A great workspace will help you be more effective and increase productivity because it helps you get focused on what matters most—your work. And when you are focused, it makes you more effective at doing what you need to do, which leads to increased productivity and success in your daily life. In other words, if you want your business to be more successful, then you must have a good workspace that allows you and your staff to focus, stay productive, and get things done. What does that mean for you?
This is why businesses have to create a space that supports innovation, creativity, and new ideas by being both productive and restful—a place where people can feel inspired, refreshed, and energized for the day ahead instead of dreading to go to work. Read on to find out how to make your workspace more comfortable, creative, and inspiring than ever before.
Focus on Training, Onboarding, and Assimilation
Businesses need to train newer staff in self-management, collaboration, and ownership of team goals instead of just reporting results to upper management and expecting employees to “just do their job and do it well.” The good news: these strategies aren’t new—they’ve been around for decades. The bad news: companies are often hesitant to implement them because they seem too soft or don’t want to “break the rules” that have made them successful in the past. But success requires change, and in this case, change means a better emphasis on training newer staff.
The better the training program is when someone starts a new job, the easier it is on all parties involved and your existing team of collaborators (a happy employee makes for a happier company). This also allows your team members to try out their potential colleagues. This way, they have some context for how the person will fit into the rest of the department before meeting them face-to-face for the first time in real life. This is also without the risk of making any immediate mistakes that could reflect poorly on all of you.
Cultivate a Psychologically Positive Work Environment
Workplaces with a positive psychology focus encourage happiness, calmness, adaptability, productivity, creativity, and independence, among other attributes of a well-rounded employee. The thinking goes that a happy worker is a productive one — meaning they don’t get sick often, don’t disrupt the flow of the office by making an unnecessary mess of things, and make significant contributions to the business operations. This philosophy of workplace design can be summed up in a simple concept: Work should help you live your life better.
Think of Ergonomics as Well
It may seem like an odd time to be thinking about ergonomics — the practice of using scientific principles to make workplaces as safe and comfortable as possible for workers. But recent studies about health and workplace productivity remind us that ergonomics is worth considering. It can help our people avoid pain, injury, and illness on the job and improve their overall health and well-being at work and home alike, as well as protect their mental health.
Standing desks have become more common in the workplace, thanks to the health benefits they offer workers in terms of blood flow, posture, and reduced risk for chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and cancer. In addition, standing desks are often easier to clean than traditional desks, which can make them an excellent option for shared spaces and small work environments. Although many people feel uncomfortable standing all day long, research shows that this behavior may be beneficial.
In addition to ergonomic options, desktops should be positioned at the appropriate height for comfort and productivity and have their lighting if possible. Doing so can maximize workplace efficiency and minimize eye strain and other discomfort-inducing factors that might otherwise lead to headaches or migraines among workers. A few more low-tech fixes can help ease office backaches: Resting your feet on a stool or sitting on a pillow while typing can relieve lower-back tension.
Be a Better Company
To fully create a good working environment, it’s best to attempt kindness and ethics in more than just one facet. Opt for more sustainable measures: utilize commercial solar panels to reduce reliance on grid power while saving money on utilities, or source your materials and ingredients from ethical manufacturers. A company that treats its employees well and has social responsibility is the greatest type of company. They show that being profit-driven does not always mean being dangerous and destructive.
Making efforts to be a holistically good company isn’t easy. But it’s a commendable effort that more companies should try to achieve. If you intend to steer your business in this direction, then you’re taking a step in the right direction.
