Now's a Good Time to Envision Your Ideal Lifestyle

It might seem counterintuitive, but I believe the middle of a pandemic is a great time to create your vision for your ideal lifestyle. The foundation of the KonMari Method™ of tidying is based on realizing your ideal lifestyle, and before you can do that, you need to know what you really want.

There’s no better time than now, when we have greater amounts of time separated from our daily routines,

living under one roof with every activity in our lives, to figure out what is really important. I’ve gotten a lot of clarity around what baking tools I really need and what clothes really don’t cut the comfort test to spark joy.

Taking the time to write down the elements of your ideal lifestyle is essential to the entire KonMari Method and it’s what I believe makes it life changing. The key elements of your ideal lifestyle aren’t just what your drawers and living room look like. That’s an important part, but even more vital is the way you want your life to feel. I know that in the past two months, I’ve identified a lot of feelings that are comforting to me that I want to keep in my life, as well as many stress-inducers that I can live without. Big and small.
 
Do you long for a simple pace with fewer demands on your introverted personality? Maybe you are into the high-energy, eclectic characteristics of a sensory-intensive urban lifestyle, or somewhere in between. There’s no right or wrong vision for your future – it just needs to authentically reflect how you want to feel in your home and how you want others to feel as members of your household and guests in your home.
 
Imagine once your belongings are all whittled down to the things that truly bring you joy and everything is organized, what do you want to do more of at home? Visualizing these ideas and putting them in writing is the road map for your tidying journey and the rest of your organized life! Take cues from life during the pandemic, both positive and negative. What do you want and not want going forward?

Create a mood board, a collection of images that reflect the feelings of the lifestyle you want to make for yourself. Whether you’re cutting out pictures and pasting them on an actual board or assembling an electronic version of a mood board, this exercise is important. Resist the urge to just mentally make some notes; actually collect images that represent what you want.
 
Your mood board should reflect your authentic self. Think about:

• My favorite outfit(s)
• My favorite vacation destination
• My most cherished belongings
• My favorite people
• My entertaining style
• My favorite foods and restaurant
• My favorite hotel

 
Picturing these things will help define the “vibe” you’re going for. Then keep your collection in a place where you will see it frequently. That will help to guide you on your Kon Mari journey to find a truly life-changing experience through tidying!
 
Until next time,
 
Mrg