A Pro Weighs In on Decluttering the KonMari Way
As Marie Kondo’s Netflix series sparks an organizing blitz, an expert discusses the practicality of 7 KonMari principles
The KonMari decluttering method is all the rage again, prompting people all over the world to sort through their stuff. If you’ve missed Marie Kondo’s books, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up and Spark Joy, and her new Netflix series, Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, here’s a look at seven key KonMari principles. As someone whose job is to help others get organized, I’ve added my own views and other ideas to help you determine the best decluttering method for you.
Australian professional organizer, author and TV show host Peter Walsh agrees. “The key to getting — and staying — organized is to look beyond the stuff and imagine the life you could be living,” he writes in his 2006 book, It’s All Too Much.
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2. Discard First, Organize Second
There’s no point in organizing stuff you won’t be keeping. And until you’ve decluttered, it’s hard to figure out the best location and storage system for the items you’ve decided to keep. So by all means, begin by eliminating things.
Other long-established professional organizers follow this principle in their decluttering methods. For example, Julie Morgenstern’s formula, SPACE, stands for sort, purge, assign a home, containerize and equalize. Sara Pedersen promotes PEACE, or process and sort, edit the clutter, assign a home, containerize and label, and ensure success.
There’s no point in organizing stuff you won’t be keeping. And until you’ve decluttered, it’s hard to figure out the best location and storage system for the items you’ve decided to keep. So by all means, begin by eliminating things.
Other long-established professional organizers follow this principle in their decluttering methods. For example, Julie Morgenstern’s formula, SPACE, stands for sort, purge, assign a home, containerize and equalize. Sara Pedersen promotes PEACE, or process and sort, edit the clutter, assign a home, containerize and label, and ensure success.
3. Discard All at Once
Kondo advocates for an intense and complete purge, but this principle isn’t always realistic, in my opinion. If your clutter is the result of years of accumulation, discarding it is unlikely to be a one-time affair. Think about all the stuff you have to face and all the decisions you have to make — ones you may have postponed for years. It can be overwhelming and result in decision fatigue! Under the pressure to discard, you may make decisions you eventually regret, and that thought may even paralyze you.
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Kondo advocates for an intense and complete purge, but this principle isn’t always realistic, in my opinion. If your clutter is the result of years of accumulation, discarding it is unlikely to be a one-time affair. Think about all the stuff you have to face and all the decisions you have to make — ones you may have postponed for years. It can be overwhelming and result in decision fatigue! Under the pressure to discard, you may make decisions you eventually regret, and that thought may even paralyze you.
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If you start small instead and discard the stuff you feel confident about, without any pressure, you’ll build your decluttering muscle, learn to make tougher decisions and let go of stuff you thought you would never be rid of.
10 Times to Hire a Professional Organizer
10 Times to Hire a Professional Organizer
4. Sort by Category
Although it may be overwhelming to see how many clothes or kitchen utensils you own, sorting by category, instead of location, is an eye-opener that can motivate you to act upon your clutter and help you decide what to keep. This principle isn’t practical, however, if you have a lot of similar items scattered around your home — some you can’t even remember or easily access.
Although it may be overwhelming to see how many clothes or kitchen utensils you own, sorting by category, instead of location, is an eye-opener that can motivate you to act upon your clutter and help you decide what to keep. This principle isn’t practical, however, if you have a lot of similar items scattered around your home — some you can’t even remember or easily access.
In this situation, I’d advise you to do a first round of decluttering by going progressively through your home, room by room, area by area. At that stage, let go of the obvious — broken toys, stained or irreparably torn clothes, old magazines and newspapers, expired food and cosmetics. In the process, consolidate like items together and assign a home to each category. Once you’ve completed that first round, review each category, go through another round of decluttering and, if need be, relocate the category to the most suitable spot.
5. Sort in the Correct Order
Kondo advises sorting clothes first, followed by books, documents, miscellany and sentimental items. I, however, believe that there’s no one-size-fits-all order. It has to be the correct order for you. We all relate differently to stuff. I had a client who was extremely attached to her books and couldn’t imagine getting rid of any of them, though she knew she had to. We had to tackle them toward the end of the decluttering process, or it would’ve taken much longer and been way more tedious.
Kondo advises sorting clothes first, followed by books, documents, miscellany and sentimental items. I, however, believe that there’s no one-size-fits-all order. It has to be the correct order for you. We all relate differently to stuff. I had a client who was extremely attached to her books and couldn’t imagine getting rid of any of them, though she knew she had to. We had to tackle them toward the end of the decluttering process, or it would’ve taken much longer and been way more tedious.
To help you decide where to start, think about the following criteria:
- Your level of attachment to various categories of items. The less you are attached, the easier it will be for you to let go and build momentum. If you have less attachment to your clothes than other categories of items, start there. Otherwise think about your kitchen or your desk or your storeroom.
- Your stress level in relation to the room. Perhaps the clutter in your bedroom disturbs you the most because it’s the first thing you see when you open your eyes in the morning and the last thing when you close them at night.
- Your objective for getting organized. If your goal is to be able to entertain at home, you may want to start in the living room. If it’s about easily putting a meal on the table, you may want to begin in the kitchen.
6. Keep Only Things That ‘Spark Joy’
The principle that I find really ground-breaking in the KonMari method is to keep only things that, in Kondo’s words, “spark joy.” More traditional approaches tend to focus on letting go of stuff that we don’t love, need or use, or that is no longer in good or working condition. But focusing on the keeping instead of the letting go makes the decluttering experience more positive.
The principle that I find really ground-breaking in the KonMari method is to keep only things that, in Kondo’s words, “spark joy.” More traditional approaches tend to focus on letting go of stuff that we don’t love, need or use, or that is no longer in good or working condition. But focusing on the keeping instead of the letting go makes the decluttering experience more positive.
This idea doesn’t mean you have to let go of every item that fails to make you happy. Be practical — think about the pots and pans that you need to feed your family, for example. Honor the memories and still keep sentimental things that belonged to your late husband or parent until it’s the right time to pass them on to your children.
7. Thank Discarded Items for Their Service
Thanking inanimate objects may appeal to people who form strong emotional attachments to their stuff, as it may help them let go more easily and have closure. This principle did wonders for a teenage boy I worked with, but most of my clients haven’t related to it and felt awkward when we tried to apply it.
In my view, if you feel confident in your decisions about the stuff you decide to discard, you won’t need this ritual.
Thanking inanimate objects may appeal to people who form strong emotional attachments to their stuff, as it may help them let go more easily and have closure. This principle did wonders for a teenage boy I worked with, but most of my clients haven’t related to it and felt awkward when we tried to apply it.
In my view, if you feel confident in your decisions about the stuff you decide to discard, you won’t need this ritual.
Tell us: Have you been decluttering your home using the KonMari method? How has it worked for you? Let us know in the Comments.
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Find pro organizers and closet designers near you
Shop for storage and organization products
More on Houzz
Can Tidying Up Result in Life-Changing Magic?
‘Tidying Up’ Author Marie Kondo Tells How to ‘Spark Joy’ at Home
Find pro organizers and closet designers near you
Shop for storage and organization products
Decluttering is a means to an end, not an end in itself. You’re not getting organized for the sake of being organized but rather for a real benefit. Perhaps you want to have more time for your family or for a class that will help you advance your career. Or maybe you want to reduce stress or debt. Visualizing the outcome makes sense because it will give you the motivation to get started and to keep going when the going gets tough.