Home Office Feng Shui for Telework

What is Feng Shui?

Feng shui is an ancient art that incorporates principles of balance and the flow of chi or vital energy. For about 4,000 years, the Chinese have been using feng shui to ensure good luck, health, and prosperity in their lives.

In this article, we will attempt to provide a Feng Shui primer to telecommuters in a home office.

Chi

Feng shui practitioners generally believe that chi must flow freely throughout a home or building. This energy flow can be enhanced to take advantage of its beneficial effects in all aspects of home and business life. If the chi is blocked, it can manifest in illness, loss, or failure. Problems can be ?cured? to release the energy, usually through the right design or placement of furniture, or the use of colors or symbols.

Because it is believed that the flow of chi affects the productivity, efficiency, and the overall success of a business, practitioners use feng shui in offices and commercial centers. The principles of feng shui can also be applied to home offices, especially with the rise of telecommuting.

Feng Shui for Telecommuters

If you work at home, why not try these simple tips and see what happens:

Home Office Location

Choose your location. Take advantage of the energy coming from the front door by situating your home office towards the front of the house, and on the same level as the entrance or even above. If you are a telecommuter, keep your work area separate from your sleep area. If your office is in the bedroom, use a screen to hide the office at night.

Furniture Placement

Pay attention to desk placement. The placement of your desk will affect how you feel while you work. The best place for your desk is facing the door but not directly across it. You will find that sitting with your back to a wall or a corner will give you a feeling of stability and security rather than with your back to a passageway or to a door or a row of windows.

Color

Use color wisely. In feng shui, colors are associated with certain activities. Telework will certainly be easier if you use the right colors for what you do. Surround yourself with blue-green colors if you are a writer: they soothe you yet keep the creative juices flowing. Yellow promotes discipline and enhances mental clarity. If you work with a team, try using orange or warm desert colors to aid collaboration.

Conclusion

Feng shui is quite simple and practical. Principles such as surrounding yourself with plants and fresh air, keeping your home and office clutter-free, and placing quality items in your home and office can make sense to anyone without knowledge of feng shui. When using it in your home office the bottom line is comfort, creativity, and productivity.