Joy at Work (by Marie Kondo and Scott Sonenshein)
As a fan of Marie Kondo’s work, I have been looking forward to reading her book, Joy at Work, since it came out. Approximately three years ago, I read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and Marie’s philosophy transformed my perspective of material possessions. I explained Marie’s concept to my husband and over a period of several months, we tidied our house. I’m thrilled to say that our house remains tidy and we apply the “spark joy” technique when we purchase new items. By no means have we reached a minimalist lifestyle, but we are definitely more thoughtful of our buying habits.
I loved The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up and still talk about things sparking joy. I’m excited I found a new way of thinking and that it has stuck with me over the past several years. So, when her next book Joy at Work was published, I was intrigued. I finally decided that if I’m ever going to read this book, it needs to be now, as I’m planning on retiring in 2024. Since my retirement plans are in place, I initially thought I waited too long to read this book and I wouldn’t benefit from her teachings. Well, I was wrong and I’m so glad I stuck with it. I think now was the perfect time.
Marie Kondo partnered with Scott Sonenshein, an organizational behavior psychologist to write, Joy at Work. The books opens with content designed to get readers engaged by talking about the benefits of the techniques described that will help people feel motivated, organized, and energized about their jobs. I mentioned that I’m retiring next year, right? My only motivation at work right now is getting one day closer to my anticipated retirement date. I no longer care about impressing supervisors or hoping for a promotion. I continued listening to the book anyway.
Marie and Scott go through each of the konmari steps that are very similar when tidying a house; books, papers, office supplies, electronics, personal care items, sentimental items, and digital documents. The more I listened, and got sucked into the excitement I feel when I tidy, I modified the application of their suggestions. Since I’m not motivated to develop my career, I’m instead motivated to retire, I decided I can apply their suggestions to my dream of one day cleaning out my office. Instead of waiting until a few months before I retire, I can start now!
Marie suggests completing the konmari process in a short period of time by blocking out several hours of your work day or going in a few hours early or staying late. This does not work for me; I work in a very unusual environment that does not allow me that kind of flexibility. Any tidying I do will have to be done during my work schedule and whenever I have small blocks of time, due to the structure and harsh deadlines of my job. I’m okay with that! This will afford me the opportunity to take breaks from my daily tasks by engaging in an activity that I view as helping me prepare my office for my departure. That’s a win for my mental health too!
Marie and Scott tackle additional areas in one’s work day such as, tasks, decisions, choices, networking, meetings, and teams. They offer suggestions to make your work day as productive as possible. They provide helpful ideas to minimize meetings, for example, that can needlessly zap your time. They close the book reminding the reader to cherish the relationships with coworkers and clients, and express gratitude for the job.
I’m grateful I read this book when I did. By applying a different perspective to their techniques, it helps me gradually prepare for retirement and have appreciation for my career and colleagues that I will be saying good-bye to. I think this process will greatly help me emotionally prepare for my next chapter.
I borrowed this audiobook from my public library through the Libby app. Narrators, Brittany Ishibashi and Dan Woren, did a great job!
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