When you spend 8, 10, 15 hours mentally scotch-taped to your job, your actual workspace matters a lot. We spoke to a pair of techie-creative types who've found different ways to keep their desks positive, personalized, and productive: One thrives on a minimalist aesthetic, the other prefers a densely populated desktop. But both have customized their spaces for maximum daily happiness. —Julia Greenberg
- Adopt a Minimalist Aesthetic: Michelle Morrison, Creative Strategist at Square
“I work on a large creative team, set back in the studio. I want people to feel they can walk up anytime and talk about their projects or ask questions. So I removed the barrier of a large cinema display and added personal touches. That way I’m easy to find.”
- Max Out on Inspirational Objects: Dannel Jurado, Software Engineer at Etsy
“My desk is covered in a bunch of items from lots of places. Stuff is everywhere, but when I’m working, it’s not obtruding in any way. I have a bunch of Etsy items, like the space worm and robot, some more utilitarian things, and then vinyl figures that’ll float around the office.”
- Quantify What Makes Workers Happy
The people who run furniture company Herman Miller study the effect of office setups on creativity and productivity. And they take it seriously. Consider: They hired phlebotomists to draw workers’ blood; they monitored neural activity and skin conductance levels to see how various settings impacted physiology; they watched time-lapse footage of a workplace coffee bar to observe where people congregate; they stuck accelerometers to office chairs; they used video to observe interactions while an eavesdropper took note of conversation topics. Big-picture takeaway? Fostering better social interaction = increased contentment. —Larissa Zimberoff
Typography by Crispin Finn
