10/13/2026
Most of the things we choose to keep are giving us something.
Sometimes it helps to figure out what that something actually is. 🤍
I like looking at belongings through three lenses:
UTILITY 🔧
I keep this because it does something for me.
The vacuum. The winter coat. The extra sheets. The kitchen tools. The things that make everyday life function.
PLEASURE ✨
I keep this because it adds something to my experience of life.
The perfume collection. The books. The craft supplies. The ridiculous little trinket that makes you smile every time you see it.
Something does NOT have to be useful to deserve space in your home. Joy is useful enough.
OBLIGATION 🤝
I keep this because I feel some responsibility to.
The heirloom someone entrusted to you. The hand-me-down you feel guilty getting rid of. Your adult child’s boxes in the garage. The perfectly useful thing you’re saving because someone might need it someday.
None of these categories are inherently good or bad, and plenty of belongings could fit into more than one.
What interests me is what happens when one category becomes bigger than the amount of space, energy or attention you actually want to give it.
Maybe your house is full of useful things you could theoretically need, but there are so many that finding the ones you actually use is difficult.
Maybe you have an enormous collection that genuinely brings you enormous joy. That might be space very well spent.
Or maybe a surprising amount of your home is being used to store things you don’t particularly want, use or enjoy because of your relationships, guilt or sense of responsibility toward them.
Organization can help us see all of that more clearly.
So instead of only asking “Should I keep this?”, try asking:
Why am I keeping this?
Utility?
Pleasure?
Obligation?
And then the bigger question:
Is one of those taking up more of my home than I actually want it to? 🤍
