No matter where you work these days — in an office, at home, or wedged into whatever spot you can find — there are probably a few things you would change if you could. Many of us long to create an environment that’s conducive to getting our work done well (and comfortably). But what goes into creating an “optimal” workspace? What are the simple, yet effective, design principles that can help us prioritize what needs to change? And how could this impact our workspaces (including home and traditional offices) in the future? I sought answers from Elyse Ayoung — an associate designer at the architecture firm Gensler and co-founder of the MiD Collective, a professional network for BIPOC interior designers in Boston and beyond. If you’re feeling inspired to change up your workspace but are unsure about where to start, Ayoung suggests prioritizing “purposeful” design choices (however you define it), being honest about where and how you do your best work (that “desk job” may not require a desk anymore), and giving yourself permission to test new arrangements (no change needs to be permanent, so why not try it out?). Subscribe to HBR Ascend on YouTube for more videos on work, life, and everything in between. Transcript CHRISTINE LIU: So now that I’m regularly working from home, even two years into this, I actually haven’t given much thought to my space at all — literally none. So most days I just open my laptop, plop down on my counter — there’s wires, and there’s like a stack of notes, and a big-ass clock, but that’s about it. It’s all very functional, but am I missing out on something else? I mean, it doesn’t really look like an office or a desk or anything more than just stuff. I get decor, but I need to know more about design. If I want to improve my space, where do I even start, and how do I even make my space into a place where I feel energized and productive, and creative? If you’re looking for tips on how to design a workspace that best serves you, we’re going to walk through some suggestions so that you can feel good and work good wherever you work. ELYSE AYOUNG: I think because we’ve now been working from home for two years, and have removed ourself from this office environment, we’re able to now rethink our own productivity. CHRISTINE LIU: That’s Elyse Ayoung, she’s a designer at architecture firm Gensler, and she’s the co-founder of the MiD Collective, a professional network for BIPOC interior designers in Boston and beyond. ELYSE AYOUNG: Like all of a sudden, I go into plan mode. Like I see everything 3D is around me but then I’m thinking about the plan. I actually used to live in a studio during the pandemic and I, because I’m an interior designer and I had like so many materials, it just — it wasn’t big enough at all. So now this is an attic space that I turned into an office. And it’s very interesting because I typically like neutral spaces, but for my office space I wanted it to be a little bit more colorful. So you’ll see behind me there’s like an orange chair, and I have a very colorful rug because I want to be like — I want to feel upbeat throughout the day in times where something I’m doing is maybe boring. I like to look at it from sort of a purposeful space. It could be beautiful yes, but is it purposeful, is it meaningful? CHRISTINE LIU: In other words, good design is just purposeful design. Which is such a relief because I don’t think I can do pretty, but purpose I can do. We’re going to play a game called is this purposeful. I have my probably disgusting, use-it-everyday cup. The purpose there is to stay hydrated. Random stickies so I don’t forget things, notepads — I am a person who likes to write things down. A cute pen holder obviously, is holding pens but I rarely grab a pen from there. I usually have just pens strewn around my space. Inspirational notes but does it have purpose on my desk? Maybe, it’s kind of cute. Obviously, a lot of times the purpose of anything is physical but many times a lot of things, their purpose is not so obvious, it’s emotional. And it’s up to you to decide what’s meaningful. ELYSE AYOUNG: I like to bring in — I like that it has a little bit of color, and I’m a plant mom, so those are like important factors for this space. So it feels true to me, so that’s the most important part. CHRISTINE LIU: When I’m at the office I just have like a desk and a chair, really simple setup. But yeah, I thought that was just kind of the normal working situation and translated it to my home. But guess what, there aren’t any rules. ELYSE AYOUNG: I love — is that wallpaper? It’s beautiful. CHRISTINE LIU: It’s a commissioned mural actually. ELYSE AYOUNG: Oh, wow! CHRISTINE LIU: And then my laptop — ELYSE AYOUNG: Sits over there. CHRISTINE LIU: — is right there where I sit. ELYSE AYOUNG: Yeah. Do you actually need a desk or do you need a work surface to do your work? Maybe you’re a person who does their work from — like, your typical workday is like, I’m in the kitchen, then I’m on the sofa, then I’m in a park. CHRISTINE LIU: What allows you to do your best work? Just forget all the office trappings and redefine your new normal. ELYSE AYOUNG: When I was in the office I did not sketch on a sofa but now I’m like, oh, this is great, I feel like I’m much more productive because I feel more creative when I’m like kicked back and laid back. CHRISTINE LIU: Even though you may not be a designer, you want to sketch out some possibilities, just explore some fun ideas on paper. Think about what are some elements you can bring into your space so that you can do your best work. ELYSE AYOUNG: Oftentimes I’m moving around the objects in my office. I move around lamps, so I think it’s key that just because it’s in its place now, doesn’t mean it has to stay in that place. Have fun, move things around the house. CHRISTINE LIU: Get excited because I’m about to sketch the home office of my dreams, let’s go. My workstation, what I’ve decided is I want a cute hydration situation. I’m in my laptop. I love my Post-its, so a way to make the zone better. Love all my cords and outlets and things like that. Maybe I can put some sub-par, not the most — A-team, B-team plants. My old desk, which has other pros and cons, which is great. We got a window, no power, maybe this is like where I just kind of unwind or like get off the grid. So I got to address this topic that a lot of us are being asked to return to the office. ELYSE AYOUNG: We call it the office now but I almost feel like we need to call it something else. I’m working on that. CHRISTINE LIU: The hive? ELYSE AYOUNG: Yes. CHRISTINE LIU: The compound? ELYSE AYOUNG: How can we create that home office or home environment in the workplace now? I’ve been working on a few projects where we were looking at the current idea of the workspace and started to look at OK, removing a lot of the desks, and instead of having desks, we had more living room-type setups. The reason why people are going back into the office is to collaborate and to do it in an environment that feels a little bit more natural and kind of dressed down. So we’re seeing a lot more lounge environments of conference rooms that aren’t just a table but they could be a stool and a high table, they could be anything. CHRISTINE LIU: Policy-wise there’s only so much you can control but it does not hurt to ask your company to change things up. So you feel more comfortable. ELYSE AYOUNG: Just by varying the furniture types and the layouts, it gives people the opportunity to choose the way that they’d like to work. CHRISTINE LIU: I want to know what things in your home office are really purposeful, what things have changed in the way that you’ve worked in your space?
