The 17 Most Important Things Marie Kondo Says To Discard |

If you’re looking for a quick win on your tidying journey, this is it. After reading Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up I gathered up the 17 most important things Marie Kondos says to discard. They are broken down by small categories and are quick wins for even a beginner.

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I Read “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up”

I’ve been meaning to read one of the New York Times bestsellers, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up”, Marie Kondo’s book. Not because I want to be a minimalist, but because I wanted an effective way to declutter and organize my things and to gain a better understanding of what it means to live a minimalistic life. I am not a fan of having too much stuff and clutter because it actually causes overstimulation and I’ve recognized that over the years. Who doesn’t want a tidy house?

My brain literally shuts off if it’s being asked to process too much at once. Don’t get me wrong, I love multitasking at times, however, when I see a visible mess everywhere plus the hubby is asking me a question, plus the baby is crawling up my leg, I lose my shit.

Over time I realized that when there were fewer piles of stuff around and it was organized, my brain was calmer and I could process things quickly and easily.

I had heard about Marie Kondo (who hasn’t at this point?) and her very unique minimalistic style. I knew I’d never be that intense about it, because hello I have two kiddos and I do actually like things, but I did want to minimize it so I knew I needed to learn more and have a true goal of working towards minimalism the best I could. She also has a Netflix series if you’re interested in watching that as well.

Check out the book on Amazon:

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Decluttering, Discarding, and Storing

Marie Kondo’s method of the Japanese art of decluttering focuses on discarding unwanted items and storage of items that bring you joy. The two main components she focuses on are discarding and storage. As you work through each category she outlines, the first step is to declutter the items in that category and discard what does not spark joy for you then you decide where to store those items.

There are some very specific things that Marie Kondo advocates you discard and if you follow these suggestions it will give you a good head start on your decluttering and/or minimalism journey. Here are the 17 things Marie Kondo says to discard.

What is the KonMari Method?

The KonMari Method is a very specific approach to tidying up by category, not by room or location as you’d typically do. Instead of tackling your bedroom, you’d first tackle all your clothing in the whole house then move on to the next category.

The method seems very different, but it’s actually the best way to be efficient when decluttering because your mind is able to focus on only one type of item at a time. Traditionally, you are going through room by room and your mind actually has to adjust each time you pick up a new item to decide if you’re going to keep it or discard it.

Marie Kondo’s method is to gather all clothing (again she breaks this down into categories as well) and throw it in one huge pile then one by one make decisions.

Another key aspect to her method is the fact that she recommends tidying up quickly and in a short time frame rather than over time or “as you go”. She preaches tidying up as a marathon and not a sprint.

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What are the Marie Kondo Categories?

Through her experience with lots of clients, Marie Kondo breaks her categories down and suggests you tackle them in this specific order:

Clothing
Books
Papers
Miscellaneous Items
Sentimental Things

For the first category, clothing, Marie Kondo believes in breaking it down into micro-categories to increase efficiency. This is actually pretty helpful and not as overwhelming. For clothing, it looks like this:

Tops (shirts, sweatshirts, sweaters, etc.)
Bottoms (pants, skirts, etc.)
Clothes that are hung up (jackets, coats, suits, etc.)
Socks
Underwear
Bags
Accessories
Special Occasion Clothing (swimsuits, uniforms, dresses, etc.)
Shoes

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Decluttering Identification Process

Once you gather all items in the category you’re working on, you throw it all in one big pile in a room. Make sure to go through every room that would have these items so you don’t have to go back.

Adding all the items in one big pile allows you to see just how many unnecessary items you actually have in that category. It’s actually very eye-opening especially when it’s your entire household’s items together. It both makes you grateful for all you have and sad that you’ve spent so much money on “stuff”.

Decluttering Criteria

Ok, I really love that Marie Kondo keeps the focus on what sparks joy when decluttering and discarding. If you only have to focus on what makes you happy, it’s easier to discard the rest.

She asks several times in the book, “Does it spark joy?” and if it doesn’t, toss it! If it does, no matter what it is, keep it.

I am all about this method and I think it’s simple and easy to implement which are my favorite things. However, for someone like my hubby who finds function in literally everything, he struggles more with getting rid of stuff.

He sees something and says well, what if I need it or I could use it and repurpose it. He also thinks that if it’s functional, why get rid of it? Why not keep it around just in case?

For me, I need the clutter to be gone and it’s not worth it to keep it around if I haven’t touched it in 6 months. For me, this “sparks joy” system really works, but you have to also consider the other family members who live with you and try to either get them on board or find a balance.

Be Ok with Good Enough

We aren’t all minimalists and we are for sure not all perfect. The idea here is progress, not perfection. When reading her book it was hard not to think that I needed to be perfect when doing this because she makes it sound so easy and the result sounds like heaven, but for some, it’s just not realistic.

You have to realize that you may stress yourself out more trying to achieve her version of perfection that it may not be worth it. Instead, try to achieve your version of “good enough” and be content with that.

