FFS Home Office Main Page > Quick Start Assessment & Solutions

[excerpted from Fast Feng Shui for Your Home Office: Creating a Workspace that Works for You.]

This chapter is designed to get you off to a fast start by helping you assess the feng shui of your current home office and suggesting some quick and easy improvements. First, complete the Home Office Assessment. This will help you identify aspects of your home office environment that are supporting you or getting in the way of your success. Then, review the Quick Fix Solutions beginning on page 32 to find out how you can start to benefit from improved feng shui right away, while you take whatever time you need to learn and implement the ideas in the rest of the book.

Home Office Assessment

This Assessment will help you identify some of the good—and not so good—feng shui features of your in-home workspace. For each item below and on the following pages, circle the letter for the answer that most closely describes your home office.

[Online assessors, jot down the letter for your answer to each question on a piece of paper, so you can count up your total points at the end.]

1. My desk is:
a) in good condition, and a good size; not so huge that I can’t reach everything while seated, but big enough to hold my computer and phone and leave ample work space
b) our old kitchen table or similar; we weren’t using it anymore, so I figured it would make an okay desk
c) a door on top of a couple of file cabinets
d) also our dining room table
e) a card table, or not big enough to be useful (even if it’s a beautiful antique or reproduction)
f) my lap

2. When I sit at my desk, the room entrance is ...
a) in front of me, in the opposite corner of the room; I have a good view of the entire room and can see the door from where I sit
b) in front of me and to the side; I am not looking straight at the door, but can see it easily
c) to the side; I am aware of it in my peripheral vision, but don’t have a clear view of it unless I turn my head
d) where I can’t see it, but it is not directly behind me
e) directly in front of me: I see straight out the door from my seat at the desk
f) directly behind me

3. When I am seated at my desk, I have my back to:
a) a solid wall (no window)
b) a small window
c) a large window or sliding glass door
d) bookcases or shelves at close proximity
e) the rest of the room and/or the door
f) a corner wall or sharp angle

4. My desk chair is:
a) my biggest office furnishings indulgence, one of those high-tech super-ergonomic wonders that cost more than I care to admit
b) “executive-style” seating from an office furnishings store, with a high, padded back and adjustable height and tilt
c) adequate, reasonably comfortable, purchased new, but nothing fancy
d) an extra chair from our dining set; nice to look at, but not very comfortable for long work sessions
e) an old kitchen chair (or equivalent) that I picked up at a garage sale or thrift shop—in pretty good shape, but not very comfortable for more than short work sessions
f) old, rickety, unattractive, and uncomfortable

5. When I look up from my desk or computer screen, what draws my attention is:
a) attractive artwork or a beautiful view of nature such as a nicely landscaped yard, trees, mountain or ocean view, etc.
b) a photograph of someone I love or admire
c) a view of an urban or manmade environment (other buildings, a brick wall, a concrete driveway or parking lot, etc.)
d) a cluttered bulletin board or a clock
e) a pile of work, files, unpaid bills, unfinished crafts projects, laundry, etc.
f) a blank wall

6. My office décor includes:
a) healthy live plants or an arrangement of fresh flowers
b) at least one lifelike artificial plant or floral arrangement
c) artwork representing plants, trees, or flowers
d) dried flower arrangements, or neglected and unhealthy house plants
e) no plants or flowers in any form
f) an increasingly funky-smelling vase of dead flowers that I’ve been meaning to do something about for a week

7. The oldest unopened mail (or unread email) in my office has been there for:
a) 24 hours
b) 3 days
c) a week
d) a month
e) longer
f) since the last ice age

8. The last time anyone dusted the ceiling fan or washed the windows in here was:
a) within the past two weeks
b) sometime this month
c) a couple of months ago
d) I’m sure it hasn’t been more than six months
e) it was clean when I moved in
f) to the best of my knowledge, never

9. When I enter my home office on a typical day, it is:
a) clean, tidy, and well-organized
b) basically tidy, with some papers or projects not put away
c) a bit of a mess, but I could tidy it up in less than an hour
d) messy, but I can usually find what I need without too much hassle
e) discouraging; I spend too much time looking for things
f) overwhelming; I’m never going to get control of the mess

10. My office lighting is:
a) adequate natural light for most daytime tasks, with good general illumination (e.g., ceiling fixture) at night and excellent task lighting where I need it
b) pretty good most of the time; a little more natural light during the day and/or better task lighting at night would be nice, but it doesn’t affect my work much
c) sometimes good—i.e., excellent during the day, but not at night, or good at night but too much glare in the afternoons
d) adequate overall and task lighting, but no natural light
e) fluorescent only, but not too much glare or harsh shadows on my work areas
f) awful: flourescsent, with little or no natural light, and inadequate task lighting

11. What I like best about working at home is:
a) autonomy, being my own boss
b) flexible hours that suit my lifestyle
c) every day is “casual Friday”
d) I can play as much computer solitaire as I want
e) staying in my PJs all day
f) not bothering to shower or shave unless I have to go out

12. When I am in my home office, I usually feel:
a) comfortable, alert, focused, and inspired
b) competent and professional
c) a little stressed or distracted, but basically capable of accomplishing what I have to get done
d) unfocused; worried that I’m not getting enough done but somehow unable to be productive
e) stressed and anxious or bored, uninspired, or sleepy
f) like getting out of there as soon as I can

Count up your number of answers for each letter (a, b, c, etc.) and total your score as follows:

5 points for each “a”
4 points for each “b”
3 points for each “c”
2 points for each “d”
1 point for each “e”
0 points for any “f” answers

What your score means:
* 41-60 points: Your high score indicates you’ve already made good decisions about how to furnish and use your home office. A few feng shui improvements in targeted areas and you will have an excellent work space that will help you reach an even higher level of professional, creative, and financial success.

* 21-40 points: Your home office isn’t going to win any feng shui awards, but it is meeting your basic needs. Probably there are a few things about it that irk you and that you would like to improve. With a little attention to correcting feng shui flaws, your home office can be a welcoming and efficient work space that you enjoy spending time in.

* 0-20 points: If you are serious about working from home, you need a home office that works for you—and yours doesn’t. It’s probably difficult for you to focus, feel creative, or be as productive and efficient as you’d like to be in this space. Making some serious feng shui improvements to your work space should be your #1 priority!

[excerpted from Fast Feng Shui for Your Home Office: Creating a Workspace that Works for You]

To find out what the Quick Fix solutions are to each of the issues represented in this Assessment, and why they are important, order your copy of Fast Feng Shui for Your Home Office today:

Click here to order the softcover edition from Amazon.com

Buy the ebook

NOTE: The ebook edition of this title is currently in development. If you would like to be notified when the ebook is available, click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Back to FFS Home Office Main Page