Sight, smell, touch, taste and sound are obviously your five senses and yet it’s often forgotten how much influence our senses affect our mood during the day. Whether you work at home or in an office, you have a space that is yours and you have the ability to bring out positive sensory responses to make your day better.

Sensory designer Jenson Lee Who spoke at an incredible Ted Talk about changing your everyday experiences by using the sensory theory. Sensory theory measures your experience of the five sensors on a scale of 1 (low impact) to 10 (high impact).  For example, eating an orange would be a 10 for taste, 9 for smell, 5 for touch and so on. The predominant sensory activated will hit a higher number on the scale. Makes sense, right? (pun intended)

And knowing this, how do we change up our work space, to explore and enhance our sensories, to make our day more enjoyable?

Smell

Using an oil diffuser can change your attitude as soon as you start your day. Bearing in mind that other people may be affected by your diffuser,  you may want to choose an oil that is natural and evokes a state of calmness. A smell that is not too overbearing and can continuously be used without drawing too much attention. Think about what smell sparks your imagination or relaxes you. A smell that brings up memories or ones that makes you feel happy. Smell is subjective but it has the incredible power to invoke such a strong psychological response in us. It can bring up lost memories and even enter our dreams. So take some control over the environment you smell in.

Sight

Most people who work in an office everyday will use a computer. Black or white are the typical colours of a keyboard or laptop. But it doesn’t have to be so black and white! You can buy colored keypads or even create your own fun little colorful keyboard DIY project. Making a small change can visually simulate you and bring out your creativity.

Sound

Music has always had an impact on productivity, but changing the genre of music will get different results. It’s pretty obvious that upbeat music will energize and soft ocean sound that you hear while getting a massage will probably send your team to sleep. So find the right tone that will make the day go by easier. The sound of silence is not always the best way to work, so find out what works for you.

“You must learn to heed your senses. Humans use but a tiny percentage of theirs. They barely look, they rarely listen, they never smell, and they think that they can only experience feelings through their skin. But they talk, oh, do they talk.” The Alchemist. 

So let’s no longer talk about it, let’s feel and smell and taste ourselves into a better way of living.

Photo by Kathryn Aleksa on Unsplash