Word Of The Day: White Space
Posted on January 14, 2008 - Filed Under Inspiration
You don’t do work at your desk. You reply to emails, book meetings,and do budgets at your desk, but those are all menial tasks. To accomplish REAL work, you can’t be huddled over your computer in a cubicle or office somewhere. By real work, I’m talking about solving problems, coming up with ideas and planning strategies. The type of work where you add value.
To do real work, you need space. Space for your mind to stretch out. An area for you to spread your information, so you can step back and look at the problem. You need white space. White space can be anywhere that isn’t your desk. It’s where you go to get REAL work done. It can be on a couch in a hidden nook of the office. A boardroom that you booked off for just yourself. Your favourite chair in the Starbucks across the street.
Each individual has different characteristics that define their personal white space. Some people need a constant background noise. Some people need total quiet. Some people need to sit on the floor. Some people need fresh air. The point is that everyone needs to retreat to a special place in order to align their mind to deal with the challenging tasks.
From personal experience, I know that I work far better on pitches when I get into the “zone”. And that white space for me was sitting on couches in a board room by myself with a whole bunch of Post-It notes littering the coffee table. It allowed me to remove myself from the distractions of my desk and focus on the pitch. It also allowed me to step back and view all elements of the pitch in simplified Post-It note form.
So I encourage you to go and find your white space. And if your supervisor hassles you, just tell him (or her) that you are solving a problem that couldn’t be done at your desk. The best argument for preserving your white space will be your resulting ideas. And trust me, they will be much better than those that could have been produced staring at your computer screen at your desk.
- Christian
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5 Responses to “Word Of The Day: White Space”
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The problem is that my most efficient white space is the toilet seat at home.
Any suggestions on how I can get the boss to let me “work” at home, Idea Drunk?
See my most efficient space is any island location. Even Australia - as big of an island as it is… but I’m quite sure that going to these locations to get in tune with my creativity will surely mess with my vacation days. Sigh.
I need to get paid to travel, that’s simply all there is to it.
And no I will not bring you back a kangaroo from here. See you soon xo
Hamid,
I have a couple of potential solutions. The first is that you could find a sweet toilet at work or in the surrounding area that can serve as your “at work” white space. There’s a couple of toilets at my new office that are awesome! They’re like hotel toilets. The only problem is that they’re hidden in the basement … so search the basement.
My second solution is video conferencing. Wear a tie and never point the webcam down. He’ll never know.
Shar,
If your white space is a tropical island, I have a brilliant idea for you. Paint a tropical island mural in your bedroom. Done.
- Christian
I agree with the white space concept. I find it next to impossible to do actual work at my computer; maybe that’s why I don’t do any work? Hmmm. You’re on to me C. No but seriously, I always find it helps to walk around. Most people think I’m doing nothing but I’m really thinking…I need to go walk around…
[…] week, I wrote a post on the importance of white space and gave a few examples. I realize that each individual will have specific ingredients for what […]