Office Feng Shui – 5 steps to furnish your study space for success

Why apply Feng Shui principles to an office? There's no denying this is an important space to establish balance and encourage prosperity, so using some of the many Feng Shui techniques to make your work environment more productive and invite wealth into your life makes sense. 

When drawing up your home office ideas, work towards creating the perfect office Feng Shui by positioning your desk correctly for good feng shui furniture placement, and incorporate nature. These are just two simple ways to invite good energy into your space, but there are many more. 

Here, Feng Shui designers and experts offer their advice for boosting office Feng Shui.

Office Feng Shui

Having good office Feng Shui is important as the home study is a hub for success, explains holistic interior designer Anna Lippett, who explains the meaning of Feng Shui in relation to an office layout: 

‘The goal of contemporary Feng Shui is to shift and balance the chi in an environment through intention, action, and adjustments.

‘In Feng Shui, each area of the home represents an area of your life. The office and desk represent career and prosperity. The home office should evoke feelings of confidence, success, and abundance. A space that facilitates productivity and creativity.’

Below, we show how home office productivity tips and Feng Shui office layouts combine for great results.

1. Optimize your Feng Shui office layout

When you want to boost your work life, it is important to have a dedicated desk to represent a stable career and maintain your work-life balance. 'Choose a location for your home office that has good energy. This could be a sunny spot in your home or an area that feels calm and serene,' recommends Feng Shui expert Johanna Augusta.

When it comes to an ideal Feng Shui office layout, you want to place your desk in a Feng Shui commanding position. 

‘Energy enters through the door, so positioning your desk with a clear view of the room fosters confidence and an openness to welcoming opportunities,’ explains Anna. 

Place the desk so that you can see the door to welcome new opportunities in, but not directly in line with it. ‘If the room layout doesn’t allow and it is necessary to face a wall, position a wall mirror so you are able to see the door,’ Anna adds.

2. Keep on top of the clutter

Clutter is considered largely negative in home office Feng Shui as it can prevent energy from flowing well in a space leading to stagnation which could overwhelm you,' reveals Anna. ‘This includes inside drawers and cupboards, and even document clutter on devices.’

When it comes to desk Feng Shui, some clutter may be seen as a positive sign of energy and flow, however, items should all have a purpose for your work otherwise they could be interpreted as a sign of stagnation. This means investing in good home office storage ideas if you haven't already.

3. Introduce natural elements

Indoor plants play a large part in most design styles looking to improve wellness. Home office Feng Shui is no exception. ‘Plants, flowers, and images of trees, mountains, and abundant landscapes help us to feel grounded, fostering a connection to nature, growth, vitality, and a sense of calm,’ says Anna. 

There are several Feng Shui plants to choose from for good office Feng Shui, such as the money plant to encourage wealth or heart leafed philodendron to boost positive energy. 

As well as introducing a green thumb element to your office Feng Shui, consider using earth tones to create a cocooning and calming effect. 

‘Choosing a décor palette with shades of green or earth tones will harness the elements of wood and earth in your office,’ Anna adds, as these elements are through to improve wellness, growth, and vitality.  

4. Incorporate the right elements 

Feng Shui focuses on five elements that are believed to bring harmony to your space. For office Feng Shui, the water and metal elements, representing wisdom and precision respectively, are ideal. 

Anna concurs: ‘In Feng Shui, water represents abundance and a water feature in your office can bring a sense of ease and flow to your finances. Metal is associated with clarity and precision, so opting for metallic materials and decorative objects helps to activate these qualities. Selecting a palette of blacks, whites and blues will also harness these energies.’

Johanna also adds that you should 'use colors that inspire and uplift you. Feng Shui principles suggest using earth tones like green and brown to create a sense of stability and balance.'

5. Use inspirational imagery and objects to manifest specific goals

Office Feng Shui is also about inviting success.

‘In contemporary Feng Shui, it is believed that the home is a 3D vision board.’ suggests Anna. ‘Everything in our environment affects how you feel and your ability to attract what you desire. 

‘Surround yourself with intentional visuals of your goals and desires, such as luxury boats, cars, aspirational properties, maps/pictures of destinations you’d like to travel to or attract clients from, portraits of inspiring public figures, motivational quotes, affirmations, or a model of your dream car.’

Where should a home office be for Feng Shui?

For good Feng Shui, a home office should be placed in any spare room of the house when possible as closing the office door at the end of the day can help maintain a healthy work-life balance. It is not ideal, for example, to put an office space in a feng shui bedroom layout, as this can disrupt the peaceful nature of the space. 

For Feng Shui, the home office should also be placed in accordance with the Bagua map. One area of the Bagua map is the wealth and abundance corner, called Xin in Chinese. This area is a popular area for a home office and it is believed to invite more prosperity into your life. Find the wealth corner of your office or an open-plan space by standing in the doorway facing into the room and locate the furthest left corner from your position.