Merlin's Review of "It's All Too Much" on Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools
Submitted by Merlin on July 7, 2008 - 9:49am.
As my battle with clutter continues, one of my favorite people (and one of the smartest guys writing for the web, period), Kevin Kelly, noticed my efforts and took note of my affection for Peter Walsh’s wonderful book, It’s All Too Much.
My review for Cool Tools is indeed adapted from a few posts that originated here, but I think it’s worth pointing to because, a) that book has had a huge influence on how I think about my relationship to “stuff,” b) I’m honored that KK liked what I’d had to say about it, and c) if you aren’t already reading Kevin’s sites – particularly his consistently insightful The Technium column – you’d do yourself a favor to get acquainted fast. Kevin’s the real deal.
I also like what Kevin had to add to the review, regarding the need for an “anti-stuff tool”:
Merlin Mann’s review turned me onto this fantastic book. We’ve rethought our household because of it. We were reminded that life is not about stuff; it’s about possibilities, which the right tools can enable. For a world of expanding stuff, this book is the necessary anti-stuff tool.
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When Organizing Isn't Enough
I haven’t read It’s All Too Much yet, but a commenter mentioned it when I reviewed Julie Morgenstern’s new book, When Organizing Isn’t Enough. Her concept of clutter is more complete than what I’m used to coming across in decluttering literature. Her SHED methodology has the reader attack three types of clutter: physical clutter, schedule clutter (meetings), and habit clutter (excessive television watching and internet surfing).
Her premise is that the physical and emotion artifacts that we’ve accumulated over the years amount to a life theme, and that the way out is to define a new theme, keeping only the things in your life that support that theme.