Business Book Review: Spark Joy by Marie Kondo
Create your own personal paradise for your personal brand, surrounding yourself only with the things that ‘spark joy’.
My Rating: ★★★★
Length: 304 pages
Publisher: VERMILION - MASS MARKET
Released: 2017
Key Takeaways for Personal Branding
Japanese cleaning extraordinaire Marie Kondo delves into the topic that made her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up a global sensation. The in-depth room-by-room guide has people all over the world assessing each of their possessions and asking themselves if it ‘sparks joy’. Discarding what doesn’t and keeping what does to build their own personal paradise.
Your own personal power spot
Kondo suggests having a space in the home that’s a space just for you. It doesn’t have to be a whole room - it can be your own little slice of heaven wherever you can find it. It just needs to be filled with the things that, for you personally, spark joy. This can be anything from your desk to your own corner of a wardrobe or kitchen:
“Imagine what it would be like to come home after a long, tiring day at work to your very own power spot. This should drastically increase the enjoyment you feel when you spend time at home.”
Become a person who matches the books you’ve kept
Kondo advocates for discarding books that you’ve read or that are no longer serving you. A tough one for people who like to keep large, impressive libraries, often filled with the books they wish they had read or never plan to read again.
The argument in Spark Joy is that the books, once read or moved on from, have already served their purpose. Your job is to take the lesson from it and start to apply it rather than hang on to the book. By discarding anything that no longer sparks joy, you’re left with only a ‘hall of fame’ of books that truly do. In Japan, there is a saying, ‘Words make our reality’. Surrounding yourself with only the most special books will help make you the person you aspire to be.
Kondo takes the same sentiment for courses and other learning materials. Despite many wanting to hang on to these long after the learning has occurred, Kondo again suggests it’s more important to apply the learning.
Mono no aware
Mono no aware is a Japanese term meaning the “pathos of things”. It describes the deep emotion evoked when you’re touched by nature, the art of the lives of others and have an awareness of their transience. It also describes the essence of things and our ability to sense that essence. Having been through the Marie Kondo cleaning campaign many years ago, when I first read this book, I can attest to the experience enhancing this feeling. Being surrounded only by the most cherished of your things becomes a life-changing way to live.
Favourite Quotes
When you wear and surround yourself with things you love, your house becomes your own personal paradise.
Our goal in tidying should be to create a living environment filled with the things we love.
I want to live my life in such a way that it colours my things with memories.
If you’ve seen Kondo on her hit Netflix show, don’t let her petite size fool you. She’s a cleaning crusader on a mission. As her stories illustrate, she’s not afraid to respectfully call her clients out when need be. Her personal anecdotes add a relatable flair to the otherwise highly pragmatic manual to tidying.
Be prepared to read Spark Joy not for a delightful day on the couch but as a guide. Take the time to action the steps prescribed and experience the life-changing magic of tidying to spark joy.
Spark Joy by Marie Kondo: Available on Amazon.
