The human and the space

Humans are made up of an amalgamation of systems, stimuli, cells and processes. Instead of seeing our composite nature and approaching it holistically, we tend to design workspaces by siloing-off the separate parts (e.g. maximizing office space usage as oppose to collaborative capacity). Our senses actively influence our thinking, feeling and actions so its safe to say the environments and spaces we occupy matter! Positive stimulation of any of our stimuli leads to to a host of positive effects. On the flip side if we don’t feel good in our space (and usually we can’t pinpoint why that is) this can leave us feeling restless, irritable, tired and even anxious. Let’s dive in to the new benchmarks putting the human front and center in the future of the workplace.

Clean Air Is Self-Care

There is much talk about outdoor air pollution, but did you ever stop to consider how polluting indoor air is? From printers to carpets, construction materials to cleaning products (especially during a pandemic), these pollutants actually build up inside. Pollution affects our cognitive function and our mental and physical health whereby a range of studies have shown that bad quality air actually progresses various diseases. Whilst design catches up, we need to implement policies that allow our buildings to breathe by e.g. airing out every few hours. Hybrid work models also allow us to manage our exposure to pollutants. Research by the European commission reveals that Europeans spend more than 90% (multiply your age by 0.9 and you’ll see how long you’ve spent indoors!) of their time indoors, so it’s really up to us to take steps to spend more time outdoors, ventilate our spaces and purify the air (hint: keep a 48-hour diary to get a good sense of how long you spend indoors and get the air quality of your home office tested!).

Triggering Optimal Feeling States Through Space

Have you ever walked into a space and it just “feels” good to be there? Starting with how we feel in the workplace impacts retention and acquisition, motivation and productivity. Take that calculation of the 90% of time you spend indoors, and estimate how long of that is spent in the workspace. Deciding how we want to feel at work is an act of self-care that filters down and impacts how we design our spaces, manage our time, workflows and how we organize our hybrid working schedules. This extends to the HR departments and decision-makers asking the important questions: how do I want employees to feel? how do they themselves want to feel? Starting from here creates ripples of positive side effects that impact our businesses on every level. Emotional states influence learning and memory capacities, so designing with all sensory inputs in mind offers a holistic way to enhance our emotional and cognitive capacities. Start with the human and the rest will follow.

Inclusive Design

Universal design, or design that is accessible to people with a wide range of abilities, disabilities and characteristics, is the healthiest approach to an inclusive workspace. The future of workspace design should be in-built with the intention to be understood by the greatest range of people instead of just by the average user. Spaces can and should respond to not only our basic needs, but also to our learning channels which can either be visual, acoustic or kinesthetic (VAK model). By including these types of workspaces we are catering to the reality on the ground, and offering spaces where humans can truly be (and not just do).

Lights, Camera, Action

Lighting affects human health on emotional and physiological levels. Bringing back this notion that we are a holistic sensory processing machine we can understand how light can have such a strong impact on our circadian rhythms, hormone secretion, alertness and performance. It has been proven that natural light is the key ingredient in regulating our body rhythms including circulation and blood flow, but also that it affects productivity and comfort. WIth this in mind, we can design spaces that support the health of our circadian rhythms e.g.using lights that are tunable to the time of day.

Acoustics: You Can Close Your Eyes But Not Your Ears

The way we interpret sounds also varies incredibly. Whether you’re the type to be annoyed at your neighboring pen clicker, or if being around a buzzing workspace motivates you, it’s fair to say that sound matters. A video on YouTube entitled Office Sound 2 Hours playing, you guessed it, authentic office sounds has racked up 3.5 million views, and is an interesting case study on the impact of sound on productivity (for some of us). Next time you put your headphones on to listen to music whilst you work, consider also the science-backed insight that the way our brains process information we need to complete tasks and the way it deals with background noise are actually in conflict. It might not feel that way directly, but studies have shown that it works on a level that we can’t directly perceive. We might feel focused when we like the music, but that process isn’t entirely accurate. This information impacts the future of work because, quite clearly, the open-plan office has to be called into question. Designing spaces based on tasks can have a transformative affect, and remembering that impressive and grand aesthetics does not equal positive workspaces wired to the human is key.

Green Is The New Black

Plants are much more than just an aesthetic consideration. Biophilic design (increasing occupants connectivity to the natural environment) has been shown to support cognitive function, physical health and psychological wellbeing. Humans are a part of nature, and that 90% of time we spend indoors is a development we designed over the last century, so it makes a lot of sense that we are wired to be in contact with greenery. Biophilic design will become increasingly important for businesses to convey messages about brand and signal that they care about occupants.

Ergonomics Matters

You sit in the same chair and desk for a large portion of your day, but have you ever questioned what the long-term side effects are on your health and productivity? The problem with ergonomic considerations is the negative effects built up over time, so its easy to discount and not invest in that chair or new desk that we know we’d be better off with. Our workstation is our cradle, and improving it helps us feel happier, healthy and more able to focus on our work.

Workflow, Movement & Comfort

The way we work is just as important as how we work. Aside from the considerations shared above, we can organize our schedule as well as our environment to optimize productivity. Think deep work, and allocating a time and space for that. Or listening to binaural beats instead of music to activate memory recall and cognitive flexibility. Allocating scheduled time to move is another key hack to maintain optimal circulation to the brain. We might struggle to fit exercise into our schedule, but the flip side of that is it actually boosts our mood and memory, making us effectively more productive. For decision-makers and HR departments there is a case to be made here on the new benchmark strategies to help attract the best talent.

A whopping 93% of workers in the tech industry (Fellowes Workplace Wellness Trend Report) said they would stay longer at a company if it offers healthier workspace benefits covering all the points we have shared. Which side of that statistic do you plan to be a part of?

If you are interested in support with workspace optimization at your organization, please get in touch. Space Your Place offers highly customized consultation services and training programs to fast-track the design and integration of a successful hybrid strategy and home-office support for higher productivity and holistic wellbeing.