There are certain places in our homes where we leave out items because we think it is more convenient. For example, we leave something on a counter because it is easier for us to grab it the next time we need it.
We see this happen at countless places in our home: the kitchen, the bathroom, the living room, the office, the bedroom.
Consider items like:
- small appliances on our kitchen counters
- toiletries beside our bathroom sinks
- office supplies on our home-office desktop
- DVDs on the entertainment center
- tools on our tool benches
- art supplies, keys, canisters, magazines, newspapers, a knife block
By leaving these things out in the open, we think we’re saving time when we need them and we think we’re simplifying our lives, but the result is anything but. I call this the “convenience fallacy.” And it’s a huge source of the visual clutter in our homes.
Sure, by leaving them out, you may save a couple of seconds when you want to grab one of them. But for the other 99.9 percent of the time they’re sitting out, where they create visual distraction, get in the way, add to the disorganization of our spaces, and attract more clutter.
Consider those old CDs you’ve held on to for years in a CD tower in your family room. Since it would take very little time to pull a CD out of a storage cabinet and put it back when you’re done, wouldn’t it be better to store them out of sight instead of where it’s contributing to clutter and acting as a visual distraction in your space?
The same goes for most, if not all, of the things we leave out for “convenience” around the house. They actually spend far more time as clutter than in service to our lives and our environment.
For example, if you make toast for breakfast, it will take you roughly three minutes to toast your bread. After that, the toaster will sit unused, on your countertop, for the next twenty-three hours and fifty-seven minutes.
Is leaving the toaster out where it’s taking up space and creating visual distraction worth the few seconds you will save pulling it out when you’re ready to drop your slice of bread into it in the morning? Think of all the times you’ve needed to move it to clean around, or behind, or had to shuffle it about to create more working space on your counter.
Rather than allowing these appliances to take up space, find a home for them in an easily accessed part of the kitchen, such as inside a cabinet or on a shelf. When you do, you will immediately reduce the amount of visible clutter for both you and your guests.
How to Overcome the Convenience Fallacy:
1. Notice, and identify. Look around the room you are sitting in right now—maybe you are reading this in your living room, your bedroom, great room, or office (or maybe you need to wait until you get home). Where can you see the convenience fallacy at play? A coffee maker, a teapot, a blender, a video game controller, a stack of unread magazines or newspapers, a stapler, maybe even an unnecessary clock. Take note of how many items you leave out simply for “convenience-sake.”
2. Clear unneeded possessions from cabinets and drawers. One reason, understandably, people leave items out on visible surfaces is because their cabinets are so full, they don’t have space for those appliances to be put away anyway. In order to overcome the convenience fallacy in your home, you’ll actually need to minimize the possessions that are hidden away. But once you’ve gotten rid of things in your drawers and cabinets and under the sink, you can put more things away and keep that counter beautifully clean.
3. Find a new home, out-of-sight. Organizers will tell you it is best to keep the most-frequently used items in-front of rarely-used items, so they are easier to reach. That is good advice. Which of the items on your counter really do get used? And on what basis? Keep the most frequently used items stored out of sight, but near the front so they are easy to reach. In my home, that means the toaster and the coffee maker are in the front of our kitchen cabinet, while the tea pot and hand mixer are in the back… and the canisters of baking goods are kept in the pantry.
4. Be intentional at the beginning to store items away. Habits can be tough to break. Once you have found a new home for your Convenience Items, be intentional and diligent to put them away—especially at the beginning. After a short while, you will begin to appreciate the empty space and those items will feel like clutter when you forget to put them away. But at the beginning, you’ll need to re-program yourself through intention to put things away immediately after use.
5. Take special note of the new, empty space. There is wonderful possibility in empty spaces. It keeps our eyes, minds, and attention focused on other things than material possessions. An empty space can be used for anything, at any time. Energy is free to flow. And an uncluttered space is less likely to attract more clutter. Notice these benefits as you clear surfaces and keep them clutter free.
There are many different factors that contribute to the clutter in our home. The “convenience fallacy” is one of the them. Now that you are aware of it, notice it in your own home and I’ll work to notice it in mine. And together, we’ll live more focused, intentional lives, focused on the things that matter.
Angela Christian Pope says
The biggest issue with this is getting the rest of the family to participate. Living with a hubby who likes to visually locate things has been a challenge. We have two children. One lives by my philosophy of put everything away. The other likes things out like his dad. We are SLOWLY retraining said father and son.
Jason says
The toaster problem – moving the toaster around leaves a trail of crumbs worthy of Hansel and Gretal – no matter how many times you clean it out. A little counter clutter is an acceptable trade off!
Tracey Waterreus says
I have a possible solution….I bought a small tray for my toaster to sit on.
To be honest – by unplugging it and putting it away each day it might help me to remember to tip out those crumbs, tap tap, and then put it away – instead of leaving it to the next time i do a thorough clean of the counter :)
This advise is inspired but my husband is gonna hate it lol. He too loves the convenient factor but you are so right. Some weeks we dont use the toaster AT ALL. And yet there it sits….why didnt i think of doing this before? Oh i know, coz my cupboards are full ha ha.
Sarah Sudhā says
yes~ thank you again & again ….
