How Marie Kondo Declutters During a Pandemic

I listened to Sarah Akiyoshi’s bamboo flute concert while preparing the meal. It was a recording of a show she held last week in Japan. Because of the lockdown, she had to perform without an audience and share it on YouTube.

Tuesday

7 a.m. I woke up and lit incense, my daily ritual.

7:30 a.m. I cooked rice in my donabe pot and made miso soup using last night’s leftovers, including burdock roots, carrots, onions, tofu, shiitake mushrooms, natto (fermented beans) and edible chrysanthemum with sesame seeds.

8:30 a.m. Time for my weekly yoga lesson.

9:30 a.m. I got some housework done. I did the laundry and tidied up the kitchen. Ranunculus are in season, so I cut the stems under water (this helps them last longer) and placed them in vases around the house. This sparks joy, especially now that we’re spending more time at home.

10:30 a.m. I joined several online meetings to discuss my schedule and upcoming projects. I’m revising my calendar because of the travel restrictions — many of the interviews I’d planned to do in New York next month will be conducted online.

12 p.m. I prepared lunch for the kids, and we ate together. Today’s lunch was seaweed and spinach noodles.

12:30 p.m. I enjoyed time with my girls. They’re usually at school during this time, so I’m adjusting my schedule to be with them more.

1:30 p.m. Back to my desk for emails, writing, etc.

4 p.m. It stopped raining, so my husband and I went for a stroll on a hiking trail near our house. This is an important time for us as business partners. Rather than sitting in chairs, we prefer to walk and talk out our ideas. We went over upcoming projects, global business strategies and shared takeaways from interesting articles that we’ve read. We have a team Slack channel dedicated to market trends, and it’s helpful to discuss these — they spark great conversation.