How Tidying Can Help You Create a Life You Don't Have to Escape From
Have you ever enjoyed a “staycation” in your own home? If you’ve never heard of the word “staycation,” Merriam-Webster defines it as “a vacation spent at home or nearby.” However, if your home environment doesn’t support a relaxing break, then this blog is for you! We (Kim Shiu and Steffi Ward) wanted to lay out how tidying and organizing can help you create a life and a home that are peaceful and enjoyable.
Finding places on Steffi’s doorstep (within 3 mile radius)!
Consider a home that is overcrowded and full of stuff (and it doesn’t have to be your own home that you’re thinking about!). Does it feel hemmed in or claustrophobic? Does it make you feel like you can’t invite people over? Sometimes when our homes feel this way, it can be easier to avoid spending time in our homes (or just the areas where we’ve let things pile up). We avoid confronting what needs to be done and we delay creativity to be accomplished. Sometimes we escape our shame through overeating or overshopping or other adverse habits.
However, before you pull out the trash bags or arrange for a donation or junk removal service, we encourage you to set your vision and intentions. This sets the background for your decision making and for the time of life you are in right now. Kim has another blog about the Ideal Lifestyle for further reading but some key questions to ask yourself right now are:
How does a life with intention feel like for you?
What items in your home support your life right now?
Do you want to wake up in a calm way? What aspects of your morning (and evening) routine are enjoyable for you?
What does success look like to you after this tidying process is completed? (Perhaps it’s the ability to have a staycation in your own home or have guests over!)
Flowers on Steffi’s doorstep
As you go through the decluttering process, it can feel overwhelming to be surrounded by a lifetime of possessions. We encourage you to take breaks and return to the vision of your ideal lifestyle. We want to remind you that this process isn’t about what you’re letting go of, it’s actually about what you want to keep.
Keeping the things that we truly cherish helps connect us to our space and allows us to truly feel more at ease. We feel enjoyment just being in our home spending time with loved ones, by ourselves, or with our animals. Creating a calm and organized space invites good feelings that we don’t need or want to escape from. Every day can be a staycation in a sense, when you enjoy your home and all it provides.
We’ll leave you with a quote from Marie Kondo: “Tidying is just a tool, not the final destination. The true goal should be to establish the lifestyle you want most once your house has been put in order."
About Your Blog Authors and KonMari Consultants:
Kim Shiu is a professional organizer and Kansas’s only Certified KonMari™ Consultant. Through her business, Tidy for Good, LLC, she helps busy people in the Kansas City area transition from overwhelmed to organized. Trained directly in the world-renowned methods of Marie Kondo, Kim provides the expert structure needed to create a home that truly "sparks joy." You can work with Kim by getting in touch here.
Stephanie Ward has a deep understanding of the connection between people and their spaces they inhabit. She is passionate about helping others feel aligned with their environments, using the KonMari Philosophy. Drawing on her background in Interior Design, Colour Research, and Weaving, she integrates these innate creative skills into her work, your environment. Stephanie focuses on delivering Tidying Festivals, to inspire lasting change and shifting one’s perspectives on life and surroundings. Stephanie works out of Scottish Borders to Edinburgh. Work with Stephanie by getting in touch here or here.