If you check out my Instagram stories, you know I love working from a good coffee shop. I love sharing, from time to time, the obligatory #WFA (work from anywhere) coffee shop photo. What I noticed recently is that as more people are finding remote work, there’s been an increase in the number of people working from non-traditional workspaces like coffee shops and coworking spaces.

A recent Inc. Magazine article mentioned that “as the gig economy grows, there are both social and scientific reasons why workers are going to trade the cubicle for Starbucks and Caribou.” Although there are people who are starting careers where they’re able to #WFA, a lot of people still work in traditional corporate office spaces. I asked many of you on Instagram whether or not you enjoyed working from coffee shops. 80% of you who responded said ‘yes’, while the other 20% said ‘no’. A bunch of you also messaged me about wanting to work remotely and why it was important for you to work outside of a traditional office.

My friend Deonte Yong, who works as a Global Educator based in the D.C. area, responded ‘yes’ to my poll and even followed up with a photo of his newly made over office space. I don’t know if you got a chance to see it yesterday, but it looks very similar to a coffee shop. (oh heyyy new chic office!💁🏾) He told me he had been wanting to change up his space for a while because his old space felt very “transactional and corporate.” Deonte decided to take action this week (how ironic?!) after he attended Michelle Obama’s book tour and heard her say “you have to be comfortable in your space! Own your Space, Own your Story.”

After he made a few changes to his environment (changing the lighting, rearraging a few items, adding a photo of the world, etc.) he realized he “created an environment where people wanted to be around” and that it “brings people into his office more.” He said people come in “just to chill.” On a personal note, Deonte said he “definitely gets things done at a better rate and that he feels better in general.” Which he also attributes to his essential oil “diffuser which is by the window.”  He says he “turns it on first thing in the morning.” And what he loves most about it is that you can add in drops depending on what kind of vibe you’re wanting in the room.” This man has definitely created his own little haven and I love it!

Seeing this inspired me to reach out to an expert to learn more about the science behind how our environment impacts our productivity and overall mood and share a few tips with you guys to help you do the same. I had the opportunity to chat with Feng Shui expert Amanda Collins to learn more about how to create the perfect Feng Shui to increase productivity and creativity in any workspace. Amanda describes Feng Shui as “science from ancient China shows us how to enhance prosperity, health, relationships, work, and inner peace through our environment.” She says that “by making changes to our space, we affect changes in our life.”

Amanda, who founded The International School of Feng Shui which is based in Ireland, has worked with clients such as Bloomingdales, Bank of America, Hewlett-Packard and Dreamworks. They all have reported breakthroughs with her Feng Shui consulting. She also says her work has even helped people who were single for years find their soulmate.

Amanda shared with me her tips on how to create the perfect Feng Shui anywhere and of course, I want to share it with you guys. Creating a supportive working environment is crucial to your success.

Here are 4 tips to creating the perfect Feng Shui in any workspace:

1.Position yourself to see the door

Amanda says, “ideally, you want to try to position yourself so that you can see the door and have a wall behind you.” But if you aren’t able to see the door, try to be seated so that you are able to see out of a window. And if you’re in space where you can’t position yourself to see out of a window, think of the ultimate view you want to have that will inspire you.”

2.Have things that inspire you in your space

When you’re setting up your workspace, you’ll want to think about the things that inspire you. So if you love working from a coffee shop, you’ll want to think about things that make you feel good when you’re in the coffee shop and incorporate those things into your space. Another thing she mentioned was “you don’t have to keep things that people give you’ especially if they aren’t  serving you in your space. Amanda also noted that “if you want your company to go international, get a little globe and put it in your office specifically the Northwest area. The Northwest region has to do with supportive people and relates to travel and making things global.”

Sidebar: Deonte has a photo of a map in his office!

3.Be intentional with the type of Artwork you include in your work area

Think about what message is your artwork saying to you. You may not know this but it’s constantly sending subliminal messages to you all the time unconsciously. You’ll also want to think about the placement of the artwork. If you have a wall behind you, you’ll want artwork that supports you.

Amanda says “in Feng Shui, we sometimes say to put a picture up of a mountain because it represents support. But you could put up a picture of the map or the world, so the world is supporting you. You could put up a picture of the universe, the universe has got your back. Put something up behind you that is going to support you to flourish.” And the same goes for the wall in front of you.

4.Declutter everything!

This one is major. What’s in your space reflects how you feel inwards. This can be as simple as going into your computer clearing out desktop, email inboxes, and old files. Decluttering doesn’t always have to represent physical clutter, it can be electronic also. But definitely declutter your physical space too. This is said to open up major money flow.

Hope you guys enjoyed this! I’d love to hear what tips helped you the most.

Xo