The problem with sparking joy.
Thanks to Netflix, the world had a renewed love of Marie Kondo's Lifesaving Magic of Tidying Up. I cant go anywhere without someone talking about decluttering items that no longer "spark joy", and the sense of freedom that comes with eliminating unwanted possessions from your life. The new fad is to declutter, to own less, and to love everything you own.
And on the surface, it makes sense. Why hold on to useless junk that makes you miserable? It made sense to me, which is why I headed down my own journey of decluttering, one that lasted several years. I got rid of so many items, much of it documented on YouTube for the world to see.
I even applied the "spark joy" method to my shopping habits, only purchasing items that sparked joy when I tried them on or envisioned them in my daily life. And for a while, it worked really well. I was able to replace my wardrobe with items that I loved, and get rid of a lot of the stuff that I truly didn't need.
But a few years later, I was still decluttering. Why? The Konmari method is supposed to be the end of the decluttering process, but it did not work that way for me. Now to be fair, I did not follow it verbatim, that was too overwhelming for me. But I did a decent job of letting go of items, in my opinion. I found myself questioning my intentions as I watched old YouTube videos of me decluttering old items, and hauling new ones. And the answer was pretty clear.
Items that spark joy at one time may not spark joy later on, and vice versa. And so shopping using the Konmari method was doing me more harm than good. I was buying based on emotion - a terrible habit to feed for an already emotional spender.
The other problem was that the Konmari method didn't help me address my addiction to "stuff". In fact, it enabled me to place even more emotional value on my posessions. So decluttering sparked a need in me to buy new things to replace the things I decluttered resulting in an unhealthy cycle of buying and decluttering.
The Konmari method is just that - a method. It's one approach to stuff that can be a helpful starting point for some, like it was for me. But having less stuff does not equal good spending habits, and so my journey towards minimalism had to come to an end.
Now I've abandoned my minimalist journey to focus on a lifestyle that is budget friendly. And when I think about spending money now, I don't go with what sparks joy. I think about what adds value to my life, and purchase things that I really need.
So there you have it - my critical analysis of Marie Kondo. If you can relate, let me know how you feel in the comments below!
XOXO, Jayy.
And on the surface, it makes sense. Why hold on to useless junk that makes you miserable? It made sense to me, which is why I headed down my own journey of decluttering, one that lasted several years. I got rid of so many items, much of it documented on YouTube for the world to see.
I even applied the "spark joy" method to my shopping habits, only purchasing items that sparked joy when I tried them on or envisioned them in my daily life. And for a while, it worked really well. I was able to replace my wardrobe with items that I loved, and get rid of a lot of the stuff that I truly didn't need.
But a few years later, I was still decluttering. Why? The Konmari method is supposed to be the end of the decluttering process, but it did not work that way for me. Now to be fair, I did not follow it verbatim, that was too overwhelming for me. But I did a decent job of letting go of items, in my opinion. I found myself questioning my intentions as I watched old YouTube videos of me decluttering old items, and hauling new ones. And the answer was pretty clear.
Joy is fleeting.
Items that spark joy at one time may not spark joy later on, and vice versa. And so shopping using the Konmari method was doing me more harm than good. I was buying based on emotion - a terrible habit to feed for an already emotional spender.
The other problem was that the Konmari method didn't help me address my addiction to "stuff". In fact, it enabled me to place even more emotional value on my posessions. So decluttering sparked a need in me to buy new things to replace the things I decluttered resulting in an unhealthy cycle of buying and decluttering.
The Konmari method is just that - a method. It's one approach to stuff that can be a helpful starting point for some, like it was for me. But having less stuff does not equal good spending habits, and so my journey towards minimalism had to come to an end.
Now I've abandoned my minimalist journey to focus on a lifestyle that is budget friendly. And when I think about spending money now, I don't go with what sparks joy. I think about what adds value to my life, and purchase things that I really need.
So there you have it - my critical analysis of Marie Kondo. If you can relate, let me know how you feel in the comments below!
XOXO, Jayy.
Comments
Post a Comment