Hardly anyone has sufficient nourishment to totally ignore what’s happening around them. That is because paying attention to anything that might endanger or otherwise affect our lives in any way was vital to people’ premature survival. Even now our schooling prevents us from completely focusing on a job when others are in view or earshot. Unpredictable sounds or sights ( a random reflection from a shiny wind chime outside) decrease our concentration.
As an environmental psychologist, I help individuals know how to produce their spaces operate for their advantage by tweaking their surroundings, even in minor ways. I recently wrote about a couple ways you can make your workplace work better for you, which looked at ways to design a room that will assist you stay relaxed and focused. Here I will discuss ways that sights and sounds (and the lack thereof) will enable you to think more creatively and better. After all, who wants to invest more time working than mandatory?
Risinger Homes
Choose an isolated spot for your workplace. Place your house office as far off as possible from your home’s social places — family room, kitchen etc.. It may sound like a no-brainer, however sometimes we would like to maintain the middle of the activity and believe we can still do it. Sure, you may think you’re an expert in working, carrying out a dialog and watching TV all at the same time, however the fact is you’re not working efficiently.
If you can’t hear or view conversations and activity, your brain will not divert its active capacity to listening or looking — and you will do the job much better.
Add doors and walls to cut distractions. This office may not have everything going for it — there’s no sunlight, such as — but having the ability to shut doors and block sound is important for maintaining creative energy. Closed doors also indicate that work’s in progress and just significant strides are acceptable.
John Lum Architecture, Inc.. AIA
If traditional walls do not work, try something else. Not every environment can support new walls and a door. Perhaps you would like to have an open stream throughout an entire floor when you’re not working, or walls and a door would cost too much to install. If that’s accurate, add something like these sliding doors and wear headphones playing white sound.
Listening to music on headphones while you work is certainly better than hearing the tv down the hallway, but white sound is better than either if you would like to do your best work — it’s too easy to let your thoughts drift to a song. You can create white sound by tuning a good old-fashioned radio between stations, or you can download totally free mp3 white sound tracks.
Bill Fry Construction – Wm. H. Fry Const. Co..
Be glowing. Being in daylight throughout the day keeps your circadian rhythms in sync with your geographic location. Think that doesn’t matter? Whenever your rhythms are not right, your mental operation is poorer, wounds heal more slowly and you fall to a sorry physical and mental state. But being distraction free is much more important than being in sunlight.
Look to the sun for much more of your home’s light
Crisp Architects
Reduce distractions with large windows. If there’s so much going on outside your office window that distractions are constant — maybe your office is beside your pool or a parking lot — add high clerestory windows. If all else fails, put heavy curtains on the lower part of existing windows to block as many distracting sights and sounds as possible but still let in sunlight.
Mitchell Berry Architects
Colour your lighting. Warm, golden light is most effective for relaxing, but blue lighting is suggested for alertness. Buy cool lightbulbs to acquire the sort of blue lighting you require. Don’t invest in the grim novelty lightbulbs, which provide everything a heavy blue hue. Never operate in light that couldn’t happen in nature; unnatural lighting is a distraction all of its own.
DKOR Interiors Inc.- Interior Designers Miami, FL
Reduce visual complexity. Visual complexity is a tricky thing to explain, but it’s vital. To prevent cognitive overload when you’re doing thoughtful work, it’s important your space not have too much going on visually.
This distance includes moderate visual complexity, which is what you would like to try for. There is some stuff out and around, and some things to rest your eyes on while thinking, such as the complex light fixture, however, the area has no clutter.
Domiteaux + Baggett Architects, PLLC
Have high ceilings. We believe more creatively in spaces with vertical visual space, therefore if everything you do in home requires you to be innovative, set your office up in the area of your house with the highest ceilings, as long as that distance is also distraction free.
More: Quiet, Please! How to Cut Noise Pollution in Home