Generally, Americans spend about 40+ hours of their week in the office. For some it becomes practically a second home. So it’s essential to ensure the place is both professional for clients and comfortable for employees. With spring on the way, it might be time for some spring cleaning to really bring out the best in your building.
Why? Because your office is the center of your business, and your employees are one of your greatest assets. A clean office promotes better mental health and greater productivity among your workers. Improving their surroundings is a subtle but important sign to them that you care about them. It even can reduce sick days, which means you get the most out of your workers.
On top of that, it’s your clients’ first impression of you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a laboratory, government office, educational building, or business hub; the cleanliness of your workspace says a lot about your office.
Here are a few key things you should consider this spring to make your office space feel cleaner and more productive.
Declutter and Redecorate
Out with the old, in with the new. It’s time to check your supply closets and take stock of what you have and what you no longer need. Is there a stack of keyboards you know won’t be put to use anytime soon because everyone is using laptops? Half-filled bottles of cleaning spray that could be consolidated? Boxes of tissues hidden in the back that no one has been able to find all winter?
Decluttering can seem tedious and daunting, but it’s a fantastic way to ensure your money is being put to good use. You’ll know what you have on hand for supplies and not have to worry about ordering more. You can also reorganize things so they’re easier to find, meaning time won’t be wasted searching for items you need.
It can also be a good time for employees to think about decluttering and organizing their desks. Whether they choose to go the Marie Kondo route and throw away unneeded items or they decide to completely revamp their space. They can put away those light boxes that help fight off seasonal depression and replace it with a vase of beautiful flowers to get in the spring mood.
Make the Exterior Look Beautiful
Be honest – you would love to spend more time outside of the office once the weather gets nice. Whether it be on your lunch break, taking the occasional call, or even working on a laptop on a bench, the fresh air can be revitalizing and a change of scenery can clear your mind and make you more productive.
The best way to do this is to make the exterior of your office look beautiful and well-maintained with a landscaping service. It can be as simple as keeping the lawn mowed and debris from winter cleared away. But there’s so much more than can be done to really make a courtyard or walkway look inviting. Have seasonal flowers planted to fill the air with sweet scents and give the area a pop of color. If there are shrubs, consider having them pruned so they look neater and less scraggly.
Another option to consider is power-washing the walkways and exterior walls. This will not only make everything look fresher, but it can also increase the longevity of the newly-cleaned surfaces as any mold, mildew, or grease will be cleared away.
A New Coat of Paint
Spring is the season of renewal and rebirth. It’s a time when everything feels fresher and brighter. Your office should feel the same. Why not consider a new coat of paint? Perhaps even a new color? There have been studies done on how color affects human psychology, including in the workplace. Perhaps you might decide a calming blue is the vibe you need to keep your employees happy. In contrast, a more stimulating and uplifting yellow can get them excited for their next assignment. Each color can affect people in different ways, and more muted shades can mitigate negative effects of some of the bolder colors.
Is now the best time to paint? For the interior, most certainly. Humidity is low so there isn’t too much moisture on the walls, which can affect the paint job. For the exterior of the building, it might be better to push it off until early summer or early fall, as paint needs a certain temperature range to dry properly. But that doesn’t mean you should put everything off until then. Spring is still the best time to choose your color and book your painters before their schedule gets filled.
Let the Light In
With the Spring Equinox signaling longer days and more sunlight, it’s vital to let that sunshine in. It’s not just because it will make the office look better; research shows that workplaces benefit from daylight in the office. Simply being exposed to daylight throughout the day vastly improves not only workers’ moods, but also their productivity and health. Being exposed to moderate amounts of sunlight may also treat symptoms of depression and vitamin D deficiency.
Because of this, you should make sure your windows are professionally and thoroughly cleaned to let in the optimal amount of sunlight. It will boost feelings of happiness in the office staff and improve morale overall.
Modern office buildings also have large windows and glass enclosures, so cleaning them after the winter months are over is key to making the office presentable to visiting clients. Grime left over from snowfall or fingerprints might not seem noticeable when you’ve gotten used to seeing it every day, but it can stand out like a sore thumb to newcomers. Having a janitor do even a quick wipe with some eco-friendly cleaning products will instantly improve its appearance.