"The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo has reached a lot of people, including me, a nineteen-year-old, a college student and a person who comes from a long line of hoarders. In today's media ,it seems best to have more. A bigger house, a bigger bank account, a bigger car, more friends and more stuff.
After reading Kondo’s first and second book (Spark Joy) I’m a changed woman. I no longer want more, in fact I want less. I got Kondo’s book while I was still in high school, and I read it cover to cover. Then I went through all of my clothes for the first time in probably four years. I went from not having enough room to store it all to having too much room and actually getting rid of some furniture.
When my parents and I moved August 1 of 2016, I went through my clothes again, as well as a lot of my other possessions. When I moved up to North Carolina for school, I went through them again, cherry picking the items that would carry me through the first half of the school year (which at that point was the majority of my wardrobe) and everything fit in one duffel bag.
Since then I have paired down more, got more clothing to replace the items I did away with and gone through my possessions at school a couple more times. Do I qualify as a minimalist yet? Probably not but when I go shopping I always think, “Do I really need this, or do I just want it right now?”
The answer is normally that I just want that item, just that minute. Kondo preaches this concept in her book that if you only keep the items that “spark joy” that you will forever be changed and you will be happier and only bring things into your life that make you happy (as well as be more organized and yada yada yada). I think she’s right.
When you only keep the things you really care about, you are happier. This extends into every part of your life too. So I started with clothes, and then shoes and bags, and then accessories and then moved into books, photos, and more sentimental items. It’s hard getting rid of stuff that you have had nearly your whole life, but if it doesn’t give you joy why should you keep it?
Of course she leaves in that for an item to “spark joy” doesn’t mean that everything you own makes you smile from ear to ear, but that the item has functionality that gives you joy. So my mop doesn’t make me happy, but clean floors do! My tax return doesn’t make me happy, but the fact I don’t have the IRS pursuing me does! When you get rid of the items that make you unhappy, you get happier!
When you get through all of your stuff, you start to look at other things in your life as well, like relationships, or your job, or anything else really. I’ve taken a serious look at my relationships and I choose to only foster the ones that make me happy, and to keep around the people that truly bring me joy as well as seeking out new relationships that bring me joy.
People are a bit harder, but if you dig deep and think hard about the quality of your relationship with someone, whether or not you’re made happier by their presence in your life you can start to tell who your true friends are. You can think about your job, or where you go to school.
Obviously most people don’t love their job, or going to school all the time, but on a whole do you find your time there fulfilling? Is your job JUST about a paycheck, or is it something you are actually interested in and enjoy? I don’t mean to say quit your job right now if you hate it, because sometimes that isn’t possible, but if you know that your current job isn’t fulfilling you can start to look for a new one that will make you happy.
It’s the same with school, we all sort of hate Gen. Ed.s, but do have friends, do you (sort of) enjoy your classes, or at least the ones within your major, do you know that this is the place you really want to graduate from. Its hard to weed through these things sometimes and it forces us to take a deeper look at ourselves and our current situation, but at the end of the day it’s totally worth it.
So pick up a copy of The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up and/or Spark Joy and see what your life can become if you only keep the things that make you truly, and wholly happy.
