--- title: "Kintsugi: A Metaphor for Healing in a Fragmented World" description: How the Japanese art of kintsugi applies to mental health, leadership and building stronger teams. Reframing setbacks as strengths at work. author: Darie Nani (Editor-in-Chief) date: 2025-12-23T13:52:10.000Z updated: 2026-03-31T11:25:13.966Z canonical: https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/kintsugi-a-metaphor-for-healing-in-a-fragmented-world image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/ni0d850_uhq.jpg categories: Leadership content_type: Opinion region: Global publication: Sovereign Magazine --- The first time I encountered Kintsugi, I was learning to live with the scars of multiple heart surgeries. The Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold, not to hide the cracks but to highlight them, felt like a revelation. It offered a way to reframe my own brokenness, not as something to fix or conceal but as part of my becoming. That philosophy became the foundation of my book, *The Kintsugi Way of Embracing the Journey of Healing*, where I translate the seven stages of Kintsugi into a framework for human recovery. ## The Seven Stages of Healing The Kintsugi process begins with *Warewari* (The Breaking), the stage where we confront what has fractured us. For years, I minimised my pain, convinced that acknowledging it was a form of complaining. It was only when I began writing about my experiences that I realised how much energy I had wasted pretending those cracks didn’t exist. This stage is about facing the truth: what has broken us is now part of us. The second stage, *Kokuso-zume* (Filling the Gaps), asks us to acknowledge what is irretrievably lost: a person, a version of ourselves, or a dream. I once believed perfection was the goal, whether in my kindergarten classroom or my own life. It took time to accept that the joy of learning, like healing, lies in the messy, imperfect process of discovery. This journey mirrors what many leaders experience when [breaking free from perfectionism](https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/breaking-free-from-perfect-jennifer-thompson-on-leading-with-authenticity) to embrace authentic leadership. In *Noritsugi* (Joining the Pieces), we begin to reconnect with what remains. This might mean seeking help, sharing our scars with someone we trust, or allowing ourselves to rebuild at our own pace. For me, this stage was about learning to accept my husband’s love. Not in spite of my scars, but because of them. He saw my wounds as golden seams, not flaws, and his perspective forced me to confront my own self-judgment. Learning [who we can trust](https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/who-can-you-trust) becomes essential during this vulnerable phase of healing. *Migiwa-kezuri* (Trimming the Edges) is where we smooth the rough edges of our memories so they no longer cause us pain. This doesn’t mean erasing the past; it means refining our relationship with it. Watching a broken bowl transform under a Kintsugi artist’s hands was a turning point. The gold didn’t hide the cracks. It made them beautiful, and that was the moment I understood what my husband had been trying to tell me all along. The next two stages, *Jinuri* and *Makienaoshi* (Painting with Gold), are where transformation happens. We stop apologising for our stories and allow the light to touch the places we once deemed unlovable. This is where we reclaim our agency, choosing to see our scars as part of our strength, not our weakness. The final stage, *Kanshoku* (The Curing), is about patience: allowing time for the gold to set and the healing to solidify. After my surgeries, I returned to work too soon, driven by a sense of responsibility. I wish I had known then that healing isn’t a race. ## The Myth of Quick Fixes We live in a culture that glorifies quick fixes. We are told to ‘move on’ from pain as if healing were a checkbox to tick. But healing is not a destination; it is a journey. It requires us to slow down, sit with what is unresolved, and tend to our wounds with care. The Kintsugi way is not about rushing through discomfort; it is about moving through it with intention and compassion. When we feel overwhelmed by life’s pressures, taking time to [realign our inner peace](https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/realign-your-inner-peace) becomes crucial for sustainable healing. This obsession with speed is especially evident in the corporate world, where I have spent over two decades working with leaders. High performers often hit a breaking point because they have spent years chasing perfection. They believed they were invincible. When they finally break, it is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign that they have neglected something vital for too long. Rebuilding after failure does not make them weaker leaders; it makes them stronger. The most resilient leaders are those who embrace their imperfections, learn from their failures, and lead with humility. ## Leadership and the Art of Golden Repair The corporate world is slowly recognising the power of Kintsugi as a metaphor for resilience. In 2024 and 2025, more organisations began adopting Kintsugi-inspired approaches to leadership, emphasising vulnerability, transparency, and the celebration of imperfection. These approaches are not just about individual healing; they are about creating cultures where people feel safe to take risks, fail, and grow. One of the most damaging myths in leadership is that resilience means pushing through no matter what. True resilience is knowing when to pause, when to seek help, and when to allow ourselves