A modern workspace with two Apple iMac computers, a laptop, a cup of coffee, a phone, and a wooden table with a succulent planter, designed by R.E.A.L.|cw Architecture, Los Angeles.

Five tips on creating a healthful workplace on a budget

Creating a healthful space is essential to enhance the activity you are doing.

Your office may not promote a creative and productive environment because you get no natural light or no natural ventilation.

Your workplace may be so cluttered that it is producing clutter in your headspace.

Your place of business may not be attracting customers because the color scheme is not inviting.

Maybe your business needs to be more sustainable to create more.

All of the above is not beneficial to your place of business because the environment is not healthy for you or the customers.

The question is how can you improve your workplace without spending a ton of money?

To create a healthful space, you want to consider the following:

1. Wellness. For example, humans are happier working under natural light. Productivity and creativity increase when the office space provides natural light. Similarly, natural ventilation creates a better environment for your employees than the typical air-conditioned space because it creates a natural breeze in the space. Bringing plants into your space also is a great way to bring the outdoor indoor. Just by looking at the color green enhances your psyche thus productivity will increase also. If you do not know how to or want to take care of the plants, they can be faux plants.

2. Decluttering and Organizing. Organizing your space not only makes room for the new to come in, but it also symbolically clear out the old stuff from your headspace. Ask yourself: Why do you keep the things you keep? How does this object benefit you? What is it that you can do to this object? If you want to keep the object, then ask yourself: where are you going to display the object and how would you display the object? Decluttering your space helps to benefit both your well-being as well as your workplace. Having a clean and organized space to work in will increase productivity and help you think clearly.

3. Feng Shui. Feng Shui is the acupuncture for your space. It uses principles such as how to orient space from a macro scale to how to use colors to affect the mood you are experiencing within a space on a micro-scale. It considers the function and places the right objects in each space to enhance the energy. Feng Shui is a way of living and working in your environment.

4. Sustainability. Making your business more sustainable does not mean you have to have a LEED-certified building or a WELL-listed building either. There are many ways to achieve sustainability without spending a dime. For example, you can aim to produce less waste by printing less, and by having digital business cards or digital flyers you can pass out. Another example is by providing actual silverware at the workplace so you are consuming less single-use plastic products. Recycling is another way to consume less. Aim to use less whenever necessary.

5. Biophilia. What is biophilic design? It is a way to connect the outdoor with the indoor in short. We have talked about bringing plants into your space, but what about designing your space so we mimic nature. How about the materials you use within your space? Can they be more natural? These are the questions an architect will contemplate while designing a biophilic environment.

By incorporating some simple but helpful strategies, we can provide a workplace that is beneficial for its users as well as the environment.

There is always a way to do things without spending more money.

The right decisions along with the necessary ways to incorporate them will make such a big difference in our workplace.

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