Decluttering the intangibles to spark joy

Many of us would be familiar with Marie Kondo (KonMari)’s book - “Spark Joy”. Indeed, this book was quite a good read, and I really like the premise on which the book is based. If you’ve read the entire book, you will find that “spark joy” refers to the things that are important for us and which we use often. This is about things that make us feel comfortable, confident and elicit positive emotions from us. The reality is that not so many things make us feel this way and usually we use the same things all the time. 

The “Spark Joy'' theory is part of the KonMari decluttering process. And it has received rave reviews worldwide. 

Recently, I saw this quote that appeared on my LinkedIn feed. 

“You often feel tired, not because you’ve done too much, but because you’ve done too little of what sparks a light in you”. 

Wow. 

That’s quite a powerful statement. 

KonMari’s methodology of “Spark Joy” became quite revolutionary back when she introduced the concept (yes, she has since moved to the US and built a business empire around the decluttering space). But that application has been mainly limited to the tangibles - things that we could see, hold, touch and feel. 

But in life, there are many more intangibles — things that we cannot see nor touch. But, we can feel them. And not all of them spark joy or spark a light in us. 

What if we can apply the same concept to the intangible aspects of our lives? Many of those would be things like our relationships, careers, experience, mindset, etc. 

A huge part of mental wellbeing stamps from the intangible aspects of our lives. Our thoughts, our experiences, our reactions, etc. Those tend to be what causes us stress and has a negative impact on our well-being. 

Supposedly we could try to reverse this, by studying more of ourselves, about what makes us happy, what makes us tick and try to incorporate more of those in our lives? 

Yes, I’ve heard people expressing concerns about the practicality of it. Things such as “I absolutely hate my job but I need it to pay the bills…” Totally legit, and I get it. 

We could try a mindset shift, and think about what do you enjoy? Do you have a hobby that you enjoy, but haven’t been able to engage in due to your busy schedule? Or do you have a different career aspiration that you are seeking that gels in more closely with your inner core values?

What we need to be comfortable with, is the transition. Some things that “spark joy” in us, could be easily attainable. For others, it could require a much longer transition phase. 

But in any case, if you are moving towards something that “sparks joy” in your life, that is surely worth it. 

Imagine if we can have so many “spark joy” moments in our lives — that is definitely a life worth pursuing. 

And if you are still hesitating, the question then is: 

“What’s stopping you?” 

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Kit Lim is a diversity and inclusion advocate and wellbeing champion. A certified coach, Kit is motivated to inspire people towards living a healthy work-life balance. She is also a mental health first-aider and believes self-care to be extremely important for our mental and emotional well-being.