Shanley Ten Eyck - Blog #Marie KondoShanley Ten Eyck - Blog #Marie Kondohttps://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/tag/Marie-KondoTue, 09 Dec 2025 12:46:54 -0800http://zoho.com/sites/<![CDATA[I don't know where to start!]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/where-do-you-startHow to achieve your goals, one question at a time, with a professional organizer.]]>

Have a goal, but are not sure how to make it happen?

I love this recent article by Janine MacLachlan in Forbes about using decluttering as a way to accomplish your goals. This is one of the main tenets of the way I help my clients: Identify the goal, then move forward in stepwise fashion to accomplish it.


But, if you don't know where to start, even the idea of figuring out what your goal is can be daunting! Janine has some good suggestions, and it's also where I can help.


Let's say you decide your goal is to have a wardrobe that will get you a promotion. That's great! We will start there. 

Umm, ok, but what's next?!?!?! 


Here is one way that conversation between us might go:

  • When you are working, do you want to look strong, approachable, balanced, trustworthy, professional, creative?
  • (Let's say you pick professional): What does "professional" mean to you?
  • (You say something along the lines of, "Like I can do the job.") Ok, does that mean suits, jeans, workout gear, ball gowns, etc?


And so on and so forth, until we drill down to what "professional" means to YOU, for YOUR goal. Because if you want to look professional while teaching yoga, that's probably a different wardrobe than professional while working on Wall Street. Both are still professional, but they require different approaches to that wardrobe (and goal). But you still don't know how to proceed. And that's what Janine is talking about in the article by saying: 

"You’re overwhelmed at the outset. Perhaps you have a lot of ideas but don’t know where to start. If we look as this as a Marie Kondo-style closet edit, you’re so overwhelmed by the piles of disorganized stuff spilling off the shelves, you don’t know where to start. 

You close the closet and psych yourself up to try another time.

If you have so many ideas you can’t decide, take a Marie Kondo sweep and pick one small place to start. Start with the equivalent of your sock drawer, a smaller scale, low risk, easy success venture. 

You choose the sock drawer instead the extensive collection of vinyl records because socks are low risk and not filled with emotional attachment.

As a Certified Personal Stylist, KonMari Consultant, Reiki Master, and Professional Organizer, I can help you achieve your goal of Yoga Instructor professional or Wall Street professional with your answers to a few questions. But like Janine says, you've got to commit the time to working with me, so you can accomplish that goal.


Give me a call or book a consultation and and we can figure out how to make that happen.


Here’s my direct scheduling link: https://shanley.zohobookings.com/#/customer/shanley


Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Get Started Now
]]>Fri, 27 Aug 2021 16:00:26 -0600<![CDATA[How Big Is Your Book Pile?]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/tsundokuPiling up books is known in Japan as tsundoku. Using the KonMari Method™ you can eliminate those piles.]]>

The Art of Tsundoku

Books have always played a big role in my life. I recall eagerly opening presents each Christmas, unwrapping the likes of "The Chronicles of Narnia" by C. S. Lewis and "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson Burnett (which still reside on my bookshelf today). As a child who moved a lot, books were my non-judgemental friends. Worlds I could visit from any (new) home. I devoured books. Neighborhood kids would come and ask if I would play, and I would tell them, "Sorry, I'm reading" and not feel a lick of guilt. I can't even count the number of times I've stayed up reading into the wee hours of the night/morning LONG after my bedtime.

If you're anything like me, you may have a pile (or two) of unread books in your home. The Japanese refer to this stack as tsundoku, which refers to the practice of acquiring reading materials and letting them pile up in one's home without reading them. It is also used to refer to books ready for reading later when they are on a bookshelf. This Huffington Post article and this LA Times article explain more about the behavior. 


My current stack of tsundoku resides on the living room coffee table, but hasn't always lived there. Sometimes it's the side of my desk, or my nightstand. Sometimes it's even in the bathroom (shhh, don't tell!). I joined 2 book clubs this year, one for KonMari Consultants and one for Professional Organizers. I'm hoping some of the books will overlap, even though I know that's kinda cheating, lol. 


When I was 40 I went back to school to get my bachelor's degree in Retailing & Consumer Sciences (why people buy what they buy) with a minor in Fashion (because I knew I wanted to be a personal stylist). Even with reading assignments, I would be the student reading the WHOLE chapter because I was genuinely interested in learning (the difference of going to school later in life). I wanted to learn to be able to apply it to my new career AND business, which just so happens to also be what I LOVE to do.


