Recently the crew just moved into a small office in Campbell. This is a pretty huge milestone for us, as the old patterns of getting up early and going to work fall back into place (after working at home for about 3 months). It made me start to think about how spaces affect the way I work, relax, or play.

A while ago, one lesson I picked up somewhere talked about how you shouldn’t put TV’s in your bedroom. Many nights I would lie in bed watching some show and just fall asleep, or want to get ready for bed and finish a movie there. I tried moving the TV out of the bedroom, and was suprised to find that it didn’t take me long to get used to it. In fact, I began to notice some benefits. I slept better, was inclined to read more, and focused more on my girlfriend (at the time). Ignoring the obvious direction of that last statement, I’ll say that my quality of life improved in ways that far outweighed the pain of going to the living room to watch TV.

So this started the ball rolling on something I’ve been striving more towards. Simplicity. One part of that is to reduce what you have. Reduce the purpose of a space to a primary function. That space, then, serves to put your mind into the mode that it’s designed for. It’s another reason why I don’t believe in home gyms. When I’m at home, I don’t think of working out. I actually find the motivation is less there. However, if I get my stuff together and go to a gym, as hard as that is sometimes, I’ve been far more likely to work out completely and for a lot longer of a time, than I would with other distractions.

The office serves that same value. It’s why, I think, so many people have a hard time working at home (well one of them). Not only the distractions, but the inability for the brain to switch modes. We are visual creatures of habit. A change in space or environment affect our approach to it. The impact on the team in general is huge. The energy level has improved tremendously. Of course some of that might have to do with the orange couch!