Work the Rest

Jul 11

Written By Natanya-Joy

Why an office needs to be the most restful of places

I don’t know about you, but I have not always had an office.

In fact, let me be really honest.
I’ve NEVER had an office.

My ‘office’ has been a corner of our bedroom for the past 7 years, and while it’s worked ok, as a visual person, I’ve really struggled at times to shut my brain down at night, when I can see the ‘mess’ of the day on my work station, even though it was rarely a mess…..!

When my boys decided they wanted to move in together, and share a room, it freed up my youngest’s room for me to play with.

Now, this room will have to double up as a guest room when we have them (Which is currently never - thanks Covid.), but I wanted to focus on making this a place that encouraged productivity, creativity, inspiration, and - of course, rest.

A few people have asked me why I’m so obsessed with rest.
I get it - it could make me come off as lazy….!
But I’m actually a high capacity, highly productive person, and that’s mainly because I prioritise rest.

I believe that our surroundings have a huge impact on us - far more than we think.
Colours, textures, lighting, patterns, nature, and a million other things all bombard us daily, and we have a choice as to whether they are going to create chaos and stress, or peace and rest.

When it came to creating this office space, I knew I wanted to play with paneling - I just love the cozy texture it creates and I was surprised how easy and how cheap it was to create such a high-impact effect! For me, this is country, farmhouse, and somewhere my brain probably associates horses with it - no idea why or how, but these things are all the epitome of soul food for me (along with snow-topped mountains!).

But I also don’t like kitsch, twee, overly cute things either.
So I made sure the rug was more modern and gave the desk a classy, smart makeover, including the hardware - which I am over the moon about.

My point is this.
An office space should be a place where your brain is set up for success.
It should be a place where stress disappears - because work and the daily grind can bring that without our surroundings also contributing!
It should be a place that you personally find inspiring, refreshing, and peaceful - so you can be the best version of yourself, without being let down by your surroundings.

So often I meet people who just shove a table in the corner of a room, and just ‘get on’ with work.
Some people may be able to do that, they would say that they’re not affected by their surroundings (although I would always question how true this really is!), but I would always argue that if you invest a little into your office space, it will repay you a million times over by making you more productive, more inspired, more peaceful - and let’s face it - a nicer person to be around!

So!
Who’s up for an office makeover?!

Here’s some more office spaces I’m totally inspired by!