Happy Mind
A major motivation for starting Desk Plants was spurred by experiences working in stale office environments. Simply put, working among shades of grey, white and black can weigh on our emotional well being. No matter how much of an outdoors explorer you consider yourself to be, our team at Desk Plants sincerely believes in the human connection to nature and the role it plays in the way we feel. While getting outside frequently is nearly impossible for the majority of those living in urban areas, caring for plants in indoor spaces such as apartments and offices can supplement this connection quite effectively. While apartment jungles are growing to be all the rage these days, unfortunately, most offices don't do a great job at incorporating live plants for the benefit of their employees.
There are a few things both employees and companies can do to improve the productivity, happiness and overall well being of everyone. One of the easiest, most cost-effective options is to utilize plants to help optimize the visual appeal of the workspace. Keeping live plants that can be noticed and incorporated into the scene (ie, something more than a mini succulent) will help everyone feel better about where they work.
According to Dr. Chris Knight, a psychologist at Exeter University who has been studying this issue for the better part of 15 years, employees in indoor work environments are 15% more productive when their workplaces are filled with just a few plants. He concluded that employees who actively engage with their surroundings are better workers. It was found that offices with just one plant per square meter resulted in better employee performance and higher memory retention test scores. One of the excerpts from the study says, "what was important was that everybody could see a plant from their desk...where there's something to get you psychologically engaged you are happier and you work better."
Looking at a separate study conducted by researchers at Texas State University, data showed, "significant differences in workers' perceptions of life quality, job satisfaction, nature of work, supervisors and coworkers among employees who worked in office environments that had plants." The results also showed that employees who worked around plants felt better about the work that they performed. Employees in offices without plants rated their satisfaction much lower. In these studies, there were no statistically significant differences between age, ethnicity, salary, education levels or positions and these results were consistent across the board.
Employee burnout is a very real issue in today's corporate environment. While it is important to figure out a healthy balance between your career and well being, it is just as important to improve the environment where you spend many hours focusing on work. Plants are an amazing way to brighten up the artificial environment of an interior workspace, providing subtle but substantial changes to everyone's state of mind. Do yourself a favor and invest in your connection to nature with a living plant on your desk.
