As a workplace strategist and designer, I believe I have a duty of care to create workplace environments that support people’s wellbeing.
I think that because people are the greatest asset for any organisation, so let’s value them as such.
Globally, there are more instances of stress related absenteeism, depression and long-term disability than ever before. This quote from The Mindfulness Initiative (an All-Party Parliamentary Group on Mindfulness in the UK) 2016 report “Building the case for Mindfulness in the Workplace” sums the issue up well:
“We spend more of our time working than doing anything else, and researchers have found that these hours are on average the least happy of our lives. Endemic stress in knowledge-based industries accounts for a large proportion of workplace absence and represents a huge loss of national productivity. Meanwhile, success in most organisations rely on the very things that unhappiness and stress erode – collaboration, creativity, cognitive flexibility and effective decision-making.”
Designing for health and wellbeing will also improve the bottom line. If we can create experiences that engage, empower and enable people to do their best work, we will all benefit.
The impact that the design of the workplace has on people’s experience and how it can impact their health cannot be underestimated.
Everyone has a different experience throughout their day even if their day appears the same as their co-workers. Same location, same layout, same tasks, same meetings but one person will describe a conversation or event differently to the next. We all perceive colours differently. How often have you had an argument about whether something is blue or green?!
We all have an energetic exchange with our environment, ALL OF THE TIME!
But its an abstract, its intangible, it doesn’t have a form, it’s a feeling, it impacts our physiology.
Everything affects our physiology, all external influences such as space, other people, what we eat and drink as well as how we feel internally. If we got stuck in traffic on the way to work, we will feel differently when we get there than if our commute was a walk through a park.
These experiences affect our nervous system, in particular the Autonomic nervous system which is made up of the Sympathetic (fight or flight) and Parasympathetic (rest and digest).
Our ways of responding to stress haven’t changed in terms of our physiology. When we are stressed, we trigger the sympathetic nervous system which is fight or flight - the same response to messing up an excel spreadsheet or being late with a deadline that we would have had back on the day when attacked by a lion!
These responses spike our adrenalin production then we “comedown”, thus our energy peaks and troughs through the days depending on where we are and who we are with as well as what we are doing.
If we look to the East and Yogic philosophy, there is a belief that we are all connected energetically to everything. There are three qualities, or states of being that exist in all things, these are called the GUNAS – Rajas, Tamas and Sattva.
Rajas is busy, extrovert energetic, frenetic, passionate – think red bull and never switching off your phone, always being online.
Tamas is heavy, dull, lethargic, burnt out – think red meat and hangovers, depression.
Sattva is a state of harmony, clear, calm, peaceful, restored – the green juice of the three. No crash is possible in this state as its sustainable.
Humans can influence their state of being by considering what we eat, working less, exercising more, calming the mind, taking time out to restore our energy.
Think about your energy level right now, is it high or low? If its high, could you sustain this level of energy throughout the day? If its low, how would you typically bring it “up”? Would the answer be coffee?
As we move through the day, our experience of what we are doing, where we are doing it and who we are doing it with will impact our energy levels in either a positive, negative or neutral way. This impact on our nervous system depends on how we are feeling which could be stressed, relaxed or tired, to name a few.
So, since we spend most of our waking time at work, lets consider whether its helping us to feel calm, or whether its having a negative impact.
Do you think your energy is being affected by your environment? Look around – what do you see? Are you inspired by the space you are in? If so, why? If it’s not lighting your fire, why do you think that is? Is it possible for you to change your energy or move to space that helps you shift it?
Wouldn’t it be great if our work environments helped us to manage our energy levels? By designing space differently, we can create experiences that allow us to rest, recharge and energise when we need to.
Think of your home, you have different rooms with different atmospheres for sleeping, eating, studying and socialising and we find it easy to use these spaces as we are familiar with them
Just as we can gain energy from other sources, it can also be taken from us that way. Ever had a friend who, after meeting with them you feel down or exhausted? They are typically focussed on the negative and taking your vibe down their level. Equally, if we eat and drink only low Prana (energy) foods, think French fries, alcohol, coffee, we are putting our bodies into a stress response which has a short-term gain but no long-term benefit.
We are looking for solutions for our workplaces that have a POSITIVE default setting and the way we will achieve this will be to engage the people across all levels of the business find out what’s important to them on an individual and team level.
Once you have got to know your people a little better – you can start to create an environment that flows with different energies so that that people can move through their day taking and giving what they need to maximise their wellbeing which enables them to give of their best.
Everyone is different and some spaces that make some people feel comfortable have the opposite effect on others. Some people get energy from being in a crowd, some need solitude to gather their thoughts and recharge. That’s why it important to get to know your people.
Once you know your people you can start to create a spatial design solution that helps can them manage their energy by creating experiences in the workplace that people can use as and when they need to:
to be present, to be calm, to rest, to recharge, to connect, to focus, to collaborate, to create, to energise, to move.
I call this Energy Based Design, a way to create different energetic experiences in the workplace and I will be sharing more about the principles and how to apply them in future blogs.