The Working Way: Feng Shui

By Amber Johnson

For years, researchers have been providing insight on how various work environments can have a positive or negative impact on employee morale. Feng shui can help create an environment where productivity, health and motivation thrive.

Feng shui (pronounced fung shway) focuses on capturing positive energy. By applying these principles through specific positioning of elements in your office, you can increase positive energy and add harmony to your environment.

Feng Shui Per Se

Feng Shui offers several benefits for the office including higher levels of concentration, stress reduction and an increase in creativity — all leading to greater communication and increased productivity.

It is based on the principle that maintains that people can be positively or negatively affected by their environment, and it encourages you to alter or manipulate your surroundings in an effort to either attract or unlock positive energy. Feng shui often begins with clearing clutter.

Why is clutter so crummy? Clutter is a problem because it hinders clear focus, and aside from the distraction, it also blocks energy flow. Pinpoint clutter as well as other problematic areas such as window cracks, dirt and dust, or anything that requires repairs. Eventually, these clutter concerns are going to affect the way you feel.

You may already be incorporating some feng fhui concepts into your office without realizing it, such as having a small fountain, displaying pictures of your pets or placing a plant in the corner. However, according to the principles of feng shui, there are more beneficial areas to place these items where they'll have a greater impact on your life. To help you understand, take a look at a Bagua (pronounced Ba gwa) chart.

Life in the Cube

Although many people feel that feng shui cannot be practiced within a cubicle setting, the same guidelines scan be applied to this space. The cubicle is truly vulnerable to the outside elements; a place where you can't slam the door when you want to quit and run out. You don't need an extreme cube makeover to feel at home, but a couple of feng shui tips will definitely help.

Mirrors are one easy addition that can be used in feng shui to add harmony to your surroundings. However, they can be misused as well, creating tense situations by misdirecting positive energies or multiplying negative ones. They can move energies, redirect unwanted energies and attract wanted energies. By placing a lamp in front of a mirror you can double its light and essentially double the positive energy it omits. However, it is not recommended to place two mirrors opposite one another as they can chaotically bounce energies back and forth increasing tension levels.

Lighting also plays a heavy role on the way you feel in your office. If you're like most office workers, you burn under the imitation illumination of fluorescent lighting. You might as well hang a string with a swinging light bulb at the end. Although it's been proven that healthy natural light can lift a mood and your spirit, most companies cannot afford to place a window in every office.

However, full spectrum lighting may help. Full-spectrum lights are also known as "grow lights" and are less harsh on the eyes.

Feng Shui also encourages you to display personal things that remind you of your life outside of work. You have one of those, right? Bring in pictures of your family or friends, awards from hobbies you enjoy or even posters of places you would like to go someday. Who knew increasing productivity could be so simple?

By far, the greatest priority is to be able to see the entrance to your area from your desk. Having the ability to identify anyone behind you is a basic human desire. Placing your desk in the "Power Position," with your back against the wall, will help you feel safe and welcome. Can't move your furniture? You can always place a small mirror near your monitor, identifying anyone who enters into your area. Because in feng shui positive energy attracts positive energy, it's recommended to say aloud positive affirmations when placing objects in accordance with a feng shui pattern. For example, state, "I am intelligent" while rearranging your reference books in the education area of your Bagua. You may receive a couple of funny looks, even an anonymous "yeah right," but the psychological influence associated with the placement of the objects and affirmative statements is another aspect of the power of feng shui. Here, it's your best chance for attracting positive energy. And it can be any object as long as it represents you or your affirmations and you state the connection or intention.

Use your imagination. If you're going to spend the majority of your day at work, you can at least make it more enjoyable.

The Bagua Chart

Click here to download your own Bagua Chart in PDF format.

Using a Bagua helps enhance your office and determine the best placement for your items. There are eight areas of the Bagua and one center. Briefly study the Bagua map. Align the diagram so the entrance to your office is even with the bottom of the diagram, where career is located. At work, your main focus will most likely center on wealth or fame.

Check your Bagua chart and notice areas where clutter typically resides. This could indicate difficulty in that area of your life.

Colors also play an important role in feng shui. Not only do different colors have different meanings, they impart heavily depending on which area of the Bagua you desire to use them in. For example, red symbolizes several things: heat, energy, attraction and strength. Red is a great color for the area of the Bagua that represents love and marriage. Yellow symbolizes energy and life and should be used in the center of the Bagua.

 

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