The type of office environment has a big influence on your focus and creativity.
It may seem an obvious statement but how many of us actually pay attention to this during the application process? A lot of the times, you don’t even get to see the office floors.
“What type of office environment does this company have?”
In general, offices can be divided into two types:
a. Open office space
The ‘open workspace’ is very trendy at the moment. They are not only meant for desk work but also exist for meeting purposes. If you have not experienced working in an open workspace you may think this never works: way too noisy! In this case it will surprise you this is not true, most of the time. People do adjust their behavior accordingly. Calls, for instance, are done in special call-booths. Again: most of the time.
But overall you will experience more distraction by people walking by or talking. If you are bothered quickly by this an open office would not the best option for you.
Open workspaces are great for people who get energy from social-interactions and for people who become more creative by being in dynamic environments.
b. Cubicles or closed workspaces
Classic offices are great for working on tasks that require high focus. It’s also great to walk in the door and not have to worry if you will still have a place to sit that day. All humans are creatures of habit, after all.
Yet, social interaction with non-direct colleagues does need more planning and may happen less often. This, in combination with less other external stimuli may account for diminished creative thinking.
Now think about what office type would suit your personality best? And what would be the best environment for the role you will be carrying out?
Read Part 1 in order to find out which Performance Management process suits you best.
Read Part 2 in order to find out which career path matches your development goals.
