The KonMari method

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ertyu
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by ertyu »

Lillailler wrote:
Sat Dec 07, 2019 8:51 am
Yes. From a low-cost-living point of view, KonMari is operating at the wrong end of the process.
Definitely. Her approach is more, "Connect to what is important to you. Do your surroundings match that? Let's go through each of your belongings to make sure it's congruent with how you want to live." It assumes that the pile is already in place.

I would argue her approach does lead to a decrease in consumerism, because once most people see how much sheer crap they actually have (the "put it all on a pile" approach is quite good at this), they usually realize how little of it they actually use and how wasteful it is. Also, her folding method is quite good at this. Assuming you can sustain the system, placing things vertically means that you constantly keep seeing and being reminded of all your belongings. So you would have less of that thing where shit gets piled under other shit and gets forgotten about, so when one needs it again they buy new instead of remembering they own it and digging it out.

I personally rather like her approach even though I don't currently practice her organizational system. The woo-woo part appeals to me. I think being mindfully connected to your belongings and transforming your living space into a physical anchor for the idea of your best life is just a good way to live. It is also applicable to all levels of frugality and consumerism, so in that way it is a more general system than the ERE approach to belongings. Though, as I said before, the ERE approach to belongings is essentially the same thing: decide on the central values/how you want to live, then surround yourself with belongings congruent to those values - and here are some strategies and tactics. Also, it would make sense to me that jacob wouldn't find her useful as he has already developed a system filling the need that her system is meant to address.

jacob
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by jacob »

ertyu wrote:
Sat Dec 07, 2019 8:42 pm
Also, it would make sense to me that jacob wouldn't find her useful as he has already developed a system filling the need that her system is meant to address.
"Does it spark WOG-utility?"

One thing I would have loved to see amongst the Kondo people is a more detailed process of getting rid of things rather than literally dumping them in the black hole that is a contractor-grade trash bag before hauling the stuff to the curb or the nearest thrift store where it's quickly out of sight and mind.

I'd like to see people trying to resell their stuff going through the process of listing, sending, dealing with flaky craigslisters, ... just to understand how much harder it is to get rid of things in today's marketplace than it is to acquire them. This might curb the enthusiasm for buying stuff because it sparked joy in the store.

OTOH, within the entire eco-system of stuff, Kondoing also powers threads like the Something for Nothing log... but unfortunately also the giant piles of unsellable stuff in warehouses and landfills.

FBeyer
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by FBeyer »

I didn't dump my stuff, either of the times I decluttered.
How to dispose of new possessions is one of the first things on my mind when I buy something today.
Cheap-ass buyers of second-hand goods are a special breed of people all to themselves man.

It has actually spurred a bit of dissonance, because specialized books are hard to get rid of, which means I buy them digitally, which aren't as good to learn from as paper books (SQ3R reading takes a lot of leafing through), but paper books take up space like a mofo, and they are cheaper but...

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Ego
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by Ego »

FBeyer wrote:
Tue Dec 10, 2019 1:12 pm
Cheap-ass buyers of second-hand goods are a special breed of people all to themselves man.
I will take that as a compliment. :D

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conwy
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by conwy »

I found Fumio Sasaki's 'Goodbye Things' more relatable, being as I am, a perpetual bachelor.

He has some cool ideas about using public space instead of private space. E.g. hanging out in parks or at cafes rather than at home. I like that kind of 'out and about' lifestyle.

He inspired me to pay a bit extra for a good gym membership. I noticed that gym is a space I actually enjoy being in and that's probably good for me to be in a lot, so it makes sense to spend more on gym while keeping other costs, e.g. rent, low.

ertyu
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by ertyu »

conwy wrote:
Tue Dec 10, 2019 7:21 pm
I found Fumio Sasaki's 'Goodbye Things' more relatable, being as I am, a perpetual bachelor.
From another perpetual bachelor, thanks for the link, downloaded. The gym over rent thing is a classic, e.g. vandwellers etc. I also enjoy the use of public space (see my Starbucks habit which is about that to a large extent), so I think I will enjoy this book.

