March 23rd, 2024 – How I Set Up My Workspace For Maximum Productivity
There is a famous adage explaining how a cluttered space is a cluttered mind or something like that. And there is a lot of science to back up that you are directly impacted by the workspace you find yourself in. This is also true of the people you surround yourself with. In essence, our environment can have an impact on our state of being. That’s why it is so important to have a workspace that reflects your desired level of productivity, as well as being filled with things you know can push you in the right direction.
This week, I want to talk about the things I do in my own personal workspace to make it so I can be at my most productive. My main focus when setting up my workspace was to make it comfortable for my body as well as productive for my mind. Here’s what I’ve done and focused on to achieve this:
Planners
I have explained before that I am a planner type of woman. I like to see things written down, and it is a necessary part of remembering things for me. Because of this, I spent a lot of time investing in the right kind of planners for me. I have a daily planner that sits on my desk next to my keyboard, a monthly calendar above it, and a weekly planner on the wall.
These planners are always filled, encompassing things like my blog plans, pay schedules, client deadlines, tax schedules, and tallies of important numbers. I like to decorate them, prioritize my lists, and use multicolored pens to entice me. This keeps everything I need to know and see directly in front of me at all times and keeps my thoughts organized. I find this personally necessary in my workspace for productivity. I update them constantly, adding and removing things as necessary. My organization and productivity would be significantly damaged without these planners.
It may seem excessive, but this is how it is organized in my mind. I perceive these things in terms of their daily, weekly, and monthly importance in my brain, and it keeps me organized to see my brain’s work on paper to be referenced at all times. This is what I mean when I say you need to find things that work for you. Does everyone need three different planners? No. Do I? Yes.
Reference Material
I have spent a lot of time building up my library of information. I have hundreds of bookmarked tabs, documents, and folders on my computer. However, I have also spent years writing down information in notebooks and collecting dictionaries and grammar books. I’ve used them so frequently that some of the pages are barely legible through the smudged ink. But they are still useful to me.
I’ve been through them so many times, that I can run into a problem and know immediately which one of my books has the answer and where to find it. These books are in the drawers below, and the holders are atop my desk. These include different course notebooks I’ve kept, dictionaries, grammatical reference books, and a thesaurus. Having them at my fingertips keeps the knowledge close, and makes me feel reassured that the answers I need are always within arms reach. When I am looking to be at my best, having these things handy can keep my workspace at its most productive.
The Right Equipment
I’ve done a post on this before, why you need the right equipment, and what you should be looking for. I practice what I preach. I’m not just sharing information because I’m a narcissist who believes my information is absolutely imperative for all people. I share it because these are things I’ve learned that I know helped me and that I genuinely believe could help others as well.
One thing I have always felt is that I needed the right equipment in my workspace to ensure maximum productivity. I invested time and money into finding the right equipment that meets my individual needs. Starting with the fact that my workspace is on the third floor of my home, away from all other occupants, animals, and noise. I have a high-powered CPU with a large monitor (soon to be a dual-screen setup.) Also, I have three different backups for all of my information: my external hard drive, my on-the-go work tablet, and my Cloud backup. I live in a large home and invested in Wifi extenders to ensure I never lose signal. No matter where I am in the house. This one was absolutely necessary, as my modem is on the first floor and my workspace is on the third.
It wasn’t cheap, none of it was. But it was something I knew I was going to need, it would make me more productive, and it would be necessary to accomplish all of the tasks I needed completed. The ends indeed justified the means.
Personal Touches
As much as I will advocate for the appropriate equipment, I am not a robot. And my workspace does not look like I am. A workspace built for productivity needs to feel comfortable for you. There are many people in my life who give me strength, and make me feel loved. My workspace is filled with mementos of these people, and reminders of how much they love and encourage me.
I have pictures my kids from my teaching job have drawn for me. There are paintings from wine nights with one of my most beloved humans. I can see a picture of my fiancé sitting right next to all of my reference materials. As well as a hand-knitted good luck charm one of my students made. These things remind me that I am loved, that I am supported, and that I have people who want to see me succeed. I work as hard as I do to make them proud, to show them that I am grateful for the support and love they give me.
My last personal touch in this space is my books. My entire life I have wanted a library. I was one of the many little girls who watched Beauty and the Beast and immediately started planning how I could achieve that kind of library. I have been collecting books since I was a child, and to be surrounded by them makes me feel complete. My walls are covered in bookshelves filled with books from my teenage years, University courses, and any series/authors I ever obsessed over. They’re periods of my life, they’re memories of my experiences. Having them around is like having a piece of my heart on the wall. This is a level of emotional comfort I rely on and cherish.
Motivational Materials
My workspace designed for productivity is not complete without motivation. My personal touches make me feel comfortable, my motivational materials make me feel driven. I have things around me that remind me of what I am looking forward to, and the long-term goals I plan to achieve.
On my desk, I have a stack of my business cards directly below my monitor so I can always see them remember the business I continue to build and the reputation I want to achieve. I have checklists of long-term goals I want my business to achieve, and the person I want to become. There are a multitude of pens with my business logo on them.
I want my workspace to reflect the person I wish to become, who has achieved the things I dream about. Dress for the job you want, right?
Comfortable Setup
It is not uncommon for me to pull 80-100-hour weeks. I am grateful for it, and I’m excited about what I do. However, my work is all done from my computer, which means I’m sitting in one place staring at a monitor for close to 100 hours per week. It took me only one week of this to realize I needed to invest in some serious ergonomics. And that’s exactly what I did.
My equipment is designed with ergonomics in mind. I have an ergonomic chair, an ergonomic keyboard, and mouse, and ergonomic attachments for my wrists. I wear blue light glasses to reduce eye strain. And when all of this isn’t enough, I have seconds of everything. I have a second chair, a second keyboard, and a second mouse. I can switch my setup to fit my physical needs at the time because I can’t afford to be uncomfortable. In order to achieve my best results, and to achieve a workspace conducive to productivity, I must be comfortable for long periods of time. I can’t stay at my computer and finish my work when my back hurts, my wrists are strained, and my head is pounding.
These strains can only be avoided to a certain extent. I can’t prevent them entirely. I still make sure I have space to walk around, stretch, take regular breaks, and exercise every day.
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My setup works for me. It does what I need it to do, and ensures maximum levels of productivity for myself. My workspace is set up for my body and mind, so that not only do I have the resources available to physically get the work done, but I also have a comfortable environment so I feel at home, and in my best head space to do my best work
Your work experience is personal and subjective. You need to be aware of what will and will not work for you and invest only in the things you feel will serve you. If you don’t want the clutter of personal items on your desk because it makes your space feel messy, then don’t add them. If you think two chairs are excessive, don’t get them. None of these things are objectively right or wrong. I mean only to share my personal experience and show you the benefits of making your own workspace special and unique to you.
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I hope you enjoyed this week’s blog post. If you did, make sure to leave a comment down below and check back for a new post on the Next Step Scopist blog.
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