Konmari: The Pros and Cons

 

 

 

 

 

Can following Marie Kondo’s method of tidying up magically change your life and bring you joy? That’s what her two book titles, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up and Spark Joy, would lead you to believe. For some people that may very well be true, but for others it’s probably not realistic, as there are some downsides to her method. So let’s consider what the good things about Konmari are and what the roadblocks to successful implementation might be.

First, what’s to like about Konmari? Ms. Kondo emphasizes techniques that are motivating and she appeals to the emotions, which can help you be successful in organizing your home, and, some say, that has carry-over effects in your daily life. Importantly, she recommends that you begin by visualizing your ideal home environment, so that you have a goal to be working towards. She prescribes a five step order in which to tackle clutter, going from easiest to most difficult, so that you develop skill at determining which items “spark joy” and can be kept and which items to let go of. Beginning with your clothes and working through books, papers, “komono” (miscellaneous), until you end with emotionally laden memorabilia. She gives tips along the way to facilitate the process, like setting aside items you’re not sure of to be dealt with later, so as not to slow your momentum.

Central to the Konmari method is the idea of “sparking joy”. Again, this is an appeal to the emotions. You are instructed to touch and hold in your hands every single item in your home. You should feel a spark of joy when you hold those items that deserve to stay in your home. Everything else should be gotten rid of. However, even those items that no longer merit a place in your life should be thanked before being discarded. In fact, Ms. Kondo says you should start by thanking your entire home for sheltering you and providing a place for you and your belongings. The premise is that when you are completely finished removing distracting clutter from your home, you will have a serene environment and be surrounded only by the things you love.

In addition to motivational suggestions, Konmari also includes some very practical ideas. Ms. Kondo has a very specific method of folding and storing clothes, for example, which is best learned by watching one of the many YouTube videos on the subject. Many of her organizing tips are not original to her method, but are espoused by many other professional organizers as well. Those suggestions include having a home for every item in your house and making sure to always return items to their homes after use, storing items used more frequently in more easily accessed places, using clear storage boxes to make finding things easier, and storing like items together. By reading her books or watching her videos you can discover more such tips. However, there are many, many books and videos by other professional organizers from which you can also glean a lot of helpful hints.

 

This bench is useless.  Only stack books on it or my cats sleep on it.  But I keep it because it makes me happy.

 

While Marie Kondo has distinguished herself with her unique ideas, she has also drawn criticism for her method that some view as unrealistic and not for everybody. For starters, the idea that every item in your home should “spark joy” is controversial. Should you really get rid of everything that doesn’t spark joy? What about the things you keep because they are useful, but that do not cause you to have any particular emotional response? How many of us have a love affair with a hammer or a potato peeler or a bottle of Tylenol? What happens when you have a hard time deciding what brings joy? In that case, you will probably be better served by a different set of guidelines for decluttering. One organizer uses this list of questions to help her clients make decisions:

1. Do I know what it is?
2. When have I used it?
3. Does anyone else in the family use it?
4. If it’s broken, is it worth fixing?
5. Are there legal or tax issues?
6. Is it a duplicate?
7. If I’m keeping it, where would I be most likely to look for it?

As you can see, that is a lot different from asking, “Does it spark joy.” Although, you have to decide if it is simpler for you to ask one question, as opposed to a long list of considerations.

Another issue that concerns some people is the time element. Ms. Kondo encourages using her method to go through everything in your entire home. Depending on how big your home and how much stuff you have, this could be an overwhelming prospect. She does say to break it down into categories and subcategories, and to start with clothes, an easier category to tackle, but that still may seem like a daunting task. One has to have the time to devote to handling every single item in any one category, and completing that endeavor, or be left with a bigger mess than before. Ms. Kondo insists that when beginning any category, everything should be dumped in a big pile, so that you can see how much stuff you actually have. With clothes, for instance, this means a huge pile, probably on your bed. She does warn that things will get worse before they get better. So, the time involved to be successful could be a definite drawback for many.

Also if you share space with someone else, you will either need to get their cooperation or come to an agreement about what things can and cannot be discarded. Ms. Kondo does state that you should only go through this process with your own belongings. While this is true for any organizing project, it may be hard to get buy-in from the other party, especially when it comes to sparking joy.

The category that has perhaps drawn the most criticism is books. Ms. Kondo would have you hold each book without opening it or reading any of it and decide if it sparks joy. Many people value their large collections of books and reject the idea of getting rid of any of them. She says you should only keep books that you will read or reread or that have special significance for you, but many people say that doesn’t get at the heart of a book collection.

