I walked into my room the other day and was horrified at what I saw. There were items sprawled across my desk like pens, papers, books, and knick-knacks. My floor was hidden by piles and piles of clothes. It looked like a tornado had passed through my room and destroyed it. I automatically felt really stressed and overwhelmed. I clean my room about once a week and somehow it always ends up looking like a mess. It's frustrating. I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong until now.

I recently came across a book that has changed the way I clean my room and has even changed my mood. It's called the "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo. The book was written by a Japanese cleaning guru who has found a sure fire way to clean and organize. Using her method, she claims that a person only has to fully tidy up their room once and then they'll never have to again.

The book has really good tips that I've implemented into my life. Because of the book, I have realized that a big percentage of my stress is derived from all the clutter around my room. Kondo suggests that people go through all of their belongings and get rid of everything that does not make them happy. She breaks it up into three categories to make the process less daunting. These include clothes, books and paper and miscellaneous. To decide what to keep and what to discard, a person should ask themselves this question: Does this spark joy? By the end, the goal is to have to less items in the room. The less items there are, the less clutter there will be. The less clutter there is, the less stress one will have.

Many times people buy more things than they can store. By using Kondo's tactics, people should have only enough items to fit comfortably in a room. Each item should have a specific space it belongs in. If it doesn't, then something needs to go. By getting rid of the clutter and having a clean room, a person will feel less stress and feel like they have a cleaner mind. I tried this and automatically felt a weight lifted. I can go on and on about the helpful tips in the book, but instead, I recommend that anyone who wants to get organized read it.

After reading the book, I began looking into one of the main themes of the book, which is minimalism. I began to do research and found out that there are some people who strive to live a minimalistic lifestyle, owning only the basics. Some people take this to an excessive degree, but I did find some people who integrate some of the ideas of minimalism into their life. I've decided that I want to do this as well. I am striving to not own so many items. I realized that I kept buying makeup, and now I have too much. It would take me forever to use it all up and some of it I bought and haven't touched. It was a waste of money. I should have bought the basics that I use daily and then re bought them when I ran out. I do this same thing with clothes. I have no more room for clothes, yet I keep buying them. Half the clothes I own, I don't even wear. I can go on and on listing the amount of items I have wasted my money on. I hope to get rid of everything cluttering my life and work on not buying new items unless they are necessary. This will help make my life less stressful and allow me to save money.

I think that a lot of people nowadays get so caught up in consumerism because of all the commercials and ads constantly bombarding them that they are tempted to buy new stuff that they don't really need. People think they need it, but they don't.There are many benefits to living a more minimalistic lifestyle, and I recommend people try it. I've definitely felt happier since I've made the transition. I finally feel like my mind is clear and that I can breathe and relax in a comfortable, clutter-free space.