Decluttering: The New Minimalism, Shame and Blame Now Included!
Have you noticed the new trend around decluttering? I feel like every third reel I see is a home organizer saying, “You can’t have clutter when you don’t have any stuff!” in a chipper tone, like that’s something anybody actually wants.
It’s the shiny, new minimalism, except now instead of admiring sleek lines and chrome furniture, it’s all about how it’s YOUR fault. Isn’t that cute? *cue the eye roll*
If you were only emotionally stable enough to get rid of everything you own, you wouldn’t have clutter! If you were only responsible enough to never buy, play, or enjoy anything, your home would be magazine-ready all the time! And best of all, if you just make your new hobby sitting in the middle of an empty floor, counting the lines in between the linoleum, then you’ll never have to worry about cleaning up after a project every again!
Get outta here with that kind of nonsense.
My personal opinion? If your home organizer is telling you that the only way, or even the best way, to be organized is to not have any stuff, then I suspect they don’t actually know how to organize. They only know how to make things LOOK organized by throwing stuff away.
A real organizing specialist will understand that you bought your stuff for a reason – probably, that reason was because you LIKE it. You want stuff in your house! Whether it’s your Lego collection or your quilting supplies, or even your antique uranium glass collection, you don’t need an organizational system that relies on throwing out the things you enjoy. A good system (and a good organizer) will be able to help you create a method to store, use, and enjoy your things in a way that feels easy and fulfilling.
So if you’ve been afraid to get in touch with a professional organizer because the only thing they seem to know how to do anymore is throw away all the stuff you enjoy, I want you to know that’s not always the case. It certainly isn’t for me! I have big hobbies, too, and I like having all my stuff organized and accessible so I can use all of it whenever I want. And that’s what I want for you – a system that makes you feel good about using, displaying, and enjoying your stuff.