGING MAGIC OF TIDYING BY MARIE KONDO

September 20, 2016 by Little Miss Honey 1,940 Comments

I have been hearing a lot about minimalism and about the KonMari method. I decided to investigate what the fuss is all about. I got myself a book by the culprit who started all this minimalistic movement: Marie Kondo. The book is entitled The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying.

Marie Kondo is a Japanese organizing consultant. Wow! I didn’t realize there is such a thing – a person you pay to organized your things at home. She looks like a dainty pretty Japanese doll that I understand why people gets charmed by her advocacy in tidying.

Reading the book, I came to a conclusion that Marie Kondo is crraazzzzy! Crazy beautiful but weirdly, I can relate and understand her. (Hmmmm, that makes me crazy too, right? Haha!) At a very young age, she realized her ~~obsession~~ interest on organising and tidying. She would research on articles about organizing and tidying up on magazines and books. She would get excited in her tidying up her home that when she has no room or space to organize, she later proceeded to tidying up her family’s room, much to her family’s irritation. She soon was asked by her friends and classmate to help them in tidying up their space. She later perfected and hone her skill in tidying up that later become known as the KonMari Method. She created an organizing consulting business at age 19. Clearly, this woman has an obsessive-compulsive trait that she used productively and effectively. Instead of it causing a negative effect in her life, she used it to help people, indulge herself in her love for tidying and produced a multi-million livelihood for herself. (She conducts organizing seminars and is a bestselling author too.)

The book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying, gives a glimpse of what kind of woman Marie Kondo is and where the KonMari Method originated. One of the important process of the KonMari Method is discarding. This aligns with the minimalistic movement that is very much ‘hip’ these days. These means keeping only what is necessary and what Sparks Joy (more about this later).

Here are some of the common patterns in discarding:

1. When they cease to become functional

2. If they are out of date

Marie Kondo has a system in tidying up. She prefers tidying by categories rather than by room. This is something that I disagree. I love tidying up too which is why I can relate to Marie Kondo. I realized cleaning and tidying up are two different things though. I enjoy putting things in place, the sight of things neatly in a space and the joy of dumping contents of bag in an area then fixing them back in my bag. My technique usually is by rooms or if in a room, wall by wall. I would tidy my cabinet first if anything there that doesn’t belong, I would throw it in the ‘untidy‘ space to be dealt with later when I reach that space to tidy up. It works for me. You can ask my family, they know that I am the best person in tidying up a room. Maybe I should start a Little Miss Honey Method (haha!)

Back to the KonMari Method, Marie Kondo prefers to go by categories in these sequence:

1. Clothes

2. Books

3. Papers

4. Miscellaenous Items (Komono)

5. Sentimental Items & Keepsakes

Marie Kondo preaches that we should follow our intuition and all will be well. We should choose those things that Spark Joy when you touch them. Spark Joy is a resounding theme in her book. We should only keep thinks that Spark Joy, things that make us truly happy. We should hang clothes that are happier in a hanger. And we should not worry about throwing away too much stuff. She believes that tidying can create a positive and even magical effect in our lives. She even goes far by saying that tidying can increase good fortune and make you lose weight. I do believe in some extent on what she promises after tidying your things up. Creating a more clutter-free and organized environment gives you a peaceful atmosphere which would result in a more focus and tranquil well-being. A tidy space can give you a more positive vibe which can affect your mood, your decision-making and your outward aura. Marie Kondo also believe in treating your material possession like human beings by talking to them, saying thank you to them for serving you and give them a caring caress or pat on their surface. (Yes, I told you she is cray-cray.) I saw a cartoons with the same sentiments of toys not being taken care of and they didn’t function well. So I can take in that ~~wacko~~ practice of treating my possessions well like they have feelings to serve me better but I will not talk to them out loud in fear that someone will take me to a psychiatrist. Opps!

I did try the Marie Kondo in our condo unit. I stopped until the papers category. But it looks like I couldn’t follow because I have a different system in tidying which has worked for me for years. I realised that I have no trouble in discarding things and I prefer to have only necessary things to keep. I know what is valuable to me and I have a good gauge on what I can label to be of sentimental value. I enjoyed learning how to fold my clothes in a standing vertical position using the Kon Mari technique. I realized I should stop my futile ambition to make a scrap-book also which I have no talent for. I should stop trying to print pictures and I am also considering getting a Kindle instead of buying books.

However, this book is not for those who is sentimental (because everything she owns sparks joy), for those practical intellects who doesn’t want to hear emotional magical BS and for my mom who loves keeping everything even our first nail clipping when we were a baby. (But I gave the book to her. Let us see if Marie Kondo can convert her. Or should I say, Kon-vert her)

Have you read this book? What are your thoughts?