Here Are The 17 Things Marie Kondo Suggests Discarding

1) Things That Don’t “Spark Joy”

This is the number one phrase Marie Kondo is known for and for a good reason; it’s a simple concept to grasp and implement for anyone. Does the item you’re holding spark any joy for you when you look at it?

It could spark a memory, a thought, a smile, etc., but it needs to provoke some positive emotion otherwise it should be tossed.

I do struggle with this concept when it comes to functional items such as a lawn mower. Does the actual item spark joy for me? That’s a hard no in my book, but does a nicely trimmed lawn spark joy? That’s gonna be a hell yes. Make sure to take this into consideration when implementing this concept at home.

2) All Unread Books

Remember our 90-90 rule? This can be used for a lot of these categories, but especially with books. If you haven’t read a book in the last 90 days and you can’t see yourself reading it in the next 90 days, that’s 6 months of an item not being used. It’s the right time to donate it to thrift stores!

3) Reference Books

Reference books are things like study guides from college, dictionaries (hey, they’re digital now), high school textbooks, reference material, etc. Again, if you haven’t looked at these in awhile, what makes you think you’ll need them in the future? I’m sure especially with this category the books are just collecting dust at this point.

Unless you work in a field where you are using these reference books on a regular basis, they need to go. Most information in these books is outdated anyways at this point.

4) Papers

Decluttering paper can be difficult if you don’t have a system in place. However, once you do an initial declutter and start using an easy system consistently, paper clutter will never haunt you again.

This includes magazines, coupons, bills, receipts, credit card statements, mortgage paperwork, old warranties, handbooks/manuals, cards/invitations, paychecks, etc.

I’m pretty confident the paper clutter also doesn’t spark joy so this is an easy category to get rid of once and for all and just maintain as it comes in each week.

You do need to consider paper that may need to be kept long term though. The Marie Kondo method has 3 exceptions to the basic rules you need to consider; paper that you’re using now, paper that is needed for a short amount of time, and then paper that you need to keep forever (think passports, social security cards, marriage license, birth certificate, etc.). If you follow my paper decluttering system, it will help you sort and store these items as well.

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5) Gifts

How many times do you receive a gift that is just not your style? In these situations, I think the best option is to never let it become a part of your home at all. Rather, immediately return it, sell it or donate it. Make a habit of getting rid of it immediately rather than keeping it around because you may feel guilty.

You can definitely appreciate the thought that went into the gift, but you don’t have to feel like you must keep it because someone else gave it to you.

6) Cosmetic Samples

Yes, I did sign up for those Fab Fit Fun boxes for awhile and yes, I still have some leftover samples. Once I thought about it more, the samples are nice when you want to try out a product you’re interested in, however, a subscription-like that will bombard you with samples that you’ll never be able to use.

You may think you’ll use the samples when traveling, but how many times do you actually remember you have those samples and bring them? Yah, like none, right?

Following the “spark joy” and “90-90” rule, cosmetic samples will probably not make the list to keep unless you’re a makeup/skincare junkie and these things bring you pure joy.

7) Electronic Packages

This is one of the easiest ways to reduce waste; get rid of boxes that all your “stuff” comes in. Not even just electronic boxes, all boxes! Even in your pantry. I’ve learned that boxes actually take up a ton of space unless they are specifically for storage and you fill them to the max.

People tend to keep the boxes from their electronics like a new computer or cell phone because they either think they may sell it in the future or they are worried they may need to return it.

Keep the box for 30 days max if you need to and once you are happy with the device, toss it!

Some people also keep boxes “just in case” they ever move. First of all, if you don’t actually have plans to move, that’s not realistic, but if you do and it’s in the future, don’t keep the boxes around just for that.

It’s easier to buy the boxes or ask around once you actually need them instead of storing them.

8) Unidentified Cords

Ok, who doesn’t have a random drawer or bag full of these spare cords for your cell phones, iPod, and similar items. Keep enough cords so you can charge the current amount of electronic devices you actually use. You’ll know how many you need because you should be constantly using them.

I try to only keep 1-2 spares for trips or when friends/family come to stay and they need one. I only keep extras for commonly used electronics like phones and iPads. Everything else can go!

The key here is if you don’t know what the cord goes to, get rid of it!

9) Broken Appliances

I’m honestly not really sure why people would keep broken appliances or anything broken for that matter around the house. If you can’t fix it or you don’t plan on fixing it, toss it!

It’s costing you more money and headspace to store it than it is to just buy a new appliance if you really do need it.

10) Spare Sets Of Bedding

Marie Kondo suggests that you only keep extra bedding/towels if you have guests stay over frequently otherwise, get rid of literally all the extra bedding, comforters, towels, etc.

Usually people change up their bedding or bathroom decor and keep their old items as backup, but Kondo says to just get rid of it! If you don’t rotate those items out frequently from the closet they’ll start to smell anyways so what’s the point?

I think my one exception to this is if you have small kids. Do you know how often they wet the bed or smear marker on their bedding? It’s a lot, let me tell you.

I keep a spare set of bedding for each kid and that seems to be enough, but I can’t imagine not having a spare for kids when accidents happen at any time.

