Colour 101 Home & Decor

Choosing The Best Paint Colour for a Productive, Inspiring Office Space

Today’s office has changed its image. It seems to have gotten a little more casual. Many people are working less at the office and more from their home offices. We can now be connected to the office from almost anywhere. Recently I have moved into a home office and am enjoying it but the question did come up, What colour should I paint my office to make myself the most productive? I will tell you at the end what colour I painted my office.

Blue

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Colours by General Paint: Stoney Plain CLW1037W, Watermark CL2263W, Sweet Potato CL1666A

Stoney Plain CLW1037W

If you research “productive office colour” you will get the answer blue. Blue is the perfect colour if at your job you need your mind stimulated. The colour blue will stimulate your mind and can help make you more productive. This is a great colour choice if you need to concentrate for long periods of time, say an accountant’s office or a doctor’s office. The colour blue also evokes trust and security, but you might want to add a little bit of colour with your blue for a balanced feel. Do this with maybe an orange or yellow. Blue is a cold colour; an orange or yellow pop of colour will offer a little bit of warmth and emotion.

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Yellow

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Colours by General Paint: Akamina CLW1013W, Snowshoe Trail CLW1014W, Chablis CL2763M

If your job is more creative, maybe a stylist, a designer or inventor blue is probably not going to be the right colour choice for you. Yellow may be a better choice as it will stimulate your inner self, bringing out your creative side. It takes fortitude and heart to be creative. You will be better inspired with new ideas and concepts if you are surrounded by a playful and happy shade of yellow.

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Red

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Colours by General Paint: Billable Hours CL2985D, Forgetmenot CL1033W, Beget CLV1110N

Red is your colour if you want to be more productive doing something physical, because it stimulates you physically but if you have a highly stressful work environment it may not be a good choice as it can stimulate your heart rate and raise your blood pressure. The colour red is connected to words like vigour, energy and ambition.

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Green

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Colours by General Paint: Fossil Dust CLW1043W, Camo CL2971W, Pinot Greenio CL2975D

If in your work environment you need a strong sense of balance then green might just be the colour that makes you the most productive, as it is a balanced, calming, and reassuring colour. Green is the colour our eye sees more than any other colour. It a great colour for the go to person in the office who gets the job done. People who like green usually are stable, balanced and described as warm and approachable.

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So then which colour should you go with?

To figure out which colour to paint your office, ask yourself what will work the best in your situation by deciding whether you want to impact your mind (blue family), your emotions (yellow family), your body (red family), or your balance (green family).

We have just discussed the science and psychology of colour but the other factor in choosing a colour and in my opinion the most important is that colour choices are very personal. You know the colours you love and how they make you feel. Choose something that makes you feel productive. It is different for everybody. By the way I painted my office a light blue/grey with pops of yellow green. (Cervantes CL3022W)

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2 Comments

  • Hi Gwen:

    Your article was helpful. I’m going to paint my home office a shade of blue since my line of work is bookkeeping. The rest of my home is old world European. Do you have any suggestions of what would be a good shade of blue to go with the decor of the rest of the house so that it flows properly? Also, I want to add some orange as well. Do you have any suggestions on the best way to add the color orange to the decor in my office?

    Thank you for your time and help with this.

    Julie 🙂

  • Looking for colors for 6 office spaces in a renovated small manufacturing company. Can you suggest ideas or articles that may be helpful to me. This is a family business that has just increased in size.
    Thank you.