Known best for her book "The Life-Changing Art of Tidying Up", Marie Kondo is a professional tidyer. Making a career off of teaching readers and listeners how to do what they hate is complex, and requires a far more creative mind than most might expect. Her motto, to keep only the things that "Spark Joy" has stuck with me for years. Rather than searching for reasons to get rid of something, keep the things that bring you enough joy that you can't part with them.
While simplified, this motto, and the "KonMarie method" built Marie Kondo into a multimillion-dollar franchise, including books, television shows, and a consulting business. This inspiration, and the drive to create such large-scale change in the cleaning culture of the world, started early. Kondo's first memory of seeing tidying as an art was inspired by reading her mother's home design magazines, which she saw as artistic reference, rather than just a guide. Her "Spark Joy" method was solidified through an experience she had as a teenager, where she passed out while cleaning. When she woke up, she saw a "glow" around objects which truly brought her joy, inspiring the phrase.
Kondo's process is very organized. By creating a list, and a routine, she can leave space for her mind to be truly creative. Whether this is working with a client to determine the best method for tidying their home, effectively communicating a method of tidying through writing or designing new products for her store, each process is meticulously planned. Her belief is that having your home in order will put your mind in order.
I enjoyed reading about Kondo's process, and the inspiration for her methods. Tidying is a less-known art form, with very complex methods, similar to scientific work. Something that engages the left side of the brain appears less creative to people, but it is just as creatively inspired and requires complex problem-solving skills. This reminded me of Isaacson's book, which may not appear to be a story of the creative process to most. I see it as a similarly categorized story to Kondo's, demonstrating how logistical processes follow a process much like that of creative/artistic processes.
Sources:
https://www.thecut.com/2018/03/marie-kondo-lifechanging-magic-tidying-up-interview.html
I think that this is the perfect example of using creativity to your own benefit and not allowing extrinsic pressures to change the way that you perceive your own creative endeavors. Although most people would not consider cleaning to be a creative process, Kondo ignores this and takes advantage of what she does best. For her, the cleaning is the creative action within itself. On the other hand, she is also giving others the gift of clearing their minds enough to take care of their own creative endeavors. Her gift of decluttering helps not only herself but the others around her, and the way that she has been able to create a business from it is truly impressive.
ReplyDeletePretty awesome what a clean space can do to your life!! I think Kondo is a phenomenal creative who has capitalized on her ability to improve her life and the lives of others. She implements a plan here for others to be able to work at their full potential, and that is extremely admirable. Honestly, when I first started reading this, I wasn't fully sold on the "tidying" concept, but your article here has definitely changed that!
ReplyDeleteMarie Kondo is a prime example of you not needing to be directly involved in art to be creative. Tidying to many, is seen as a laborious task, but she has transformed it into a way of streamlining your life. I like that Kondo is not seen as a classic "Creative" primarily because her area of expertise falls into the classic left tropes of the brain. I have followed Kondo for a couple years and her methods have been crucial in decluttering aspects of my life in a positive way, rather than it just be a chore.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I had no idea the idea for the "Spark Joy" method came from Marie Kondo passing out and seeing a "glow" around objects. That's a crazy story! Second, I love that you talk about Kondo's method being a creative process. I think it's easy to dismiss it as just around-the-house advice, but calling it a creative process makes me think about it in a different way.
ReplyDeleteThe phrase "keep what sparks joy" has also stuck around with me ever since I heard it years ago. I love the way Kondo turns such a tedious and un-fun process into something so optimistic.