Make the Dark Knight’s Organizational Philosophy Work for You: Batfleck’s Batcave, Article #5
Welcome to this, now 5th, article in this series on the Batcave from 2016’s Batman v Superman. If you’re looking for where this Batcave article series began, you can go here for a complete breakdown of Batfleck’s Batcave. Whereas articles 1-4 covered the various rooms of the Batcave and what’s contained therein, we can now turn our attention towards the all-important question –
How Can I Build My Own Batcave?
Why did this particular iteration of Batman organize the Batcave this way? I’ll say up top that this organizational pattern might not appeal to all or work for everyone. It’s not meant to be presented as the one and only, end all, be all way of doing things. In fact, it’s not even the only way Batman’s preferences have been portrayed on the silver screen. However, there is definitely something alluring about how this Batman’s (Batfleck’s) whole system is put together. If this appeals to you or if you want to incorporate some parts of the Batman’s organizational ideas then read on.
The Batcave supports Batman in both function and in purpose in his mission to protect Gotham. This we know. But how? And more importantly, how can understanding this help us make our own space more functional and with greater purpose? Bruce has undoubtedly gone through several evolutions of the cave throughout his career. This version features four important guiding principles that underpin the use and ethos of the Batcave.
These principles take into account the features of the Batcave through the lenses of What, How, and Why. Beginning with this article, we’ll view each one of these principles and learn how to make them work for us. Using these methods will have you building your own Batcave with intention from the start. And if you’ve already got a dedicated space, they’ll help you to improve your own personal Batcave, whether that be your office, studio, garage, she shed, or workshop, etc. Let’s start with the first principle of Batman’s Batcave- Essentialism.
Essentialism in the Batcave (the what)
I almost called this section Minimalism, which we alluded to, briefly, all the way back at the beginning of this article series. If you’ve never heard of Marie Kondo or have been living under a rock, minimalism, as it applies to lifestyle design, is about owning only what you need or only that which enriches your life. Similarly, I like Greg McKeown’s definition of Essentialism (not the philosophical definition) because it focuses on how one spends their time and energy. In other words, one should spend their time and energy on what is truly important to that person, as opposed to the mentality of “doing it all”.
Batman is certainly laser focused on his essential purpose of protecting Gotham. And it is this essentialism that permeates the Batcave. It increases its functionality by removing distractions and gives clarity of purpose by aligning every single tool and resource in the Batcave with Batman’s primary purpose in life- to stop criminals from imposing their will and to make Gotham safe for its citizens.
Marie Kondo’s KonMari method is closely related to Essentialism, only it’s a specific form of it that pertains to living spaces, traditionally encompassing an entire household. You may want to try this out for yourself, but that’s really outside the scope of this article. For our purposes, we’re going to keep this method in mind as it pertains to one’s workspace. As Kondo states in her own The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, “Everyone Needs a Sanctuary”.
If we put these two ideas together, Essentialism and the KonMari method, we can say that Batman houses everything in the Batcave that he needs, nothing which he does not, and does this in service of his essential mission to protect Gotham from the criminals which threaten it. Did Batman hire a sweet little Japanese professional organizer to come KonMari his Batcave!? Hell no, but that doesn’t mean KonMari can’t help you fix up your workspace in a hurry. To begin, answer the following questions-
What is your essential mission you’re trying to accomplish? How is your space going to help you in your endeavor and what are your must haves for that space?
Decide What Doesn’t Go in Your Batcave
When you begin to look around this version of the Batcave, you’ll notice that it doesn’t have an overabundance of items, tools, and equipment littered all over it. That’s not to say that there isn’t a lot of equipment, but it’s been carefully curated. Batman only stores in his Batcave what he needs, with very little superfluousness or redundancy. Again, this version of Batman has already had a long career and must’ve had loads of gadgets, parts, research, etc. come through the cave in that time. And yet, the cave is neatly organized. So, we must assume that Bruce has made a conscious choice to get rid of what is no longer serving him.
Batfleck’s Batcave is notable for its clean aesthetic. If you want this for your own space you already know what you have to do. What you need is a process, a method to help you make it happen.
