Source: (clockwise from top left) A Beautiful Mess, Domino, Live Creating Yourself, Apartment Therapy.

There’s something really comforting about being nestled in the booth of a coffee shop – maybe it’s the smell of espresso, the quiet murmur of other people talking and laughing, that seemingly unattainable mood lighting, or maybe it’s just the fact that you aren’t sitting at your own desk. Doesn’t it feel like you can just streamline through all your work when you’re not actually forced to sit at your “assigned workplace?” One moment you’ve just sat down in the back booth, and next,  you’re 2-Americanos deep, and you’ve magically written thousands of words (or hundreds, depending on your typing speed). The coffee shop desk is great, but it doesn’t stay open past 8 p.m., and you can really only order so much caffiene.

So how do you create this relaxed, this go-with-the-flow, this – if you don’t mind me saying – chill workplace? It’s not that hard; it’s just requires a wee bit of creativity and getting a handle on where you are actually most productive.

There are five main factors that can affect productivity (and it’s not depriving yourself of happiness and color):

Temperature

There’s a really great urban legend that goes something like this: people work better in cold temperatures because they can’t fall asleep. But guess what? If you’re uncomfortable – like freezing, you won’t be able to focus on your task at hand. Studies have even shown that colder environments (especially below 68 degrees), increase your likelihood for a typing error and could decrease your productivity by a whopping 46 percent. So make your workplace temperature that perfect equilibrium between “too hot” and “too cold.” As our dear friend Goldilocks might say, “Ahh. This temperature is just right.”

 If you don’t have control over the thermostat:

• Dress in layers – layers allow you to warm up or cool down all while looking exceedingly stylish. Now, you don’t have to go back to the early 2000’s and buy ; you can just pack a cozy sweater or scarf, so you can bundle up when you’re feeling chilly or shed when you’re too warm.

• A great way to warm up or cool down is with a warm cup of tea or a cold soda – or really any sort of warm/hot beverage you like.

Noise

Noise gets a bit tricky. The nice “buzz” that you hear at the coffee shop isn’t always attainable, and sometimes music can distract you – especially when you serenade your coworkers, but studies have also shown that enjoyable sounds can encourage the release of dopamine – i.e. the lovely neurotransmitter that “rewards” our brain. A good rule of thumb for adding music into your work day is:

Working on something new: silence.

Working on a regular task: music.

 If you work around other people:

• When you’re working on a new project and need that precious silence,  websites like Noisli let you stream white, pink and brown noise along with all kinds of ambient nature sounds to lift you out of the office.

• As for music, earphones are always a great way to keep your music to yourself, and if you don’t want to keep completely “zone out” into the world of Spotify or Pandora, you can leave one earphone in and one earphone out.

Lighting and Glare

Nothing is worse that walking into a room beaming with artificial light before you’ve had your first cup of coffee. It’s been shown that people who are exposed to more artificial light than natural light – e.g. the heated glare of the fluorescent bulb vs. the real sunshine – are much sleepier at the end of the day than those who worked in natural light. To get the most of your work day, make sure your artificial light is glowing somewhere between dim and harsh (there’s Goldilocks again!), and make sure to take breaks outside to enjoy the sunlight – don’t let that artificial light upset your body’s circadian rhythms too much.

Can’t control the lights?

• If possible, bring a small lamp to your desk, so you can control the lighting of your own space.

• Take your lunch break outside (weather permitting) or take some time to sit near a window to offset the computer’s glow.

Get Comfortable

Unfortunately your mother was right; people who type with good posture have been shown to be much more productive than those who slump over their keyboard, but hey, with all this jazzy music and good lighting – there’s no reason to slump.

When you’re not aware you’re slumping:

• Re-set workspace with ergonomics that make it easier to maintain your posture. It’s ideal for your keyboard to be close enough that your elbows are at a 90° angle, and for your chair to be at a height that lets your thighs rest at a 90° angle from your torso. And move your monitor closer! It should be no more than 20″ – 28″ away from you – and if it’s closer you won’t keep drifting toward it.

• Set a timer every 30 – 60 minutes to do a posture check and make small adjustments to your position. Stretch your hands, arms, and torso; and take a break by going for a walk around the office.

Color Therapy

Yes, we were all told that that warm hues increase energy, and the tranquil blues leave us stress-free, but there has also been talk that the color red increases focus and attention to detail, while blue actually promotes free thinking and creativity.

If you can’t re-do your cubicle or get out the paint:

• Customize what you can by changing your desktop background to the colour that triggers the mental state that you need most.

• Create an inspiration board, or a less formal collection of images that inspire you, that plays on the colours you want around you, and position it in the area around and behind your computer screen.

The best thing about having a workspace that supports your success? That you can be more relaxed, get more done with less effort, and let the rest of your life start right on time.