The changing of the calendar can be fraught with good intentions turned sour when the implications of the must-do new goals interfere with our joy of living. But when sprinkled with creativity goals can become actual joy rather than drudgery.
This concept of joie de vivre (joy of life) while making change is not a new topic. Diets gurus have long told us that getting your daily water intake by drinking from a beautiful glass makes it go down easier than out of a thermos. Or exercise goals are more obtainable when done in a room with art or outside in nature. And even the often put-off, messy job of getting our stuff organized can become an art project when we do it with methods and objects that we love and that “spark joy”*.
Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.
William Morris
This time of year I organize my creative spaces so that so that life is more joyful while working in them. I used to think that I needed to push through these tasks in a hurry to get back to being creative. But in recent years I have come to realize that this task itself can be creative and the materials used can make art. A bin does not need to simply be a boring beige cloth but can be embellished with a decorative pull. White shelves against white walls with white buckets can be an interesting study in texture. A closet interior refreshed with red paint can spark excitement each day and using attractive visual clues while labeling can help keep the joyful creative side of your brain engaged.
Bottom line is that we can choose to make our changes joyful by intentionally taking the time to incorporate what makes us happy. Cheers!
I am offering a free ZOOM class this month on creative organizing. We will do a project together while I also explain my 8-step creative process. The class for me is a creative exercise as I design the outline for you then get to accomplish my own organizational goals along with you. Please contact me directly to register; jane@janebalshaw.com. See all my classes for 2023 here.
*Marie Kondo
Love the idea of drinking from a beautiful glass! And yes, it’s the month of cleaning out (still) and finally organizing my art space too! Thank you Jane♥️
You are welcome like-minded friend! Happy cleaning….