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11) Spare Buttons

I mean, this one seems so obvious once you think about it, but this wasn’t at the top of my list for items I need to work on decluttering because I usually toss these anyways.

Seriously, think about it…are you really going to go find that exact button for your shirt if one pops off to sew on? And, how often do buttons really pop off clothing? Lastly, are you actually going to take the time to fix it?

I would have to say most people are not going to take the time to even fix the shirt so just toss these as soon as you remove the tag!

12) Products From The Latest Health Craze

Oh my gosh, this is so true! How many people buy into the latest and greatest workout equipment and then it eventually starts collecting dust in the corner or in the garage? Believe me, I have in the past for sure.

The health industry is so enormous and they clearly know how to target those wanting that perfect body. Let me save you some money and a bit of decluttering by telling you that you are perfect the way you are and you don’t need the gimmicks they try to sell.

Invest in some self love, healthy foods, and at the most a gym membership so you don’t collect the random equipment or products. This way you can still use the equipment, but it’s not your investment.

13) Free Novelty Items

There is something about getting free crap that we just love. We can’t help ourselves no matter what it is. You go to a baseball game and they throw random stuff into the audience and it’s the worst stuff ever made, but we want it because it’s free. You will probably never look at it or wear it, but hey, it’s free, right?

Gosh, let me save you some major decluttering effort here and just convince you that you don’t need this stuff.

Also, do they really spark joy for you? If they do, by all means, keep it, but if not, don’t take it to begin with and save yourself a lot of time.

14) Random Small Change

This is somewhat of an odd item that Marie Kondo suggests not keeping around, spare change. She doesn’t say to throw it away, but instead she says that this is money and it should be spent so do that! Keep it in your wallet and spend it, don’t keep it in a jar or piggy bank in your home.

Now, I slightly disagree again with having kids. Having a visual tool that fills up over time to show them what hard work can do is a great thing for kids. I agree that adults don’t need to keep spare change around, but I’m still keeping my kid’s piggy banks for teaching moments.

15) Items that Provide Sentimental Value

Ok, so clearly going through sentimental items is the hardest category to go through which is why Marie Kondo keeps it as the last category. There are some difficult items to declutter in this category.

Her theory is that we should be appreciating the actual memories, not the things that spark these memories. However, I slightly disagree with this statement, only because some people need a smell or visual to spark those memories to begin with.

So again, if these items spark joy, keep them. If they spark joy because that’s the way you actually remember those memories, then they are relevant. However, also consider how often you actually look through these items. I think that’s really her point here. They may spark joy, but if you never actually look at them, why keep them?

If these items are actually bringing up bad memories and what you remember when you see them is not joy, I do think this is a great tactic to use to rid yourself of maybe some extra baggage you didn’t know you were carrying around with you.

16) Photos

Kondo suggests leaving this category until the end as well because by now, you’ve honed in on what sparks joy and you’ve mastered the process. Sorting will become easier and you will be amazed at how fast you can sort through a large sum of photos. She suggests taking all photos out and going through them one by one as each one will show a special event or time that should spark joy to avoid the discard pile.

17) Unusual Stockpiles

Kondo talks about her clients and how some of them store an absurd amount of backstock for items like toilet paper, paper towels, etc. I understand having a supply, but think of how much space all the extra can take up?? You aren’t actually using these items, it’s more so you don’t run out of essentials when you need them.

We actually don’t have much storage space at home so we don’t have the ability to even have a large stockpile. The best approach for my family is that when we need to replace something like toilet paper, we grab the next roll from my small stockpile in the garage, and when we get down to about 2-3 rolls, we add it to our Costco list for the week.

Using Amazon’s subscribe feature is great for this as well. You don’t need to keep a stockpile because you can set commonly used items to auto-ship based on the frequency you use them. Plus you get a small discount for using the feature!

We have things like diapers, wipes, dry shampoo, hairspray, and vitamins set to auto-ship at different intervals. I get hairspray every 6 months and that way as soon as I’m running low, another one is already on the way and now I’m just rotating the items, not stockpiling them.

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Tidying Up is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

I do love the idea that Marie Kondo suggests the best method is based on quickly decluttering and discarding rather than doing a small amount over time for a clutter-free home. It’s really best to rip the bandaid off quickly if you can. Sometimes decluttering, discarding, and sorting is really not fun for people, but the result it creates is where the joy comes in and should be the end goal.

This may be very hard for those of us who are extremely busy but to get it done quickly, dedicate a few weekends to really tackling your whole house. The best advice is to pawn off those kiddos to your parents, inlaws or whoever will take them for a few weekends and really dig in.

Marie Kondo highly discourages making small improvements in chunks, but sometimes that’s all we really have as busy moms. Do what you have to to get it done as quick as possible, but again, realize that progress is the most important here.

Now, get ready to tackle the 17 most important things Marie Kondo says to discard and get ready to make some progress on your decluttering/minimalism journey.

I can’t wait to see what you all get done. Please share some before and after photos that show your journey of tackling these 17 areas. I’d love to see what’s working for you and where you may need more help. Send your photos to alreadytiredtomorrow@gmail.com