Elements of a Productive Working Space
Did you know that your workspace design impacts your productivity greatly? How is workspace and productivity linked?
According to an article from Dezeen.com, Australian employers are now competing to attract talents & creatives using great interior design. 66% of employees prefer well-designed office spaces that enable them to accomplish more.
But what makes a productive space productive?
And how do you design a productive working space?
No matter if you’re doing an office makeover or doing a home renovation, knowing what elements make for a productive working space will increase your chances.
What are the characteristics of a creative workplace?
Australian Design Review lists down the following as attributes of a creative workplace:
- all about people focused things
- giving people freedom to choose – where and how they work
- letting people have some hand in creating their environment – vanilla homogenous no longer cuts it
- a space that allows for natural collaborations – spontaneous physically and virtually
- an organisation that trusts and empowers – and an element of this can be achieved through the workplace design
- an element of fun – and definitely socialisation – a blurring of the boundaries of work.
Designing your working space
Now that we’ve covered the characteristics, let’s move on to some office productivity ideas and tips that’s based on science and research. Here are some elements of a productive working space:
Create your boundary
Far too often we fall into the trap of “too much comfort” when it comes to our working space. Whether it’s in the corporate office or our home office, the pitfall could be making it too homey.
Set your limits when it comes to work and leisure. For example, if you work at home, have a dedicated office space. That means, the bed is for sleeping and not for reading emails. By doing this, you set yourself to the discipline of working at an allotted place and you also promote a a conducive environment for sleep.
Knowing what you want
What is a productive space if it’s not something you like? This article from HBR.org highlighted that the 2013 Workplace Survey by the architectural firm Gensler states that it “clearly points to the power of choice and autonomy to drive not only employee happiness, but also motivation and performance.”
This means that when you have control over how you want your office space to look like and how it feels to you, you are more satisfied with it and you perform better.
The little things make a whole lot of difference
Don’t underestimate the power of details. It is imperative that to have a productive workspace, you must have a conducive one first.
The International Interior Design Association (IIDA) lists down the factors from the Gensler survey that could affect your productive working space, which include:
- Better light/daylight 16 percent
- More breakout/meeting space 16 percent
- More personal space/better use of space 16 percent
- Add or improve climate control 15 percent
- Less noise 8 percent
- Better furniture 7 percent
- More privacy 6 percent
- More storage 5 percent
- Opening windows 4 percent
- Other 7 percent
Photo by Beautiful Workspaces
Add greenery
For many centuries, plants have been proven to provide healing properties to humans, both medicinal and aesthetical. Research from the University of Exeter in UK shows that plants can actually make you more productive, with a 15% increase that also leads to happiness.
So don’t skip on the greens. Put a plant somewhere in your office or working space to make it more productive.
If you have any further questions regarding this or any other rug related topic, contact us!
