For parents, it’s clearing out a kid’s room that is often the highest hurdle. ”I was attached to the sentimental value of my kids’ old crayon scribblings and onesies,” writes Marisa Torrieri Bloom, who hired Karin Socci, a platinum-level KonMari consultant, to coach her through the clutter. “Having Socci there kept me motivated to focus on the task at hand and stop feeling guilty. She was a sounding board for me as I worked through why most of the broken crayons, glittery pipe cleaners and school drawings that took up five plastic bins and did not spark joy. By the end, I was throwing things into a garbage bag indiscriminately.”

“The only way to break chronic clutter is to take a drastic approach, and the KonMari method is one of the most drastic you can take,” she says.

Though client sessions can be draining, for Fidler, there’s a deep sense of satisfaction in seeing someone change their attitudes about material possessions. “I am incredibly grateful,” she says, “to be able to empower people through this process of reconnection with their belongings.”

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