This means I have the added benefit of most of my "fun" reading is also "research" for my job. Thus, the one "fun" book on the left stack above is "Tales from Watership Down" which was a birthday present from hubby after I finished "Watership Down," which was based on a client recommendation. The right stack is how I'm going to get to know my new home, Florida - after I'm vaccinated.

My husband and I both love to read, and we've encouraged that in my boys as well. One year we decided to use all our books to make our Christmas Tree. We gathered books from all over the house and my engineer husband quickly went to work constructing the beauty you see here. The boys and I added paperclips to all the decorations and inserted them all in between the books. This remains a favorite memory of theirs (and ours!) and one they've asked to duplicate each year. 


This memory couldn't have happened without our tsundoku, however! While going through and touching all of the books to carefully stack them, we were reminded of books we'd acquired and then left on the shelf to gather dust. This is why when using the KonMari Method™, we first pile all your books together and then tap them gently to "wake them up."  This is an important step according to Marie Kondo because, "to truly decide whether you want to keep something or to dispose of it, you must take your things out of hibernation...we can stimulate our belongings by physically moving them, exposing them to fresh air and making them 'conscious.' ... [clients] are inevitably surprised at how quickly and precisely they are able to choose after this," from "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up."


I will confirm that we definitely got rid of some books after the Christmas tree came down in January. It also prompted us to dig into some of the books we'd forgotten about. 

This pile of books is a perfect example of tsundoku. I checked all of these styling books out of the library shortly after I graduated. They then lived, unread, on my wine cooler "desk" for the next 4 months before I paid my late fees and returned them all. Never cracked a one. The lesson there was, I didn't need any of that information to be able to move forward successfully with my business. 

If you need some help getting rid of the tsundoku, or other piles, in your life - I can help. Give me a call or book a consultation and and we can figure out how to make that happen. Virtually, of course.


Here’s my direct scheduling link: https://shanley.zohobookings.com/#/customer/shanley


Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Get Started Now
]]>Fri, 19 Mar 2021 14:08:44 -0600<![CDATA[What kind of adult are you?]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/What-kind-of-adult-are-youDecluttering before you pass can help you move toward your goals, and help loved ones later.]]>

Decluttering now, so loved ones don't have to later

Has COVID brought out your inner Marie Kondo? Several of my clients are finding this time to be perfect to start downsizing their homes. One client continues to be VERY happy about the number of things leaving her home now, so that her son won’t have to deal with them later.


This idea of decluttering before she dies seems to be a newly popular phenomenon but has actually been around for ages.   

The Swedes call it Swedish Death Cleaning and entire books have been written about it. Marie Kondo inspires it with her “Tidying Marathons” and realtors become responsible for it when homes go up for sale.


Ann Patchett recently wrote an amazing article in The New Yorker about the downsizing she went through, inspired by the death of her best friend’s beloved dad. Having to weed through his possessions inspired her to do the same in her own home of 16 years.   


At one point the 56-year-old author is taking down a dozen champagne flutes from the top shelf in her kitchen (reached by getting on the top rung of a ladder) that she never used. She started acquiring the flutes very early in her life in anticipation of happily using them as an adult.


“I had miscalculated the kind of adult I would be… I had missed the mark on who I would become, but in doing so I had created a record of who I was at the time…,” Patchett says. This statement brought me to tears and made me reflect upon my own “kitchen history.”


I recall collecting in the same way when I started requesting housewares while still in high school. I knew one day I’d move out and I absolutely couldn’t do that without the Le Creuset double broiler pan my mother bought me for my 17th birthday. As high school progressed, my “adulthood” was quietly stashed away in my teenage closet. While dressing I would proudly look upon the items in anticipation of using them in my own place. (Is this very different than the champagne flutes quietly living on the top shelf of Mrs. Patchett’s cupboard? No, not really.)


So many of my clients go through this mental exercise of imaging what their adulthood will be like, and make anticipatory purchases to sustain that imagined “life.”   


My husband and I LOVE to entertain and had all the accoutrements to do that. Settings for 12 including the glassware needed for a variety of drinking opportunities. (Doesn’t everyone need an aperitif before dinner?) When we moved into a big house in the foothills of Tucson, Arizona, we had an open house and invited our friends and all the new neighbors. We hosted about 100 people throughout the 4 hour party and enjoyed meeting most of our neighbors.   


We had grand visions of hosting many dinner parties in the year we lived there, but alas, no one reciprocated and asked us to their home. So that dream slowly fizzled, while our brandy snifters gathered dust in the cupboard.


Then, last July we had the opportunity to move to Florida, while my boys stayed in Tucson with their dad. That dramatically reduced the amount of “things” we needed to move. So the culling process began. And COVID inspired even more culling. We knew we likely wouldn’t be entertaining at our new place in Tampa, and that helped us let go of even more items. Brandy snifters were passed along to others who WOULD use them and enjoy them.


