If you’re like me, you may have recently tried to declutter your life. You may have taken nine garbage bags of stuff to the Salvation Army (or tried to sell your stuff to Beacon’s Closet with humiliating results). If you’re like me, your closet and, let’s face it, your entire apartment, still look exactly the same as they did before your decluttering attempts. How did you acquire 11 new tote bags so quickly, am I right? But perhaps that’s okay. I’ve decided that I’m pretty good at being messy. It’s my natural state and perhaps it’s yours, too. I know where all my belongings are and where to find them. Foreign currency? Inside a Ziploc bag inside a Playboy cigar box inside a desk drawer. Sports bra? Hanging on the doorknob. Cats? Everywhere. We all have a system.

So, let’s all learn to embrace the mess. I’ve compiled a few ways to find the joy that comes with leaving your shit everywhere.

Jennifer McCartney is the author of The Joy Of Leaving Your Sh*t All Over the Place: The Art of Being Messy. She has written for the Atlantic, Vice, Teen Vogue, and BBC Radio 4, among other publications.