I was just explaining this to a friend last night ~
I find that each time that you put an object back in its place it is an honoring or engaging with that object in a way that affects the energy of that item and of course the whole space in which we live. Every time you find a good space for an item, and it becomes its’ home… then every time you return the item to its’ home it re-clarifies the energy of the whole room, house. The whole act of returning the item to its’ place automatically brings presence and reverence to the item, to the room as a whole and to one’s self if we can open to more subtle levels of perception. It is where form & function meet.
Keep your fresh reframes coming. I am just glad to have the conversation even if it is digital exchange.
Anna says
Thanks for this very helpful article! Inspired by this idea, yesterday I put toaster, chopping boards, knives, paper towel, jar of pens & scissors, & stovetop espresso maker into cupboards and drawers. My kitchen feels so calm and relaxing now! It’s much easier to quickly clean the benches now. I had 8 women from church over this morning and it was so easy to use the benches for food prep & to put dishes on.
I’ll definitely carry the concept to other rooms in my house. Thanks!
Carol says
I agree with the concept in theory, but feel like you can go overboard with it. Yes, we only brew a pot of coffee a day, but we leave for work before it has cooled down, and then set it up for the next morning on a timer after dinner for the next day. We also use the toaster oven and microwave just enough to making trying to stash them away insanely inconvenient. I’m a pretty avid cook and like to have wooden spoons and such in a container by the stove where I can grab them easily as I cook. Ditto olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Does the kitchen look spartan? No. But it looks like a kitchen someone can cook in.
Kathleen says
I have always been a neat and organized person, however even though all my stuff was organized, when reading about minimalism, I realized that I still had too much stuff.
Too much in my cupboards and closets, too much on surfaces and too much buying and keeping stuff that I didn’t need, didn’t use or didn’t even like.
I do not consider myself minimalist. I am Not a vegan, I own more than 2 forks and a mattress and I like having some meaningful home décor and art on my walls.
However, since turning 40 in the beginning of 2019, I have decided to get rid of the stuff I no longer wanted! I went though all my rooms, closets, cabinets and bins; and donated, discarded and reorganized my life.
I no longer bring home crap just for the sake of owning more stuff. I appreciate the things I own and think twice before spending money on stuff that I have to maintain, organize and store.
I am much happier and feel more free.
I thank you for giving me a chance to speak from my heart :)
eema says
awesome attitude!
Geri says
I absolutely love this and will be spending all evening sorting out my kitchen…..I started putting my toaster away after each use last year and it’s now a habit, so bring on the rest of it! :o)
Amy | More Time Than Money says
As a reforming messy person, this is great advice and has really worked for me. By decluttering things that I no longer need, I’ve got room to readily put away and retrieve the things that I do.
While not a huge fan of the KonMari method (or the way it’s interpreted by many western consumers), her advice on this topic really clicked for me – store things so that they are easy to put away, rather than easy to access. Makes keep clutter at bay much easier.
RR says
Interesting comments from many! As someone mentioned, having a clutter free environment which works for your family will look different for everyone which is a good thing. There is no “judgment” for folks who choose to leave appliances on counters because that is what is preferred or needed due to disability. A few things that work for me (but not everyone!) as examples: I use a large french press for coffee – easy and light to clean and put away plus no filters to purchase just to throw away! I love toast but gave away my toaster and just place the slices on my oven rack – perf toast every time and can make as many pieces as needed for breakfast company at one time. For the dish cloths – super gluing some clear hooks on the inside of the sink cabinet get them out of the way and they dry nicely (works here as the cabinet under the sink is clear of cleaners other than the ones made from vinegar and baking soda – CHEAP!). The NICE Cutco knives come with sheaths so they are safely stored in a drawer (they stay much cleaner that way too…). Maybe other brands of knives come with sheaths? A magnet strip inside cabinet doors may also be a nice and safe (cleaner for the knives) way to get rid of the knife block. The microwave is obviously on the counter as is the hand soap dispenser by the sinks! Lots of folks have medicines and supplements that need to be out as reminders to take them. My mom used a basket to keep them “contained” nicely as well as PRIVATE in her bathroom or kitchen (I don’t think her friends were the nosy types to pick through the bottles!). Colored stickers on the lids made it easy to pick out the AM, noon and PM pills to take from the basket. I find that simplifying our ways of thinking about what we need out and about is a good journey. As well as thinking back to how we managed before all of these appliances (toasters, coffee makers, etc) and other organizational needs (knife blocks, spice racks, etc) were met with the marketing of “GOTTA HAVE IT”. At the end of the day, being comfy in our homes via our needs and preference is the best in whatever way we see fit!!
Kathryn says
I truly do wonder where to put the wet bar or bottle of soap after washing hands or dishes. And the moist dish towel. Where do you store those items out of view? Just wondering…
Ruth says
I don’t. I have a dispenser for liquid soap in the bathroom and one in the kitchen. I hang the dishcloth on the sink so it drys out. Dishwashing liquid is under the sink though. Having a dishwasher, I don’t use it everyday. I know my mum had a rail on the inside of the cupboard under the sink where she could hang the dishcloth (it can dry there), so that would be an alternative. There is nothing wrong with having a few items on benchtops that get used all the time. We also have a large water filter jug with a tap, the large coffee machine and kettle on ours. These items are in a small section of bench that is not used so much. We only have a small kitchen so space is precious. That is why the rest is clear.