This is how I encourage my clients to reach the point to say, “Thank you, and goodbye” to items they’re ambivalent about. It doesn’t REALLY have to do with length of time (“How long has it been since you last wore/used that?”) which is a common way to move through decluttering.


More successful is rather, to address if the item moves you toward your GOAL. What do you envision your future looking like, and does that item(s) move you toward that? Do you really need twin sheets “just in case” when you don’t even have a twin bed in the house anymore?


Still vacillating? How about, “Can you imagine someone else using that item now?” Sometimes the idea of helping others is the tipping point for my clients, to be able to let things go for good.   


If you still can’t decide, dig a little deeper, and ask, “Would you want someone else to have to deal with that later?”


The most common thing my clients say after finishing a session with me is, “I feel so much lighter,” and the author echoes this sentiment as well.


“This was the practice: I was starting to get rid of my possessions, at least the useless ones, because possessions stood between me and death. They didn’t protect me from death, but they created a barrier in my understanding, like layers of bubble wrap, so that instead of thinking about what was coming and the beauty that was here now I was thinking about the piles of shiny trinkets I’d accumulated. I had begun the journey of digging out,” said Patchett.


The thing to remember about this “practice,” the tidying process, is that it’s going to get worse before it gets better. (But it WILL get better!) If you follow the 5 categories in the KonMari Method™, you’ll start by removing all your clothes from your closet and in your drawers and put them all on your bed.

Then you can look into your closet and remark, “That looks amazing!” But now turn around and look at your bed. That stuff has just been relocated and that’s what we’re going to deal with next. As you continue through this practice, in time, everything in your home will fill you with joy and (hopefully) you’ll have recovered from “Flat Surface Syndrome” as another client jokingly calls it.


My client yesterday said, “This is the first time in my life, ever, that I’ve thought about decorating my house for Me, and no one else.“ 


She’s almost done with the 4th category (Komono, which means miscellaneous in Japanese) and next will be addressing the 5th and last category, Sentimental. She’s looking forward to reframing her space, and vision, for her, and no one else. The new space will move her toward her goals as a Strong Successful, Businesswoman, rather than as the “doting mother who followed her son to college,” as she’d been envisioning herself.


Like Patchett says, “I didn’t need the glasses or the silver, those things that represented who I thought I would become but never did, and I didn’t need the dolls, which represented who I had been and no longer was.”


Know that you too, can reach this moment of peace and calm. You’ll feel the lightness and clarity that comes with knowing what is in every cupboard or drawer in your home, and how it moves you toward your goal.


If you'd like to lighten your emotional and physical load and find the truest version of you, give me a call or book a consultation and and we can figure out how to make that happen. Virtually, of course. 


Here’s my direct scheduling link: https://shanley.zohobookings.com/#/customer/shanley


Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Get Started Now
]]>Thu, 04 Mar 2021 13:05:23 -0700<![CDATA["You're probably going to cry today."]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/you-re-probably-going-to-cry-today.Steps to make your move a little easier.]]>

And other decluttering tips when prepping to move.


This is one of the things I tell my clients before we start working together.


I am a Professional Organizer and people call me to make a difference in their spaces, and by result, their lives. This often means making tons of decisions, a lot of which are difficult, in a short amount of time.


The process of decluttering, downsizing, organizing, and moving can make you feel a little out of control. I recently moved myself, and struggled to remind myself of this while prepping.


I also tell clients, "What you are doing today may be difficult. I'm here to help guide you, but you will be making most of the decisions. Making so many decisions can be very stressful and you need to give yourself a break to move forward with peace and grace. Or we won't be able to get through all of this."


I went into my packing process enthusiastically thinking, "Oh, I'll get rid of a whole bunch of stuff we aren't using!" But there's a reason I kept those things the last time we moved. It was because I might need them, SOMEDAY. Well guess what, "Later" and "Someday" are not days of the week! And if you haven't used it in a year (or more), there is a good chance you won't in the future either.


I keep trying to remind myself this as I vacillate over those yoga blocks I bought 8 years ago. That have never been unwrapped. My internal dialog says, "Well, I want to do yoga in the new house..." Let's consider how much it cost me emotionally knowing they were sitting unused in the closet for the last 8 years? Certainly way more than the dollar I paid! 


Another favorite tip for my clients: "Guess what? These are not the last yoga blocks in the world. If you decide you need them again, you can always get more."


