The Junk Drawer Or The Shrine?

There’s a drawer in many houses (please don’t tell me just in mine) where all of the random stuff goes. We call it, “the junk drawer.” It’s disorganized and full of mostly useless or very limitedly useful objects like tools, tapes, and takeout menus.

The opposite of the junk drawer would be a shrine. It doesn’t have to be a literal shrine, just a dedicated space, free of unnecessary clutter, focused on purpose. Everything in a shrine has meaning. Every item is respected for its physical and possibly metaphysical properties.

The biggest difference between the two is ongoing maintenance. The junk drawer collects junk. The shrine is respected by being maintained. They’re both full of stuff, but only the shrine gets ongoing care and attention.

When we think about our products and services and what happens when we put them out into the world, we can think about if they end up in a junk drawer or a shrine in someone’s life. Not because we’re creating cheap keepsakes or relics of some kind, but because we’re creating with an awareness of our work’s relevance.

“Here is where I go for the answers” is very different from “where did I put that, I know it’s in here somewhere.” Make shrine-worthy work.

*there are many other household containers with varied purposes neglected for sake of this metaphor. Quick shout out to shelves, closet floors, the trash, et. al. We see you.