Let’s talk about it. There’s a reason for many thinkers to hate corporate workspaces & startups like Skcript love workdesks. In this Your work desk series, I just wanted to share what I found out analyzing the way your creativity and productivity is affected with the kind of desk you have.

The moments

Think about it, where has your “That’s the solution” moments happened? When you were sitting in front of your desk starring at your computer or when you were walking, eating or doing something else? For me, there has never been a case where I have gotten those solutions when sitting at my desk.

Every week, I just analyze myself to know how productive I’ve been for that week. And over the past few years, I’ve aggeregated some data, and here’s what I found.

The best ideas never occurred to me when sitting in front of the desk.

The reason? I guess its because that place is something that you are totally used to. Your desk is your home at office. You work, drink coffee, take nap and literally live there. There’s no time for relaxation at your desk. The mind completely aligns itself to a particular direction, and you do only the things you know you are confident in doing.

So here’s what has happened to me. Any idea that I have thought of, and has gone into the product we build, never came to my mind when I was doing my work at my desk.

It has always happened when

watching TV with my team at the office

when spinning the ball in hand

walking throughout the lounge area

when sipping coffee, standing next to the Pokemon action figures

In short, every good thinking has happened when I’m not at my desk, and when my body is not in a position that it is used to be for majority of time in a day.

Things to try

Well, here’s what I would suggest you to try.

1. Standing Desk

Standing desks are just brilliant. When you are creative, one of the biggest characteristics you might have, is I don’t really care what people think about me. So using a standing desk in an office where everyone else is sitting is nothing awkward.

Standing gives you a sense of freedom. You are free to walk anything, just keep your creative juices flowing. Above all, one of the biggest thing I’ve noticed when using a standing desk for work, is the ability to walk away from your computer when a solution is not working. This really didn’t happen to me when sitting in front of my desk.

2. Having a clear desk

This is something that might bring up a debate. While science might think that having a messy desk might make people creative, to us (At Skcript), we go by the phrase:

Science is just an option

Having a clear desk, with your computer, and one of your favorite thing that you can play with, can help you be more productive than ever before.

3. Be around the team

Do this. Always. If you are going to be using a standing desk, make sure you don’t put yourself away from the regular team and be alone. Since standing desks make it easy for you to move around, it’s easier for you to talk to your team, and interact with them.