Design wellness in your workspace in 4 easy steps

Step 1. Clean up the mess

Where do you work? Look around. What inspires you? What distracts you? What will you see that will make you go back to work and what will delay you and make you daydream for a while?

Get rid of what is not necessary. File away any paperwork you don’t need and empty the trash. Let the clarity of the area around you clear your mind.

Step 2. Coordinate

What colors can you see? Do they impress you? Does white feel clinical and cold or calm and professional? Does red cheer you up or distract your attention? Does blue calm your nerves and reassure you in moments of anguish and overwhelm, or does it not even attract your attention?

Create a color and décor scheme that promotes productivity. Get rid of overwhelming colors or screens: Finding sources of inspiration without being too distracting is a delicate balance. Make sure your screens are sending you the right messages: work hard, smile, do one thing at a time.

Step 3. Promote wellness

What can you see out the window? Is it the brick wall next door or a breathtaking view of the park? What natural light do your windows give you? Are you aware of the progress of the day or are you stuck in artificial light, taking pills to deal with headaches?

Get the window desk with your next promotion. And if you’re the boss, immediately promote yourself and move your desk to natural light. Avoid direct light on computer screens as this will cause glare, but be sure to position yourself in a way that benefits from morning sunlight and changes in the sky in the late afternoon. Even if it’s just to watch the rain.

Step 4. Understand ergonomics

What are you sitting on? How are your feet placed? Your arms? Your back? Do you have a stiff neck? Do your eyes hurt from looking at the screen? Roll them up, stretch them in every corner of the eye socket. Stick your tongue out and stretch your mouth wide open. Nobody is looking. (Well, except for the cute guy with the beads…)

Even your boss knows that you should be sitting comfortably. She doesn’t want you to call with back pain or RSI. However, it is her responsibility to make sure she feels comfortable at work. How many hours are you there? How much time do you spend in that chair? How long of your life has your ass been on that hanger? Work it out. Then adjust your seat. Or add a cushion. Or take out the Swiss ball and blow it up again (if you can find the bomb).

We’re working silly hours. Some of us work late into the night, some of us get up at the crack of dawn, and some of us just wish the 9-5 would go away and look forward to the weekend. It’s time to acknowledge how much time you spend at your desk and make it a better, happier and healthier place to be. For no other reason than to accept sick, miserable and uninspiring spaces is a ridiculous idea.

Together Creating Positive Spaces