Toti Levy (Caracas, 1971) has learned the lesson of Marie Kondo (Tokyo, 1984) very well. “She has a theory in her method in which she explains that, many times, we make excuses for having our environment messy because we really don’t want to attend to something that we have inside, that is not the way it should be. An anguish, something to fix, a problem that we always reflect outwards. When everything is messy outside, it is because there is something inside that is not right,” argues the order and organization consultant about the Kondo hypothesis, which suggests that the outside is a reflection of our interior.
“That’s why his method is that, when my environment is tidy, when I return home and everything is in its place, I have a lot of time to see how I am inside and how I function in my daily life,” he adds.
This Venezuelan living in Madrid can boast of being the first certified in the capital in the konmari method – created by the Japanese guru of order –, which means that she is authorized to execute it. Something that she has been doing in homes and offices in Madrid for a year. Although, if necessary, she moves throughout the Spanish geography; It also offers its services online.
It all started with reading Marie Kondo’s The Magic of Tidying Up. “My younger sister gave it to me because she thought I would like it, since she has always loved the theme of order. I confess that I had abandoned it for about two months, until I decided to read it. Once I grabbed it, I didn’t let go until I finished it. At that time he lived in Venezuela. Due to life circumstances, I moved to Madrid in 2019, before the pandemic. The move was like an incentive to start something new,” she says.
The initially in-person course I was going to take in London became an online course, courtesy of Covid. And so, having learned Marie Kondo’s method – many hours, many phases, many practices – she decided to rename it Reset. “It is its own adaptation, based on it, of what the technique it proposes is like. I wanted to call it that because it’s like restarting your life, like having the opportunity to start over, to be able to take care of other things and not be overwhelmed by the mess you have at home or in the office. I feel that, in the life of each of the people I have helped, there is a change that has to do with a new job appearing that they had always been looking for or the opportunity to go on a trip with a friend to the place where I had always dreamed… There is like a movement of energy, because the energy in us changes. You feel different within that ordered space,” explains Toti Levy. And he establishes ten fundamental keys to achieving order.
“It is key and everyone’s first step. You have to want and be willing to learn how to declutter and organize your space. A lot of times, people want to do it, but they don’t know how and my job is to teach them.”
“This has great value, because whoever wants to make the change, by asking themselves this question, discovers what would bring them peace and tranquility.”
“The konmari method has a specific order on how it is organized and arranged. It is proven that the method works if you follow: clothes, books, papers, komono – which includes bathrooms, cosmetic cabinets, accessories, bed linen and table linen closets, medicines, kitchen, etc. -. And, finally, sentimental objects such as awards, trophies, albums, photos, souvenirs, etc.,” he lists. “If you don’t start with clothes, you’ll get stuck. It is proven that, when you take all the clothes out of the closet and start organizing until they are ready, you feel comfortable to continue with the other categories. “Once you break the barrier of your personal closet, you feel like you can handle everything else in the house,” he adds.
“With the konmari method you learn and discover what you really use, need and like in your daily life. You learn to live more simply and not to accumulate what you don’t want in your space.”
“When you decide to take out what you don’t use, thank it for the time you had it and feel joy knowing that, by donating or giving it away, other people will benefit and give it the use that you no longer give it.”
“It is essential, at the end of each category, to leave everything ready before starting the next one so as not to return to what we already ordered. The person begins to realize that things are flowing in some way and, once he starts, he wants to continue.
“There are specialized stores that sell boxes and accessories that will allow you to have a place for everything and thus be able to organize everything.”
“Believing that we are going to achieve it quickly and in a short time is not real. You’ll feel more comfortable living the process and learning how to maintain it long term. When I enter your house, I take you by the hand, I teach you so that order can be maintained, sustained over time and you do not need to call me again, but rather you discover that you can do it without me.
“There are many techniques used to save space and store clothes differently.”
“Notice how you feel when you make these changes. The goal is for you to discover what really brings you joy in your space and understand that an ordered present puts you at peace with your past. Living an organized and orderly life will bring you peace and tranquility.”