I’m going to be honest with you regarding this rule: I stole it from Tom Sachs’ 10 bullets. That being said, I like to think the spirit behind my rule is far removed from his.
This rule isn’t so much about the space I work in being sacred as it is the space around my person being sacred. I’m a firm believer that the mind doesn’t stop at the skull. Instead, it extends beyond your body and bleeds into the spaces you occupy. I know, sounds a bit new age, but stick with me here.
If you’re finding you’re having trouble concentrating, getting work done, enjoying time with those you love, or feel overwhelmed because you’re “so busy” all the time, take a moment to notice the space you’re in. The space you occupy is a reflection of the state of your mind. How’s it look?
Always be knolling
– Tom Sachs
Get your house in order. Clean your room and your mind will follow.
This story is part of an ongoing series diving into the origins of each of rules outlined in Octavo (My eight-fold principles of life and work). Click here to see the full set of rules and to download and print your own copy of the rules and Zine.
Octavo (8vo) is both a format and a philosophy; it is a sheet of paper folded into 8 equal sections to form a book, and it is a philosophy folded into eight principles to form the architecture of how we work and live. Keep these principles posted wherever your work is done and refer to them often. Keep the zine in your back pocket at all times and refer to it when tempted to stray. Both the principles and the zine are provided here for free and can be printed from any monochrome printer that accepts legal-sized paper. Distribute as you see fit to your friends, family, and colleagues (but do not modify).