Productivity, remote work, and the psychology of colour

(Updated 9/6/2020)

Millions of people in the new normal of 2020 have transitioned to working from home. Now that the novelty is wearing off, the realisation is setting in that when it comes to staying productive while working remotely you need a different set of skills than you do if you’re used to working in an open office.

In this post, we look at little ways you can use colour in your home working environment to boost your productivity and keep you on track.

Read on for specific colour advice, and remember: the more personal you get with your interior design, the better it will serve your needs.

Home office setup ideas: the colour edition

A quick search on the internet yields a lot of advice:

• turn off the internet and your phone notifications
• declutter your desk
• move your pets to the other room
• keep your pet in the room with you
• be messy and creative
• pick the optimum Spotify playlist
• coffee, coffee, coffee

It can get confusing. What if you stripped it down to one thing at a time?

One of the basic places to start is with the colour and overall styling of your work from home setup. It doesn’t matter whether you have a dedicated room or you’re working at the kitchen table – there’s always something you can tweak to help enhance your output.

Colour has automatic, unconscious associations in the mind of the viewer. This is one of the reasons brands work so hard with colour theorists to achieve the right effect.

Increase your productivity when working from home

How can you ensure that your time spent working remotely is as productive and fulfilling as possible?

After all, sometimes it’s hard to maintain focus for hours on end, no matter where your workplace is.

This is where your interior design choices come in.

If you’ve found yourself suddenly working remotely our advice is to get intentional with your design decisions and rethink your home office setup.

Why?

Intentional interior design and colour choices

Work smarter not harder.

You might have heard that phrase before. It means that if you think about how you’re going to do something before you jump in and do it, you’ll increase your chances of success.

Intentional interior design is one of those things you can think about now that you have the option of designing your workday to fit you, instead of finding ways to adapt your working style to your office space.

Learn more about interior design in the modern workplace and why it matters >

The home office is having its day in the limelight

Having your own space as a remote worker is crucial in keeping distractions away.

Staying focused can be a struggle though when you don’t have a whole room to spare…but fear not. If you have to carve out a small space for yourself in another part of the living room, for example, there are ways and means of doing that. We suggest you do a little research on interior design for small spaces.

This post might help.

The colours around you have a part to play too!

Using colour psychology as a productivity hack

Colours, as you might have guessed, affect emotions and mood, just as much as access to natural light, or as much as how much water you’re drinking (note: drink more water).

There’s a science behind the colour paints used in offices that you can harness when decorating your home workspace.

Read more about colour design in our interview with our design director >

Colour has automatic, unconscious associations in the mind of the viewer. This is one of the reasons brands work so hard with colour theorists to achieve the right effect.

Different shades have different results (supposedly)

Thinking in terms of colour psychology, science and emotion are woven intricately together.

• Colours such as green are restful and increase focus. It’s a neutral colour as opposed to red, which can be warm and inviting but is also the colour of warning signs or traffic lights.
• Like green, blue is another interesting colour choice for your home office because it encourages a certain calmness in the room’s occupants due to its distant, cool affect.
• Purple is the colour of creativity and inspiration.

Earthier shades are warmer but also darker: don’t paint an already-dim room in a brown shade. That being said, it’s a cosy, warm colour even if it does make the room look smaller.

Black or grey tones are both stylish and modern but use them sparingly as they can be overwhelming and distracting if you’re trying to work remotely.

Many people opt for white when decorating their interiors. It stimulates the feeling of a ‘blank slate’ in the mind, and as an aloof colour, it makes rooms feel bigger and helps to declutter your thoughts.

Read more home office setup tips here >

Colour advice for shared workspaces at home

We know about tricky it can be to carve out space for yourself to work in a smaller house or apartment. When you throw family members, small children, pets and flatmates into the mix, staying on task is a genuine struggle.

The good news is though that you don’t have to repaint the entire living room to feel the positive psychological effects of your colour choices.

Even small touches of colour here and there have an impact. Some ideas for styling include:

• Hang an artwork within your eye line with the colours you’re going for, something you find inspiring
• Keep a plant nearby for a pop of green. The effects of plants in office and home spaces have been proven in multiple studies. There are even interior designers dedicated to plant walls. And guess what – the plant doesn’t even need to be real! Researchers recently found that enriching a 'lean' office with plants could increase productivity by 15%.
• Place a colourful candle holder or decorative vase on your table
• Swap out your monochrome work accessories like staplers, notebooks and tablet covers for more colourful ones
• Get some snazzy coasters for your mug of coffee
• Lay out a colourful rug

How will you let the colour in?

Thanks for reading! What’s your favourite colour? Let us know over on Instagram!