Colour has played a significant role in our everyday lives. From marketing to food, to our homes and fashion, colour can communicate messages to individuals and influence the way people think and feel. The power of colour is no less when it comes to workplaces. Just as colour can affect how we think and feel, it will also have a big impact on your employees during their work hours. Keep reading to find how colour can positively impact employees and how businesses can use colour in their offices.
How Colour Impacts The Mood
Colour can have a profound impact on an individual’s mood and significantly influence emotion. As the well-respected artist Pablo Picasso said, “Colours, like features, follow the changes of the emotions”. The impact that colour can have on an individual’s emotional state is often so subtle that it often goes unnoticed. Picture this: you walk into a grey and white office space. Subconsciously, dull colours will evoke negative emotions. The colour choice in a room can significantly impact the feel of the room and the individuals in that room.
According to a study conducted by the University of Texas, colours such as grey and white can provoke feelings of sadness and sorrow. It’s no surprise then that the way someone feels significantly affects their work quality, productivity, ability to collaborate and create. Employees spend the majority of their day in the office working. Integrating the right colours into an office space can play a huge role in employee wellbeing. Beyond just mood, colour can even impact physical wellbeing. Believe it or not, colour can impact appetite, heart rate, blood pressure and eye vision.
For one, the colour green can energize employees and combat stress. It’s no wonder incorporating nature and plants, referred to as Biophilic Design, has become an office design trend in 2019. Low-wavelength colours, such as green and blue produce a calming effect in employees whilst high-wavelength colours can stimulate employees and motivate them.
Office spaces that don’t place importance on colour are missing the mark on boosting employee mood and wellbeing.
How Colour Impacts The Mind
Businesses are always looking for ways on maximizing employee productivity and focus. Often times, the problem is much more obvious than one might think. Not only does colour impact mood, but it can also significantly impact an employee’s productivity and focus.
For instance, the colour blue can help boost employee productivity and focus. Similarly, brighter colours can encourage creativity, innovation and collaboration. It’s simple. The brain perceives and reacts differently to various colours.
Leveraging Colour Theory
Who knew increasing productivity and employee wellbeing could be done by changing the colour of your walls? Well… it’s not that simple. While colour has been proven to significantly impact an employee’s mood and mind, changing the colour of your walls or adding a few bright cushions to a chair do not quite do the trick. Rather, businesses need to be smart about leveraging colour psychology to maximize their space.
The Bottom Line
Colour is one of the many ways businesses can help build a better office environment for their employees. Even then, office spaces are not constricted to a small colour palette. Businesses can mix and match colours depending on the area of their workplace. Custom colour design allows businesses to leverage colour psychology based on their goals and objectives. It’ll work wonders on creating a space that fits with the type of role and activity of the employees.
If you’re curious to learn more about our office design expertise, check out our services! To take a look at some of our past office design spaces and how we have designed with colour, visit our gallery. Ready to take the first step to transform your office space? Contact us today!