When my clients can't decide if they should keep an item that still has the tags on, most chuckle after I say something like, "Why don't we take these back to the store and let them hold them for you until you need them again?" Keep in mind, this also means you aren't paying to store thingsyou don't really need, and know you can get later. Because your space has a dollar amount associated with it. So it's important to only have things that will move you toward your goals. And this unnecessary storage takes it toll physically, mentally, and emotionally. So the more you can literally lighten your load, the more it helps you over all.  


It's easy to say those things to clients, but it was so much harder for me to remember it for myself! I am glad I went through the moving process again (this is move #29!) to keep these reminders fresh in my mind and better understand how my clients are feeling when we work together.


By the way, because its been 8 years, I gave away the yoga blocks to a good home!

If you'd like to lighten your load and move with ease and grace, give me a call or book a consultation and and we can figure out how to make that happen. Virtually, of course. 

Here’s my direct scheduling link: https://shanley.zohobookings.com/#/customer/shanley


Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Get Started Now
]]>Fri, 08 Jan 2021 14:32:05 -0700<![CDATA[Organizing for the Holidays, the KonMari Way]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/organizing-for-the-holidays-the-konmari-wayFor the month of December I'm joining Karen Caig for an interview series to prepare for the holidays and--especially--the new year coming up! We talk about how to use the KonMari Method™ to get your home organized and which essential oils are best to destress.]]>

5 steps to get ready for the holidays, by organizing!


For the month of December I'm joining  Karen Caig, a Licensed Reiki Master Teacher with the International Center for Reiki Training and Young Living distributor, for an interview series  to prepare for the holidays and--especially--the new year coming up! We talk about how to use the  KonMari Method™ to get your home organized and which essential oils are best to destress.

I was SOOOOO excited to work with Karen on this series because she's such a blast to be around! Her energy, sincerity, and honesty are so engaging it makes for a fun interview. We mostly just laugh and chat and who doesn't love that!

The classes are held Wednesdays at 12:00ET through the end of the month.  Each week we cover a different topic:

In episode one we talked about the six steps necessary to get ready to implement the KonMari Method™ through the five categories of a Tidying Festival. We also shared tips for clearing the energy in your home using essential oils. 

In episode two we talked about the concepts of the KonMari process and how to fold and store clothes the KonMari way - it's all about rectangles and file folding, my friends! 

The first episode is  available on her Facebook page, but the second and future episodes will also be posted on my YouTube channel. Be sure to go to my new  YouTube channel to watch.  I would love, love, love it if you'd subscribe too because I need 100 subscribers to be able to change the url name to  "Organizing with Shanley." So help a sista out and subscribe!

The events will also stream live through my Facebook business page @TampaProfessionalOrganizer.  So join us for the next 3 episodes and let us know your organizing and essential oil questions. They will be chock full of tips, tricks, and secrets that will bring some "ZING!" to your life and help you get organized before New Year's Day. You can post your questions in the Discussion, and Karen and I will answer them during class. See you there!

Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Get Started Now
]]>Thu, 10 Dec 2020 14:14:36 -0700<![CDATA[Why I Became a Professional Organizer & KonMari Consultant]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/why-i-became-a-professional-organizer-konmari-consultant

Harvard Business Review recently interviewed Marie Kondo about her new book "Joy at Work." I thought it was a timely and revealing read because it made me remember why I became a professional organizer.

I knew at a young age I enjoyed organizing things. When I was 16 or so, I remember coming home from work and my step-mother had moved things around in the kitchen cupboards. She had company over that day, and they all watched, entertained, as I attempted to make my lunch, all the while encountering things and returning them "to where they belong" (according me, anyway).

Well, that sense of unease at not being able to find things is why I became a professional organizer. To deepen my knowledge in this role, I attended a 2-day training session in Los Angeles led by Kondo.

Before you can attend the session you have to "Kondo" your own home and submit photos to her team. You also have to explain why you want to go through the training process. These submissions are then reviewed and approved to assure you've followed the correct process and fit the KonMari mission.

How do you ensure that all your consultants are as good as you?

To become a KonMari consultant is not an easy task—it involves testing and monitoring and many steps. Consultants also exchange information about what is working and what isn’t. That tight-knit community keeps the standards where they need to be.

Marie Kondo for the Harvard Business Review

After attending the training session you decide if you want to move forward and become a certified KonMari consultant, or not. I chose to move forward because I get it. This process is a wonderful way to help my clients overcome that overwhelm I felt when I couldn't find things in my cupboards. I can relate. That sense of overwhelm or that things "just aren't right" can be hard to shake off or overcome.

I love helping my clients understand that tidying is a skill that can be learned! Some people were just never taught how. That's why my focus is on teaching my clients. If I do my job well, eventually you shouldn't need me anymore!