Finally, while there are many people who have become Konmari converts, there are some people who can’t imagine themselves following the Konmari rules. People’s brains work differently, some people being comfortable with more random organization, and some needing a more structured environment. Some people embrace minimalism and others are comforted by having a home filled with what others might consider clutter. While Marie Kondo might say that was all right, as long as all of those things really sparked joy, her emphasis is on the idea of life-changing tidiness, which she feels is hard to realize with too much stuff.

 

For me, I like to declutter twice a year.  I try to be a bit of a minimalist, even thought I get boxes and packages daily from blogging.  I hate clutter, don’t like things thrown on the floor and don’t have to many trinkets, since they collect dust.  I like to take a few weeks, or months, and go through the house.  One room at a time.  Every cupboard, cabinet, drawer and shelf.  I toss what I don’t use, haven’t used, clothing I’ve haven’t worn in a year or so and don’t see myself wearing, extra kitchen things I have (I once found 5 colanders in my kitchen and 4 cutting boards), too many coffee mugs, etc.

 

I get a LOT of makeup blogging and I love nail polish (easy way to look like I made an effort without wearing makeup everyday sans a little mascara) but I get a lot and some are duplicate colors are extremely similar.  I just went through the nail polish with my daughter.
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This is what we started with- three containers that are overflowing with nail polish.  Hard to find a color when I want one and taking up a lot of space.  Plus I really love the Sally Hansen Miracle Gel (they last up to two weeks) since I’m so hard on my nails and I rarely use a different brand (unless the color really rocks).

We went through every one.  Tossed the duplicates and kept one.  Checked older ones to see if they had dried out.  Tossed colors neither of us will ever wear.  I let my best friend go through the leftovers then gave the rest to my sister to search through.  Once she is done I’ll put the rest on our local Facebook Freecycle group.  This is the keep pile.

Even the medicine cabinet was sorted.  It is very deep and hard to find something and my son goes in there like a tornado when he is looking for something.  So less is best!  This is the before.

 

I used the two extra containers the nail polish was in to help me sort the medicine (I need to buy a few more).  One has commonly used (Advil, Pepto-Bismo, Acid Reflux) and the other has prevent-getting-sick items (Vitamin C, Zicon, Hylands, etc).  I still need to clean the actual shelves since they are grubby.

 

I also cleaned the medicine cabinet in my bathroom.  There isn’t a ton but I get stuff all the time in the mail and for various reasons don’t use it.  Some I don’t like, others don’t work well, others bother my allergies and others are fine but just not a product I use enough and don’t need a 2-year supply.

After- and might get rid a few more hair and face products I haven’t tried out yet.  

Some of the get rid of pile!  I filled a few boxes.  

 

The expired medicine, dried out nail polish, almost empty bottles, etc all went in the trash.

 

The rest- that is up to you!!  I always let my sister to through mine.  Besides that- can be stored for a garage sale, donated to a thrift store or given away for free. Things like clothing and linens that are in good condition can be donated to homeless shelters.  For me, unless it has a high value I’m not going to try to sell it.  I’d rather get rid of the clutter.

 

I’ve been doing this for years before Marie Kondo’s show with the Konmari style showed up on Netflix and became a craze..  I called it my ‘spring cleaning.’  But do what helps and inspires you.  Don’t toss things you’ll regret.  But unless it is a keepsake, you can always replace a red blouse or notebook.  Having less mess, clutter and ‘stuff’ around makes your household less stressful.  If you are doing this with kids you can always take pictures of items they have outgrown but loved.  I make my kids do their bedrooms before their birthdays and before Christmas.  That way they are getting rid of things before the new and old mix together.

 

Do the other parts of the house too.  Once the bedrooms and bathrooms are done do the board games (mine are in the living room), hall closet, medicine closet and kitchen (that one might take a while).  Then do outside!!  Don’t forget this.  The garage is always the hardest, especially since a lot of house stuff ended up in here.  The shed.  Back patio.  After each holiday look and see what decorations you never used and see if you can toss them.

Sometimes I feel like I need to start all over again by the time I’ve completed everything.  It is a bit of an OCD thing for me.  I really hate clutter and mess.  Plus I feel so accomplished when I have cleaned and got rid of things I don’t use.

 

Do it how you want.  Do you just want to toss unused items?  Do you want to see if they ‘spark joy in you?’  Figure it out as you go along.  Another good resourse is The FLY Lady (FLY is an acronym for Finally Loving Yourself) and she has baby steps for cleaning, like a ’10 minute living room pick up.’  Some of her steps are more cleaning rather than getting rid of things.  But she has a lot of awesome ideas.

 

What Are Your Ideas For Spring Cleaning Your House?