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Creative Disorder, The Mystery of the Messy Desk
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by ryan | January 14, 2008 at 11:20 am
3408 views | 37 Recommendations | 15 comments
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My desk is messy. Very messy, some would say. It's how I work best. Papers, pens, straws, soya sauce packets all find their natural resting place. When I came across this dandy of an article, I couldn't resist the urge to share pics of my desk.
the gaming blog Kotaku did a neat feature in which workspaces of gaming biz / blogging biz / news biz folks are displayed, with little descriptions about the person behind them.
I am not embarrassed of the mess, in fact the opposite. I wear my mess as a badge of honour. A testament to hardwork and creativity.
But contrarian voices can be heard in the wilderness. An anti-anticlutter movement is afoot, one that says yes to mess and urges you to embrace your disorder. Studies are piling up that show that messy desks are the vivid signatures of people with creative, limber minds (who reap higher salaries than those with neat “office landscapes”) and that messy closet owners are probably better parents and nicer and cooler than their tidier counterparts. It’s a movement that confirms what you have known, deep down, all along: really neat people are not avatars of the good life; they are humorless and inflexible prigs, and have way too much time on their hands.
And of course, there's a self congratulatory aspect to it. Yay, I'm messy!
The best part about the messy desk myth is that it allows many of us to proudly view ourselves as creative geniuses just waiting to be discovered. And since there are many of us in each generation, new articles and books on the subject are continually being written.
Add pics of your desk here.
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ryan
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (15)
at 11:34 on January 14th, 2008
So that's it!
I'm a creative genius. Now I have proof to show David. ;P
This was a very cool article which I really enjoyed reading. It was nice to
see you inject some of yourself into the article too. It added a
little humor - plus we now know that not only are you messy, but it's
been confirmed that you are a bona fide creative genius too!
Thanks for sharing this article with us Ryan.
~ Swan
at 11:38 on January 14th, 2008
Upload a photo of your desk to the article! Show everyone how creative you actually are.
at 11:45 on January 14th, 2008
ryan:
Is there a 12 step program for this? I am Al and I am a messy Desk! I feel so much better getting that out!
at 11:39 on January 14th, 2008
Ryan's desk is definitely the messiest at NowPublic. Personally, I think a little mess is OK, but not a lot. I prefer "the mess that's just right," like Goldilocks.
at 11:43 on January 14th, 2008
I've added a few photos for you too ... which should make you feel right at home!
~ Swan
at 11:44 on January 14th, 2008
eeeeewwww... straws and soy sauce packets? That's DIRTY, not messy... though you are messy too... hmm.
at 12:20 on January 14th, 2008
The straw is clean and the soya sauce packets closed.
at 12:05 on January 14th, 2008
Ryan, I've always loved the 'messy = genius' theory, although, I must say, I've known quite a few people that didn't fit that mold!
at 12:20 on January 14th, 2008
My desk clutter helps me feel at home. Even when working remotely, I do my best to affect an asymmetrical workspace. With wadded-up scratch drawings, if at all possible.
at 12:37 on January 14th, 2008
The way I handle things is when something falls off.... its time to work on it. So there is some order to my mess. Soy Sauce is yours, Tabasco, is mine. never leaves my side. Great story!
at 13:18 on January 14th, 2008
This is a fun read....I agree with all your statements...messy desks has its purpose when the creative juices are flowing...but I also like it organized too, so I can think clearly....its a blance of the two for me, a ying yang thing, left brain, right brain...but no food...this is have learn't from spliiiling to many coffees, sticky keys are no fun!
Fun story, great share everyone ;)
at 13:20 on January 14th, 2008
at 15:49 on January 14th, 2008
So basically I have almost everything I need at hands reach. I also have things that make me happy or I use to express my self in direct sight. However, I do admit there is a serious touch of lazy going on.
bziady has contributed a photo to this story.
at 00:49 on January 15th, 2008
Using a mac somehow makes you wanna clean up your messy desk.. ;)
roowlant has contributed a photo to this story.
at 21:06 on January 17th, 2008
Yes, I agree. It looks terrible and sometimes it smells awful too.;-)
But it's back side of the "kitchen" and it's closed for strangers.
Public see only final product - nice and shiny,
and if they like it then I'm happy too.
That's about it.
AP Digital light has contributed a photo to this story.