WORKPLACE: REFRESH
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as your workspace been in a holding pattern since May 2020? Perhaps you hastily threw together a desk and chair for your at-home set up or you have leased a building that no longer fits your needs. Spring is a great time to refresh your space! When evaluating a home office there is even more room for autonomy and creating an environment that is uniquely yours. Find a flow that works for you and adjust items around that. Maybe you have a ritual to start working. I usually light a candle, start my music, and put my headphones on to signal to my brain that it’s time to focus. I place the things that I need within easy reach so that I can sit down and smoothly transition into the tasks that I want to accomplish. Organizing my space in this way allows for a re-energized routine. Design is about more than the colors and textures, it’s about thinking through how you function and how your space can support that. A refresh doesn’t have to be expensive or stressful. You can use many of the items that you already have! It is easy for our brains to become lax when everything stays in the same place for a long time. For example, we might stop noticing that piece of artwork that makes us smile. By moving it to a different location, it becomes this ‘new’ discovery that disrupts the normal pattern and again is a source of joy. This is an example of creative reuse, one of the tenants of sustainable design, meaning that you can feel good while saving money!
Investments in design are great for business. Bringing a fresh mindset into designing your place can maximize efficiency, lower employee turnover, and attract new customers or employees. I wish the days of working in drab environments were gone, but now is the time to refresh the way we think about our workspaces! As we move through the world with an increased focus on health and inclusivity, our built environments need to reflect that shift in values. Using a human-centric design strategy focuses on implementing changes to promote well-being and productivity. If employees are being asked to come to an office, it should be a vibrant destination with thoughtful consideration of their needs. Size-inclusive design is a great way to ensure accessibility and comfort for different body sizes. Often, chairs are selected with thinness as the default, excluding over a third of the American population. Inclusive design also means considering neurodivergence, gender, culture, disabilities, sensitivities, traumas, etc.
Workplace
Refresh
8 | LANCASTERTHRIVING! | Spring2022