Book Recommendation:

 

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

 

by Marie Kondo

 

We all have our own associations with the word, “tidy.” My associations are actions. I fly though my home, straightening pillows on the couch, sliding dishes into the washer, and shunt (my wife’s) shoes into the cubby near the front door. This is NOT what Marie Kondo’s book is about.

About 75% of The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, is about throwing things away. A slim 25% covers a mix of organizing items in the home, and truly understanding the deep emotional attachments that prevent us from throwing things away. I recommend reading (or listening) to this book to get the practical, step by step instruction that Kondo provides for “tidying.” As a matter of fact, I’ve already applied the advice  in my own home. Rather than detail each of Kondo’s methods, I’ll cover the two big messages I got from the book.

 

Key 1

 

Elimination before Organization

 

Initially, I thought that The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up would just be a compilation of pro-tips on organization. As I consider myself to be a relatively neat person, I was more than ready to take my cleaning game to the next level. However, Kondo dedicates the majority of her thoughts to elimination rather than organization, and the more I think about this, the more it makes sense. Almost all solid advice on increasing productivity stresses the importance of deleting items off the to-do list, as opposed to spinning wheels to perfectly organize your to-do list, and then getting the work done.

 

If I dive into tasks without asking “will this increase my effectiveness,” or “is this the most important thing for me to do today?” I will, without fail be faux-efficient, and caught up in a whirlpool of busy work.

 

Before trying to organize or find a cozy nook or cranny for everything in your home, Kondo suggests that you gather up all of your items in the following order:

1. Clothes

2. Books

3. Documents

4. Miscellaneous Items

5. Mementos.

Next, as you go through each item type, one by one, ask the life changing question, “Does this item spark joy in me?”

Once you keep only the items you love, and hold on to the items that spark joy,  will you be able to find the perfect place for everything in your home. Clutter will be gone, and you will have just the right amount of room in your home to hold your possessions.

 

Key 2

 

Anxiety & Fear vs. Joy & Thankfulness

 

Why do we even need a book to tell us to only keep stuff that we love? Isn’t our problem that we love stuff too much?

 

Based on her years of client work, Kondo makes the claim that our material clinging is driven by anxiety and baggage about the past and fear for the future.

 

Anxiety about hand-me-down clothing from my brother. Then there is the birthday present from an old friend- what if we run into each other again next week? Oh yes, and the gold-trimmed Nutcracker themed Christmas plates from my mother- they are basically family heirlooms! Many of items we accumulate are representations of unresolved baggage we have with the past.

 

Fears take the shape of “I never know when I might need this blender manual.” “I know these hotel soaps will come in handy in a pinch.” “I’m sure I’ll find a use for this 100 ft. VGA cable, it works perfectly fine! I simply cannot throw it away.” I surround myself with back-ups and what-if’s externally to sooth my raucous internal state. 

 

While Kondo’s book is not written from a Christian point of view, I tried to apply her insights by examining my own heart. I asked myself, how much of the stuff that I buy or surround myself with is me just trying to command my own future instead of trusting Jesus in those parts of my life that I cannot control? And even if you are not a Christian, consider asking yourself, how much of my stuff is just a micro-level proxy for macro-level events that I cannot ever influence?

Yes, I know its a lot. Maybe you just like to have a back-up roll of toilet paper, or an extra tube of toothpaste at home. Its OK if you do. All in all. Kondo’s counter to anxiety and fear is thankfulness and joy.

 

Kondo’s counter to this anxiety and fear is thankfulness and joy.

 

Today, if an object doesn’t give me joy, I should be free to discard it. When my family and friends give gifts, their intention is never to create a burden such that I can never throw away or donate any gift they ever gave. At the same time, throwing away or donating something that I purchased does not mean that my decision making skills are on the decline or that I am being wasteful. We should be thankful for objects that have served their purpose. We can be grateful for the relationships that bring us joy and help us create lasting memories and the objects in the past that helped.

 

-SRS

 

Disclaimer:

The Amazon links used in this post are affiliate links.
If you click through the Amazon links and buy the book, it does NOT cost you anything extra but Amazon does send me a tiny % as a thank you. If you found this helpful, and do decide to get the book, please purchase it through one of the links here.

Thanks