We’ve talked about work culture and productivity tips before, but we’ve never explored office design. Here’s the thing: employee productivity (and comfort) is tied to the design, layout, and spacing of your office.
Take note of these 5 office design tips and you’ll see productivity skyrocket in no time!
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Know Your Colors
If your employees spend most of their time in the office, you better make it count by choosing the right colors. The color of walls, decorations, and other interiors have psychological impacts on employee moods, emotions, and behaviors.
Let’s take a look at the psychology of some of the most popular colors:
- Red – A strong color that’s associated with excitement and attention. It drives a sense of urgency while stimulating mental energy flow. Sometimes, red may inspire anger.
- Blue – This color promotes healing, relaxation, calmness, and stability. Note that light blue is not associated with sadness, but dark blue is.
- Yellow – Like sunshine, yellow is associated with joy and warmth. It’s almost been shown to evoke hunger.
- Orange – This color encourages free-thinking, creativity, and fun.
- White – This color conveys cleanliness, perfection, wholeness, and purity. However, avoid white colors that have a clinical appearance and use off-whites instead.
Generally, you’ll want to go for milder and more subtle colors that don’t overwhelm the senses. Also, it may be more effective to use different colors for different parts of your office layout. For instance, a dedicated relaxation area should be adorned and painted with blue colors that maximize healing and recovery.
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Contribute to A Relaxation Area
Speaking of a relaxation area, do you have one in your office yet? Having a relaxation area where employees can recharge during breaks will increase productivity. Decorate this area in light blues to promote a faster recovery without reducing productivity in the rest of the office. A designated relaxation area will make employees happier, strengthen company culture, and create tighter bonds between co-workers.
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Emphasis Open Movement
Healthy and happy employees are better employees. Incorporate an open design in the office to create a clutter-free and clean look. Your employees will feel less confined during the workday and will be encouraged to stretch during breaks. Frequent physical activity has been shown to reduce pain while boosting energy levels, focus, and memory (Harvard Health).
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Let There Be Natural Light
Natural light shouldn’t be free, but it totally is! Time and time again, natural lighting has been shown to benefit employees in the office. Improved mood, better sleep quality, feeling more satisfied, you name it and you get it with natural light (NCBI). Ideally, having a lot of windows would be great. Still, even just a few windows can still work. Use mirrors or decor with sleek surfaces to bounce natural light throughout your workplace.
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The Power of Plants
More greenery means more positives in the office! People have the innate desire to be surrounded by nature, and traditional workplaces often strip us of this connection. Throw in some plants and see benefits like reduced stress, lowered absence rates, and improved creativity (NCBI). New to plant care? Look for office-friendly plants that thrive with only minimal watering and care. Start off with succulents and expand your green empire!