I have to make a confession. I have a bit of a clutter problem. My desk looks like a hurricane hit it. The longest I've managed to keep it clear was about a week. My closet is even worse, and let's not get started on the state of my drawers.
So, when I finally got the chance to read the best-selling non-fiction book The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up, I was hoping that I might find some insight or a solution to my clutter problem. While I'm sure that her methods will work if I applied them, the real test will come when I finally get around to tidying up myself.
Marie Kondo's definition of tidying up is wildly different from what I imagined. To me, tidying up is to clear surfaces, dust a little, maybe vacuum, etc... You know, the surface cleaning you do around the holidays or when company is coming over. Kondo's definition is more like a full-scale purge. This isn't a simple thing you can do a few hours before Aunt Martha shows up for dinner this Sunday. Think of this as more of an exercise in moving meditation, because that's almost what it is.
Her method is based on many years of trial-and-error, and her own personal confessions of clutter-clearing failure at the beginning of her efforts make this one seem a little more likely to stick. She explains where and how her method differs from popular methods touted in house-keeping magazines, and why she made these particular changes. Some things that stuck out to me about her method were the order that she insists things must be tidied and how each item should be handled, evaluated, and thanked individually. Yes, that's right, thanked. It's an odd idea to Western minds, but it makes sense when she explains it - each item was brought in to fulfill a particular purpose, and it is important to acknowledge that item's contribution and thank it for its service, thus allowing you to dispose of the item guilt-free.
Another idea she explores in this book is the idea that items should "spark joy" in you. In other words, you should only keep things around that make you feel happy to have. I guess this makes sense - after all, you only have so much space in the personal sanctuary that is your home/room, so why shouldn't it be full of only things you love? Even if I don't get up the courage to do the full-scale purge that Marie recommends, I think that this is an idea that would be easy for most people to grasp and apply right away. Sure, you should definitely aim to do things properly - pull everything out in the correct order and handle each item individually to assess their "joyfulness" - but if you find you just can't devote that kind of time and energy immediately, perhaps asking yourself if something "sparks joy" in you before you buy it might keep you from adding to the clutter.
I got a lot of interesting ideas from this book. If I actually do manage the Kondo-style tidying on my own, I'll be sure to update you here.
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