Most of us have full-time jobs or a head office that we visit at least three to five times a week, many hours are spent here over time, we are surrounded by an environment that can either enhance a positive mood or lead to a negative one. This is why it is so important for us to not only love what we do but also enjoy the hours we spend in the office.
There are so many combining factors that make our mind up on our satisfaction and overall satisfaction in the office. Two main ones are the social side and the physical side which naturally force us to decide on just how satisfied we feel with our working environment.
The social side is all about who you are working with, the colleagues who have become friends, work functions related to work and the social gatherings organised between staff members. There are companies out there who organise charity events for their staff to participate in, monthly picnics, after work drinks, parties or gatherings after completing an important project and some who constantly come up with ways to say “thank you” to their staff for all they put into the company. This seems to build a closer bond within the team, allowing the staff to get to know each other and have some bonding time as well as have some fun with their colleagues, which noticeably helps to build a stronger and more efficient team.
The physical side refers to where you work and how the physical environment around you works with your productivity in the office. This relates to what the physical environment is, what the office space design is like, how it is set out, the lighting, the amenities, the features available to you, what makes the office different in terms of what the look and feel is.
This creates an office vibe that should make the employees feel at ease and comfortable when working; without this positive vibe it is likely that employees will become unsatisfied, irritated and naturally less productive. An open, light filled and modern office with great features is likely to create a positive physical environment and attract more employees and customers rather than a plain office which has little benefit in creating a positive feel to all who visit or work within the space.
It has been studied and shown that these two main factors and surprisingly to some, this proves that the physical aspect of the work environment is what affects our thoughts and feelings the most as opposed to the social factor. Which one do you find to be the strongest influence for yourself?
