Loft Office Working: 5 Tips

REDUCE STRESS, TEAR DOWN BARRIERS!

FREE YOUR HIDDEN CREATIVE ENERGY!

AN ENVIRONMENT OF COLLABORATION!

For many, the lure of the loft office is its apparent panacea lifestyle where creativity blooms, collaboration reigns, and communication all takes place through osmosis. It’s quite accurate in many ways but, like any lifestyle (which I take to include “workstyle” as well) it has its pros and cons. A month after moving in to share office space (and work more closely on a handful of projects) with Nathon Gunn and the Bitcasters team, I’m now sitting in the sixth open concept or loft office of my career.

With yet another first month under my belt, here are some tips on how to thrive in the loft/open concept office:

1: Wear Headsets – even if you don’t own an ipod or know what an MP3 even looks like, even if you’re not listening to a single thing, headsets tell potential small talkers, long talkers and other distracters that you’re running way too many senses right now to take on even the briefest of conversations. Avoid eye contact to increase the effectiveness (radius of impact, deterrent intensity) of the headsets.

2: Fill Your Desk But Not with Garbage – Filling your desk with files, notebooks, stacks of paper or electronic devices leaves less room for people to add more to your desk, and it virtually prevents someone dropping a new file in front of you to seek your immediate input. But keep it clear of garbage; you’ll find that whatever seemingly innocent garbage you may leave behind – crumpled up paper, empty coffee cups, Coke cans, etc. – mysteriously multiplies every night while you’re at home, blissfully ignorant of the abuse your desk is taking at the office.

3: Use A Wireless Phone Headset – It would be great if you could combine the wireless phone headset with the “listening to music” headset (who knows…maybe you can), but either way, the phone headset allows you to jump from your desk to seek higher, quieter ground, on a moment’s notice in the event that an impromptu meeting or brainstorming session forms at a nearby desk.

4: Keep Valuables Hidden – I’m not talking about fine wine or jewellery here; I mean the things that are really valuable to you throughout the course of your work day. Elastic bands, multiple pens, note pads and Post-it notes, and of course the crown jewel of office supplies….the good stapler. Keep them out of site in a drawer or lidded box under your desk. You won’t need a lock…a closed drawer or box is enough to ward off exploratory fingers.

5. Watch Your Own Habits – Remember the golden rule and that every even remotely annoying habit you have – loud gum smacking, coffee slurping, sniffling, humming or the dreaded leg (or legs or hip or head or foot) shake – is amplified for those around you. Watch it, or there will be emails circulating about it long before you know it’s an issue!

I suppose an important last point is that it’s not for everyone. You may be a “lofter” (don’t know if that term exists) or you may prefer a totally different setting, one with privacy, peace and quite, order. If you’re considering the loft though, try out these tips to make the most of your experience.