Sorry Marie Kondo but You're Wrong About Minimalism
KonMari and Minimalism are not opposites, they’re companions
Simple + Straightforward is a weekly letter filled with essays, tips, and ideas to live life more simply and intentionally. If you find value in it, feel free to share with friends and family you think would enjoy a dose of simplicity every Friday.
Whilst engaging in some desk research for an article this week, I came across a story written by Marie Kondo called:
I have long thought the same. So I clicked through to see what MK has to say about it all.
She indeed does think that minimalism is not the same as KonMari, but for very different reasons from mine. Sadly, her story perpetuates the long-standing myth about Minimalism that has long plagued anyone who identifies as such.
That the only thing minimalists care about is living with less.
MK, I love ya, but you’re wrong on this one.
Here’s why.
“Minimalism advocates living with less; the KonMari Method encourages living among items you truly cherish”
This was the sentence that really got my goat.
In one sense, she’s right. Minimalism does indeed encourage us all to live with less. And yes, the KonMari method does suggest you should only live with items you cherish.
But hell, that’s basically the same side of the same coin, isn’t it?
Modern minimalism is about living with “enough.” Usually, our enough is a much, much lower number than 300,000 - the average number of items in an American household. So yes, almost every single person who turns to minimalism will indeed eliminate some of their stuff.
What’s left, will be what is either useful or cherished.
Just like KonMari.
“Joy is personal […] If minimalism is a lifestyle that sparks joy for someone, I encourage that. […] if someone has determined that many items in their life spark joy, that’s okay, too!”
Marie suggests here that someone who has many items in their life can’t be a minimalist.
I know poppycock when I see it and this is poppycock.
Minimalism is not prescriptive. There is no magic number of possessions a minimalist is supposed to live with. Like your wall of books? Keep your wall of books. Like and use your shoe collection? Great! No one is holding a gun to your head and asking you to throw out what you don’t want to.
The joy of minimalism (or indeed simple living) is that it doesn’t have hard and fast rules. It can be interpreted any way you want that will give you some more joy, peace and contentment in your life.
Regardless of how much crockery you own.
Where I think KonMari differs from Minimalism
For this, I’m turning to something I have written but has not yet been published (watch this space):
The KonMari method I’m sure works well for those who have great piles of excess stuff lying around and are in need of an easy decision-making process.
But the reality is that the method is binary and yet again feeds into the rhetoric that minimalism and simple living is only about decluttering. It also relies heavily on someone’s “gut” feeling and their ability to decipher their feelings in just a few seconds. There is little intentionality to the process and thus people who Marie Kondo their life may well find themselves re-buying exactly what they threw away in the first place.
What Marie Kondo gets right
I feel a bit bad bashing a woman I actually admire, so to make everything right in the universe again, here are some ways MK gets it absolutely spot-on:
She has developed a decision-making process that makes those early decluttering sessions less overwhelming.
She has made millions of people question their relationship with their stuff.
She believes that fewer possessions equal less stress.
She encourages her fans to be mindful of how they donate, sell or throw away their stuff.
She gives items the respect they deserve.
Alas, minimalism has a bit of a bad rep these days. Google minimalism is… and one of the first hits is minimalism is dead.
People don’t want to be told to live with less, they want to be told that they can live with whatever the hell they want, which is exactly what Marie Kondo and minimalists want too.
They go about it in slightly different ways, but both are good weapons to have in our simple living arsenals.
At the end of the day, a simple life is what most of us are striving for. Whether you use minimalism, KonMari, or a healthy mixture of both to help you achieve that is up to you.
KonMari and Minimalism differ, but they are not opposites - they’re companions.
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Something to read this weekend
3 articles from my collection (paywall-free)
How the Croatian Concept of “Pomalo” Can Slow You down and Make You Appreciate the Little Things
According to Science, Spending Your Money in These 6 Ways Can Make You Happier
3 of the best articles I’ve read this week
Why We Don’t Need More “Decluttering Tips” - An Abundant Life with Less
4 Benefits of Cafe Culture and Why We Could Use More of It - Melissa Frost
How to Happily Live in Your Awkward Skin Suit - Lindsay Rae Brown
Sorry Marie Kondo but You're Wrong About Minimalism
Hi, Charlie. Two rooms in my home would horrify both Marie Kondo and you - my basement and my bedroom. I have created a walkable pathway through each of them, which I keep clean and tidy, but stuff is everywhere.
In the past week, I have lost my (not car-related) set of keys, a new bag of Halls cough drops, and my small 2023-24 pocket calendar from my purse. I know it is pointless to look for any of them. They will show up again when they darn well feel like it.
(Here's a spooky story for you: I "lost" my small digital camera for 3 WEEKS in 2019. When I found it again, it was in a tote bag I DID NOT YET OWN at the time I misplaced it. Go figure...). So I know I just have to stop thinking about those keys and they will reappear. I found the OLD bag of Halls on the shelf near my reading chair today, so now I know the "new" bag will turn up soon. As for the new pocket calendar, I really didn't like it anyway, so I likely "lost" it on purpose. I'll go spend $1.50 on a new one and the old one will pop up again; then I can just recycle it. FYI, it took me an HOUR to clear and reorganize one shelf of a 4-shelf bookcase. It's the only one that's "mine" to use as I see fit. That is the #1 reason I HATE decluttering.
Sometimes one must be firm with stuff. I have done purges in the past - I always have done them right before I move household. For the present, it is a matter of making decisions I am not the least bit interested in making. So I'll let my spaces stay cluttered a little while longer.