However, I also understand that sometimes we just get busy and need a little course correction. And that's where I come back in to help you hit the reset button. This is most efficiently done by ensuring there is a place for everything, and everything is in its place. Yeah, yeah, I know, I sound like your Mom. But guess what? She was right (don't tell her I said so)!

Planned obsolescence aside, I LOVE helping my clients figure out how to live in their home more comfortably than they ever have before. That's MY goal when working with you. But the real question is, what is YOUR goal? You can be sure that's one of the first questions I'll ask when we start our dialogue.

So think about that now. What IS your goal? For your space? For your wardrobe? For your relationship(s)? For your career? For your life? And then give me a call, and we can figure out how to make that happen. Virtually, of course.

Until then, move forward with Peace & Grace!

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Book with me here:
https://ShanleyTenEyck.as.me/

Source: Life’s Work: An Interview with Marie Kondo

]]>Tue, 14 Apr 2020 19:49:41 -0600<![CDATA[Happy Valentine's Day, to YOU!]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/happy-valentines-day-to-you
What a wonderful, brief article about how to love yourself more!Love Yourself Illustrations by Abbey Lossing for KonMari Media, Inc.
“'When you’re intimate with another person, your job is to listen to how they feel,' says Dr. Coché. 'Not to correct or dispute them. The exact same rules apply when talking to yourself.' An honest dialogue with yourself makes it easier to identify behaviors that make you feel bad and behaviors that make you feel good. Joy, checked!"
Clearing your space is an important way to see yourself more clearly, so let's start with you!

You decide what stays and goes when we declutter your home. The goal is to help you keep things with confidence.

Book with me here: https://ShanleyTenEyck.as.me/ Peace & Grace, Shanley 520-940-8174 shanley@shanleyteneyck.com Source: KonMari Philosophy: Finding Joy Within
]]>Fri, 14 Feb 2020 09:48:27 -0700<![CDATA[It's Tax time!]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/its-tax-time
Overwhelmed with your tax materials? Well, now is the time to save on storage essentials at the Container Store. Get organized with one of these file cases or document boxes. Or, keep things separated with an accordion organizer! Present things perfectly to your CPS with the RainbowProjectfiles or clear project files.
You're sure to find something to help you through Taxmageddon! Let me know if you need help.
Book with me here: https://ShanleyTenEyck.as.me/Peace & Grace, Shanley 520-940-8174 shanley@shanleyteneyck.com Source: The Container Store
]]>Sun, 02 Feb 2020 12:35:33 -0700<![CDATA[The KonMari Method™ is not Minimalism]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/the-konmari-method-is-not-minimalism
What a wonderful explanation of the differences between Minimalism and the KonMari Method™. Let me know if either of these tools is something you want to pursue to tidy up your home.
"One of the reasons the KonMari Method™ is associated with minimalism is because many people discover while tidying that they’ve been living with items they no longer love – or never did. And they suddenly feel empowered to let them go with gratitude." Marie Kondo

You decide what stays and goes when we declutter your home. The goal is to help you keep things with confidence.

Book with me here:  https://shanleyteneyck.com/ser… Peace & Grace, Shanley 520-940-8174 shanley@shanleyteneyck.com Source: Notes from Marie: KonMari is not Minimalism
]]>Thu, 30 Jan 2020 21:49:28 -0700<![CDATA[How to declutter your home]]>https://www.shanleyteneyck.com/blogs/post/how-to-declutter-your-home

Great article featuring several other professional organizers and the reasons they have been hired to help their clients declutter their homes.

"The hardest part might be knowing when to call in the organizing pros. 'When a person has decided that she/he deserves a more productive lifestyle within their home, it is time to bring in a professional,' says Wendy Silberstein."

Are you finding it hard to declutter but don't know where to start? Book now, through the end of the month and get 15% off a KonMari Tidying Organizing Session with me. 

Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, learn to declutter with Shanley Ten Eyck
Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and Shanley Ten Eyck

A KonMari Tidying Festival session is 3 hours @ $225.00 ($191.25 with discount!)

Based on “The Magical Art of Tidying Up” by Marie Kondo, we will use the KonMari method to work through your possessions in the following order:
* Clothing
* Books
* Papers
* Komono / Miscellaneous 
* Sentimental

You decide what stays and goes when we declutter your home. The goal is to help you keep things with confidence.

Book with me here:  https://shanleyteneyck.com/ser... 

Peace & Grace,

Shanley

520-940-8174

shanley@shanleyteneyck.com

Source: How to declutter your home, according to professional organizers - New York Post

]]>Fri, 10 Jan 2020 01:38:06 -0700