If you have been feeling bored at the office or finding your job quite dull, perhaps it’s time to brighten up your workspace. Instead of feeling blue or wallowing in the drudgery of work, why not try these easy tips and get an instant boost in your spirit.
1. De-clutter
Whenever I get overwhelmed with my work life, I find that de-cluttering never fails to make me feel better.
See, clutter can distract and weigh you down. It makes your work-life feel chaotic. De-cluttering is a therapeutic way to calm your nerves and senses. The physical act of clearing away and arranging things triggers a positive mental response that clears your mind. Aside from this, a clutter-free workspace will allow you to work more productively.
2. Clean Up
Bring your alcohol out and clean your desk. Dust and dirt can make you feel icky. It could even cause itch and rashes. When your work space is clean and dust-free, there’s a sense of freshness that you will feel. More importantly, you will be able to prevent unwanted pests from creeping in and scaring you when you least expect it.
3. Organize
Put order back into your work life. The right documents should be filed in the appropriate folders and they should be labelled properly. This is applicable to both computer files and printed ones. Investing the time and effort in organizing your files early on will save you time in searching documents that you need, when you need it. It will also help keep your sanity when things get very toxic at work. Plus, your boss will be impressed with you because your sense of order will let him know that you can be relied upon to be on top of things.
4. Colorize
If you can, paint your walls using light colors that are conducive for work. Light shades of green, blue and pink usually have a calming effect. It helps relax your eyes. And this will instantly brighten up your workspace. You can also add bright accent colors to give an instant energy boost in the visual design of your work area. Fun bright colored office accessories such as penholders, mugs, desk mats and stationary desk sets could help liven up your work space.
5. Lighten Up
Make sure that your work space has enough natural light coming in as this will affect your mood. At the same time, lighting should be adequate for you to work properly and maintain good eyesight. You can add novelty lamps to add character to your work space. There are many types of lamps available in the market that is quite affordable. Use them to lighten up and liven up your work space.
6. Go Green
Improve air quality by adding well-placed indoor plants. You can easily buy affordable plants that are low maintenance. You can also add a recycling bin in your office where you and your co-workers can discard things that they do not need but other people can still use. This will help you purge, clean up and save the planet at the same time.
7. Fresh Scents
If your company allows you to eat on your desk, you’d want to make sure that your work space do not smell like the kare-kare with bagoong that you had for lunch. There are many products that you can use to keep your work area smelling good. There are deodorizers, air freshener sprays, scented candles, aromatherapy scents and oils. Find what scent you like and use it in the office so that you will have positive feelings throughout your work day.
8. Personalize It
Personalize your work space by adding your favorite things or items that show your character. Choose accent pieces that symbolize the type of work that you do. For instance, if you are the creative type, you can put a giant light bulb that you can turn on when you have a bright idea. If you are into photography, you can get one of those tissue holders that resemble giant film canisters. If you are a teacher, an apple pencil holder would be fun to look at and can become a great conversation piece. Have fun and personalize your work space to add character to it and brighten up your mood.
9. Find Inspiration
You can put things that inspire you in your work room. For instance, a picture of your family and kids will brighten you up on any given day. A poster with an inspiring quotation will help you through your toughest work days. You can even play spiritually uplifting music that will nourish your soul. Surround yourself with reminders that will inspire and motivate you to work better.
10. Smile
There are many things you can do, but the best way to brighten up your work space will actually come from you. If you come in the office with a frown, you can pretty much expect that your day and everyone that you will meet will make you feel down. But if you bring your smile to work daily, then the room will immediately brighten. That is the cheapest, simplest and best way you can brighten up any room anywhere.
Keep smiling and have fun at work!