Your Space Matters – the Cubs, Circles and Trust

Have you considered how the environment around you impacts your ability to perform at your best?
We were inspired by an article in today’s Wall Street Journal featuring our home town world series champions. The article was titled, The Chicago Cubs’ Circle of Trust. It talked about how Wrigley Field’s clubhouse is in the shape of a circle. What was fascinating is how much the space impacts the way the team connects and performs.
In a contrasting article, CEO’s want their offices back, there was an underlying theme in common. Some leaders have started recognizing that they cannot get thinking time in noisy open office spaces.  Some CEO’s have gone so far as to rent separate office space down the hall from their company’s co-working space.
Whatever your opinion is on circular spaces or open concepts, the bottom line is that you need an environment that helps you perform at your best. Here are some questions to consider:

• What does the space around you inspire?
• What is the best time of day for you to focus?
• Do you need a quiet, motion free environment to think?
• How much light, noise or movement occurs around you? Does this help or hinder your work?

It’s important to have space that honors how you work. Productivity and morale has suffered in many offices that implemented an open office concept. A British research study said that the open office hurt workers motivation and their ability to focus.
Pay attention to how you perform in different environments. If you work at a coffee shop, does the surrounding commotion energize you or distract you? A statistic from the NeuroLeadership Institute – 39% of workers do their best thinking at home.
How your space is setup matters. The more you pay attention, the more you may find ways to increase your ability to focus and perform at your best.