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The old-school corporate culture has dominated our society for so long that it’s often hard to imagine it as something different. Even now, when we hear “the office”, our minds immediately conjure up an image of rows upon rows of grey cubicles stuck in a stale-sometimes-Lemon-Pledge-smelling room garishly lit by white fluorescent lights.

 

This image is starting to be overturned though via a combination of younger generations entering the workforce as well as management everywhere recognising the importance of creating an inviting office space to stimulate creativity. Here are some ways you can change your own office and be ahead of the curve:

 

Colours

Splashes of colour go a long way in breaking up the office drab. You can either customise the palette of your office to match your company brand colours or select colours according to how you want to affect office productivity. Colours can be added either by using accents throughout the office or even putting in colourful furniture.

 

Large windows

Not only do large windows let in more natural light, but they also have an added effect of keeping your employees energised. Employees often get restless because they’ve been spending long hours at their desks without getting in touch with the outside world. Even a few minutes of window-gazing makes a big difference in helping them clear their heads.

 

Lighting

If your office location doesn’t allow for large windows to be installed, the next important design element is lighting. Get away from the standard overhead fluorescent lights and focus on softer ambient lighting in the common areas. Make sure each work area is adequately lit though with individual desk and/or hanging lamps. You can even add extra pizazz by replacing all the office light fixtures with decorative ones.

 

Interactive collaboration conference rooms

Nobody likes meetings where they’re talked at without getting any opportunity to express their ideas their own way. By redesigning your office conference rooms into more informal spaces without any seating hierarchies, it’ll foster a more open space to encourage discussion amongst employees. This can be achieved through re-arrangeable furniture, whiteboards on all four walls, and interactive touch-screen displays; all these designs remove the pressure of standing at the front of the room (since that illusion would be gone) while giving different options for employees to present their thoughts in the way they’re most comfortable with. The end result is a much more collaborative work environment.

 

Quiet zero-disturbance work zones

This is especially important in an open-concept office. Everyone has different work styles depending on their task at hand. Some employees may need space to focus without any disturbances from office chatter, phone calls, or e-mails. This can either be a separate room or simply a partitioned area with desks, chairs, and basic stationery. Having designated areas where they can settle in without interruptions would be a huge show of executive support and recognition of work diversity in the office.

 

Separate lunch room and break room

Break rooms are not new idea, but you’d be hard pressed to find one that’s organised and encourages relaxation. That’s what break rooms are supposed to be so that you can feel relaxed and revitalised enough for a fresh round of productivity. The reality though is that most break rooms end up being glorified coffee and microwave stations as guerilla warfare is constantly being waged to claim territory up and down the fridge shelves; next to all this, employees sit hunched over their lunches on sad, rickety tables with mismatched chairs. Well, you can reject this reality and substitute your own by separating the people preparing their lunches and coffees from those who just want quiet relaxation by themselves – either turn those areas into different rooms or at least put up a thick partition in between. After all, the relaxation area is the main space where people can truly recharge so you want to focus on making it worthwhile with plenty of comfy chairs, couches, cushions, yoga mats, and most of all, solitude.

 

The design choices you make for your office ultimately depend on your workplace culture; it’s always a good idea to find out first what your employees need to succeed in their work. Of course, if you’re just looking for a starting point to change it up in your office though, these office design trends are all the spark you need to get you there.

Everyone has a different idea about what “luxury home” means. It’s such a subjective topic because it all comes down to what people’s personal tastes and values are. Having said that though, there are common elements that can be found in luxury homes across the board. Here are some to think about:

 

Exclusive location with stunning views

Much of the price tag for luxury homes can be attributed to their locations. Lands that offer spectacular views and buffers of privacy are hard to come by and homes fortunate enough to claim these locations instantly get a premium attached to their value.

 

Natural, eco-friendly or reclaimed materials

People are very green-conscious nowadays and want to do their part to minimise the carbon footprint in every aspect of their lives, including their homes. The fact that a house is built with natural, environmentally friendly materials or even materials that have been reclaimed and refinished is a significant status boost.

 

Energy-efficient features and smart technology

The need for energy-efficient features comes from the same environment-minded desire as building with eco-friendly materials. The luxury home owners would be proud of their ecologically progressive efforts in saving energy while they also enjoy the long-term savings on their energy bills. Smart technology is a hot luxury feature as well. With the advent of wireless devices and the Internet of Things, there’s a growing demand to integrate smart technology seamlessly into everyday life at home; this can include: locking/unlocking your door with your smart phone, having your preferred thermostat setting follow your wearable smart watch from room to room, and getting your favourite news feeds scrolling through your bathroom mirror each morning as you brush your teeth while the coffee starts brewing in the kitchen and bread is being toasted. The future is here.

 

Open-concept floor plan

This is a great aesthetic choice for homes with limited space because it creates a liberating, wide-open feel to the house while giving it a modern touch. For large luxury homes though, this idea is used most noticeably in the atrium of the front entrance, with high ceilings and sweeping stairs to the upper levels.

 

Restaurant-grade kitchen

Luxury homes can’t go without gourmet meals prepared with commercial-level appliances necessary in any high-end restaurants. The kitchen would of course need to be fully stocked in its walk-in pantry and custom-millwork cabinets to maximise storage space.

 

Spa-inspired bathroom

Perhaps the greatest embodiment of luxury is the ability to take the time to soak in the bathtub or lounge in a hot sauna. You can either do that in a spa outside your home or bring the spa home to you. The choice is pretty obvious. To turn your bathroom into a spa, some popular features to install are: wet room, body spray water jets, radiant floor heating, and a towel warmer.

 

Grand master bedroom

Who doesn’t want to sleep like royalty? Every design in the master bedroom would be made with total comfort in mind, but also with the intent to inspire style. After all, this is the room where you would put on the final touches to your outfit for an evening out. This would mean having an en-suite private bathroom and especially a grand walk-in-closet-dressing-room combination with multi-angled full-length mirrors.

 

Entertainment room(s)

A luxury home just wouldn’t be the same without one or more customised entertainment room(s). Each room would cater to your favourite activity so it could range anywhere from a home theatre to a games room or a pool hall bar to a wine cellar lounge.

 

Indoor gym

Everyone has a busy schedule and sometimes the only free block of time available for a workout are during random hours when the local fitness gym’s not open (like at 2 o’clock in the morning). It’s moments like these when an indoor gym comes in real handy. Plus, you don’t have to deal with traffic while going to and from the gym.

 

Outdoor pool and grill patio

One of the perks of having a luxury home is that you have the ability and venue to host talk-of-the-town parties; for some reason, these epic parties always seem to involve an outdoor pool. What takes that outdoor pool up a notch on the luxury scale though is when you also install a patio that has a full-on gas grill kitchen with a sink, counter, and mini-fridge for drinks to go along with it.

 

Whatever features you want in your future luxury home, keep in mind that you don’t need to buy a new mansion in an exotic location first. If you already consider the place you’re in right now your dream home, there’s no need to buy and move somewhere new; you can simply build an addition to your existing house to turn it into your luxury dream home.