I like minimalism as an idea. It appeals to me in its fantasy state. But I still haven't resolved for myself the conflict between minimalism and frugality. Minimalism is very much non-frugal: see the aforementioned Starbucks habit and gym membership, but also, for instance, frugality often involves repurposing and DIY which requires a selection of tools and spare parts / materials. I have known quite a few frugal tinkerers, and all of them collected random screws in their wives' facial cream plastic tubs and broken shit that could be gutted to make other shit. Their spaces looked like packrat nests, but they could magic up pretty much anything household related: furniture, simple circuits and electronics repair, etc. The female version of this comes with bags and bags or repurposed yarn, buttons, fabric swatches, and sets of needles. [Ideologically, I am against the separation of DIY proficiency by gender, it has just so happened that the DIY-ers I've known are mostly older and thus more traditional].

This seeming conflict is well-known and I'm sure different people have developed their own solutions, but i'm still working at it.

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Re: The KonMari method

Post by jacob »

@ertyu - This minimalism/frugality conflict is constant at ERE HQ and the description is apt even down to the gender. We're also getting rather old :lol: The way we work it out is to stay minimal in the tool department but maximal in the parts department in the sense that nothing is thrown out if it can be used later. Many of the tools are focused on the ability to reform parts into other parts. This is part of the overall "closing the loops" strategy and why we spend almost nothing on "stuff". Generally, parts cost very little and the tools can be resold for about the same price (minus transaction costs) because they're all bought used with the exception of expendables like drill bits, files, or paint brushes.

I will occasionally go through my junk shelves and increase the entropy by stripping things down, throwing things out, ... or otherwise disposing of things. For example, one a year, my neighbor gets all my wood shavings + one box of wood pieces that are too small to do anything with (given that I like to make toy models, that's pretty small) to burn in his fire pit.

FBeyer
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by FBeyer »

Ego wrote:
Tue Dec 10, 2019 1:37 pm
I will take that as a compliment. :D
No. You don't get to wear the asshat badge with any resemblance of pride dudeski!

You have to make an appointment to pick up an electric guitar at cut rates, at 17 on Wednesday, and then show up at 19 Thursday. And THEN you have to call me names over the phone when I tell you that my infant's asleep, and you were supposed to be here YESTERDAY.

Bonus points if you're stoned as fuck too.

Asshats like that made a huge dent in my willingness to acquire stuff these days, tell you that! :lol:

Myakka
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by Myakka »

jacob wrote:
Wed Apr 06, 2016 4:22 pm
I'm wondering whether I should modify the idea from "does this spark joy?" to "does this annoy me?".

It does bother me [a lot] that the default end destination seems to be a land fill. That might be okay for old clothes I don't think it's okay for a fully functional telescope and the likes. I'm sure someone would take them in if posted out front with a free sign on them. Perhaps a solution to this is to mentally depreciate everything to $0. Ugh! Fine if done once, but make a regular habit of it, and we're back to consumerism.
I did "does this annoy me?" and identified several pens that despite appearances were more obstacles to the ones I really wanted than writing tools for me. Subtracting the negatives of items I am routinely dissatisfied with eliminates their call to me to organize them as well. There were similar subtractions in my clothing and jewelry.

And it bothered me too that throwing things out was the default strategy. I have never been willing to deal with reselling them, and typically settle for re-homing them.

Having realized that I never do anyone else's method 100% it is enough that I find somethings to make my routine approach to living a bit better.

tonyedgecombe
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Re: The KonMari method

Post by tonyedgecombe »

Ego wrote:
Thu Jul 07, 2016 12:52 pm
Soon you can be certified in the Kondo method. $1,500 for a three-day session.
You were close, it's actually $2,200:

https://shop.konmari.com/pages/consultants

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