Ever since Tidying Up With Marie Kondo was released onto Netflix back in January, everyone has been talking about Marie Kondo and her method of cleaning up—KonMari. Although this show is relatively new, Kondo started her business of helping others organize when she was just 19 years old. Since then, she has published four books on the subject, been featured on many talk shows and radio programs and in many newspapers and magazines. The success of KonMari has earned Kondo a spot on Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people.

Now you may be wondering, what exactly is so special about cleaning that it has gained Kondo this international recognition? The answer is, it is not about what Kondo does, but how she does it.

Kondo uses the KonMari method when organizing, her unique way of separating objects and sorting through them, deciding which to keep and which to give away. To begin, Marie separates objects into 5 categories: clothes, books, documents, miscellaneous (what Kondo calls “komono”), and sentimental objects.

From there, she goes through each category in order, separating objects that spark joy from those that do not. This is actually her biggest rule in organizing: only keep the objects that make you feel joy. If an object has no positive emotional value attached to it, thank it for its service, and place it in the discard pile to be donated or thrown away. Her last step is to then put everything you are keeping neatly back into place, and make a commitment to stay tidy.

This process is relatively simple. With determination and patience, everyone can use the KonMari method to clean up their own homes.