to feng shui or no way

In Finding Your Groove, I touched on feng shui as a way to organize your work space and inspire productivity. 

Today I share my thoughts on feng shui and your desk. 

There's guides for creating harmonizing balance with feng shui for your home overall, your office, your bedroom, and more. I specifically sought help for my desk. When arranging furniture in my home office, I definitely considered where my desk was located in the room - in front of windows? facing the door? At work, though, I don't have as much flexibility. 

My desk situates my back to the door, but is in a large space with 2 others and off a common area. Which, like my penchant for bustling coffee shops, works well for inspiring me to work. So, one con with two pros. What shall we do? 

A quick search on Pinterest for "desk feng shui" provided me with some key visuals to start this new organization adventure. My first temptation was to visit my nearest HomeGoods and fill my cart with something blue, something wood, something silver, something...new? But when I cleared the shopaholic fog, I decided I could make use with things I already had. #graduatebudget 

This article from greatist caught my attention the most. I liked the brief intro (so easy to skim) as well as the note that you should select a few of the areas to focus on. An overall goal of the practice is "clutter-free", so filling your desk with plants, candles, photo frames (especially if you have a small desk) counteracts the goal. 

Source: Greatist (click for link)

Source: Greatist (click for link)

Start with the bagua map, choose a few areas, then think about what you could add. I liked the options of combining colors and items (and materials) to fill each grid.

• A wood container with a faux plant from Ikea resides in the back left.
• My bulletin board has photos of my family, a favorite card, and a calendar (arranged so I can see everything above the top of my laptop).
• The right corner has a mirror from the Dollar Tree positioned so I can see anyone approaching from behind me. I was worried this would be more distracting, but being able to glance up at a noise, see who it is, and dismiss it going back to work, is more helpful than feeling like someone is creeping up behind me. 
• A silver frame with a family photo finishes off the 180 degree tour of my desk. 

Learn more about feng shui from Ms. Feng Shui if it interests you. 

Have you used feng shui in your life? What project did you tackle and how has it helped?

​BD