Color me Productive

Colors are an explicit expression of personality and taste. Picking the right color is a tricky affair; besides individual tastes in color being subjective, it’s also important to pick a color that fits your company image and nature of work. It affects an outsider's perception of your business. 

But moving beyond the aesthetic appeal of colors, it’s been proven that colors can have a subliminal effect on productivity and mood. A study has shown that colors may account for changes in an individual’s cognitive and psychomotor performances, though the extent of it is unknown. 

We’ve narrowed down the major points you need to check off your list when picking colors for your office & office furniture: 

How Color affects behavior & productivity

World renowned psychologist Angela Wright developed a science backed theory named color affects system. According to her, individual perception of color may be subjective based on personality, but there are some universal responses. 

“What defines whether a color is stimulating or soothing is not the color, it’s the intensity. A strong bright color will stimulate, and a color with low saturation will soothe.”

The Psychological Basics - Blue, Red, Yellow & Green

It’s interesting to note how certain colors, either used solo or in combination, can do wonders for the entire office. Red affects the body, blue influences the mind and emotion, Green provides balance between mind and body, yellow works on your creativity and confidence Interestingly, when you combine more than one color, you get the effects of both of them. For example, if you combine a highly-saturated yellow with a highly-saturated blue, you will get a color that stimulates both your emotions (yellow) and mind (blue). 

Blue

Blue is the universally associated with calmness and productivity. Taking a look at the outdoors, blue is the color of the sky and ocean. The mind makes an association with tranquility, and is probably why blue is known to lower blue pressure. In an office, it’s a safe color to pick so your team feels relaxed and calm. 

Green

You immediately picture greenery and plants when you look at green - the connect is instant and automatic. Research indicates the color green to induce a relaxing effect. It’s ideal for white collar workers who work long hours as it does not cause eye fatigue

Yellow

The color of creativity and optimism. Businesses that involve artists, interior designers, writers and similar creative type of workers should integrate yellow in the office. Associated with the sun and sunshine, it gives an uplifting feeling and boosts mood and energy.  

Red 

Most corporate offices avoid splashing red all over their walls and associate red with negative emotions like anger and frustration, must be all those misguided bullfighting facts ;)  

 It’s definitely a complicated color. It invokes fear, anger and also passion and emotion. It’s ideal where physical activity is involved, as it’s shown to increase blood flow. 

Orange 

A beautiful marriage of yellow and red, the color orange evokes action and energy. It’s an active color that’s ideal for team based work as it stimulates enthusiasm and creativity. It also exemplifies vitality and endurance. 

Geometric Shapes

While stripes, checks and other geometric patterns on walls and surroundings are bold statements of creativity, they can distracting and does a poor job of helping with focus. Light and dark stripes are also known to induce headaches. 

Follow a Color Theme

Don’t experiment too much. Follow one color scheme that fits the space well. Visual stimulus to different colors within the space over brief time may cause eye fatigue. A safe bet is to go with white or light grey walls, with accents of colors like wall paintings or accessories, to balance it out. 

Be sure to avoid colors that are too bold. For example, bright red or yellow tends to be overpowering and distracting. Steer clear of dark colors like dark blue or dark green, which can form a gloomy atmosphere.