time to heal. It is understanding that our scars are not signs of failure. They are proof of our capacity to grow. The shift towards hybrid work (with 24% of US job postings in 2025 offering flexible arrangements) reflects a growing recognition that workplaces must adapt to support well-being. But adaptation alone is not enough. We need leaders who understand that healing is a process, not a performance, and who are [future fit](https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/are-you-future-fit-life-changing-tips-on-innovating-038-future-foresight-for-business-leaders) in their approach to innovation and foresight. ## The Kintsugi Way of Embracing the Journey of Healing **The Kintsugi Way of Embracing the Journey of Healing** is a reflective and inspiring guide that explores how we can transform pain into purpose and setbacks into growth. Blending Eastern philosophy with modern psychological insight, it challenges the notion that time alone heals all wounds. Instead, it offers a compassionate and intentional path toward integration, self-compassion, and renewal. Drawing from the wisdom of *wabi-sabi*—the appreciation of imperfection and impermanence—the book speaks to those navigating grief, loss, trauma, or personal transformation. ### Book: The Kintsugi Way of Embracing the Journey of Healing By Charlotte Wang The Kintsugi Way of Embracing the Journey of Healing is a reflective and inspiring guide that explores how we can transform pain into purpose and setbacks into growth. Blending Eastern philosophy with modern psychological insight, it challenges the notion that time alone heals all wounds. Instead, it offers a compassionate and intentional path toward integration, self-compassion, and renewal. Drawing from the wisdom of wabi-sabi —the appreciation of imperfection and impermanence—the book speaks to those navigating grief, loss, trauma, or personal transformation. [Amazon](https://amzn.to/3KrKNbd) ## A Call for Collective Healing I released *The Kintsugi Way* on World Mental Health Day 2025 because healing is both personal and collective. This year’s theme, ‘Access to Services – Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies,’ underscores the urgent need for support in times of crisis. But healing is not just for those in the midst of catastrophe; it is for all of us, every day. We are living in a time of unprecedented disconnection. The World Health Organisation reported that over 123 million people were forcibly displaced by 2024, each carrying stories of loss and trauma. In the US, 77% of employees screened in 2025 reported symptoms of depression, a stark reminder of the emotional toll of our fast-paced world. These numbers are not just data; they are a call to action. We must create spaces where people can heal. Healing is not something we do alone. It happens in conversation, in shared vulnerability, and in the quiet moments of connection that remind us we are not broken but becoming. My hope is that *The Kintsugi Way* offers a framework for that healing, a way to see our scars not as wounds but as golden seams, proof of our strength and capacity to grow. Like many who have embraced [second chances](https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/second-chances), we can transform our lives through acceptance and renewed perspective. ## The Gold in the Cracks The gold was always there, in the cracks and broken places, in the moments we thought we couldn’t survive. Healing is not about fixing ourselves; it is about discovering that we were never broken to begin with. We were always becoming. When you look at your scars, whether physical or emotional, remember this: they are not wounds. They are seams. Golden threads. Reminders that you are still here, still becoming, and still whole. ## Further Context **Q: What is the historical and cultural significance of Kintsugi?** Kintsugi, or ‘golden joinery’, originated in fifteenth-century Japan. It is rooted in the aesthetics of wabi-sabi, which values imperfection and transience. When pottery breaks, Kintsugi repairs it with lacquer mixed with powdered metal, leaving the cracks visible rather than hiding them. The point is not to pretend the damage never happened but to treat the object’s history as part of its beauty. **Q: How can the Kintsugi metaphor be applied practically in daily life or leadership?** Practically, it is a way of framing setbacks without pretending they are harmless. In personal life, it can mean acknowledging mistakes or difficult periods as part of your story instead of something to erase. In leadership, it can translate into creating environments where people can admit what went wrong, learn from it and improve systems rather than hiding problems to save face. **Q: Are there limitations or criticisms of using Kintsugi as a metaphor for healing?** Yes. It can be misused as a way to romanticise suffering or to imply that people should simply ‘reframe’ harm rather than address its causes. In workplaces, it can also be co-opted into shallow resilience messaging that ignores structural issues like burnout or poor leadership. As a metaphor it can help people articulate experience, but it should not replace practical support, accountability or change. **Q: Is there psychological research supporting the use of metaphors like Kintsugi for healing?** Metaphors are commonly used in therapeutic approaches that help people make sense of experience through narrative and meaning-making. They can be useful for describing complex feelings and for reframing identity after setbacks. They are best treated as one tool among many, alongside evidence-based support and professional care where needed.