Start by Discarding
One of the defining characteristics of the KonMari method of organization is that you are going to get rid of things first. After you’ve spent some time envisioning what you really want your space to be, you’re going to gather all the items in that space and handle them one at a time, choosing which need to stay and which need to go.
In the KonMari method, this is known as determining what “sparks joy.” What sparks joy for Batman? Anything that enables him to punch bad guys in the face and bring them to justice.
What sparks joy for you? Punching life in the face. Or something. I dunno, you get to decide that.
So, if Batman only stores what he needs in the Cave, is there anything conspicuously missing? I think it’s a little surprising that there aren’t a ton of books around. Batman is constantly learning and I’d imagine that includes a large amount of reading. I would think he’d probably have a few reference texts as well. Maybe this version has chosen to go the e-reader or tablet route. That would be very in keeping with his persona, a smart way to save space and also always have on hand the particular volume he needs.
Sort by Category
Luckily, we’re only dealing with one location, but regardless, it’s a good idea to sort things by category. Decide what item you have the most of and start there. Group like items together to form other categories and proceed through them methodically, discarding what is broken, no longer serviceable, no longer needed, or no longer wanted.
In addition to a lack of books, this particular Batman doesn’t keep around a bunch of different versions of the Batsuit. In fact, if Bats wasn’t about to take on a high powered Kryptonian, he would most likely just have the one suit. My guess is that this one he’s currently using is the culmination of years of field testing and gets him the best combination of attributes across the board. He only needs a second suit now, the mech suit, for a special use-case scenario- in order to survive the battle with Superman.
As a balance to this, Batman keeps the suit modular by having multiple versions of batarangs, grapnel guns, etc to augment the suit as needed, depending on the mission at hand.
The clean minimalism of this Batman’s Batcave is reflective of his priorities in life (his essentialism). Because he’s able to say no to options that don’t meet his standards, he’s able to store everything in a neat and organized manner, giving most of the Cave that sparse, streamlined aesthetic.
By keeping down the clutter, we can also assume that Bruce and Alfred are quickly and easily able to locate parts and equipment. There’s a place for everything and everything in its place. This reminds me of a quote by another famous Bruce that is applicable here-
“Absorb what is useful. Discard what is not.”
Bruce Lee
A One Time Special Event
The other thing you need to know going into this, is that you’re going to sweep through your workspace as a one time, all-in special event. You’re not going to chip away at it a little every day with no end in sight. Get it done and be done with it. Then move on with your life. In this case, move on with making your Batcave the absolute best it can be. If you can commit to this, it’s going to empower you and make it so your space stays organized and clutter free from here on out.
Look, I know this book came out in 2014, but it’s still valid today. I’ve given you the broad strokes here, but in order to get the full depth and impact of the method, I recommend you go ahead and read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo. It’s 200 pages of quick, easily digested reading. This is going to give you the push you need to purge your space of the items that are weighing it (and you) down. You can probably find the book at your local library or find a good used copy at Goodwill or a library sale.
“The question of what you want to own is actually the question of how you want to live your life.”
Marie Kondo
Your Batcave workspace is going to be a reflection of not only your priorities, but on exactly how clear you are on what those priorities are. By going through each item one by one, you are deciding over and over what is important to you. In determining what is essential in your own space, you are going to gain a lot of clarity on what your own personal vision is for the space and what it is you hope to accomplish there.
If you’re feeling nervous about what might be a very large task in front of you, this is the perfect project for you to tackle. Just think about what it’ll be like for your new sanctuary to be uncluttered, unburdened, and ready for use. Working on this is a great way to exert some self-discipline as well, so if you’re curious as to how to build up self-discipline like the Dark Knight you can look here.
When you come into your chosen area for work, you want your space to welcome you in a way that will stimulate your creative self. You don’t want to be distracted or overwhelmed by a sea of chaos. You want to be steeped in optimism and stoked at what you can accomplish. So go forth, and KonMari that shizz like there’s no tomorrow.
Once you’ve purged your space, come back here for Article #6, where you’ll learn how the Batcave can help you to Unlock Your Full Potential! Thanks for reading!
