30 Aug Update Your New York City Break Room for Fall
The end of August is a great time to update your New York City break room to make it a warm and inviting space before the cooler and darker fall months arrive. While there are a lot fun and exciting things to look forward to during fall, darker days is definitely not one of them.
Research has shown that many individuals who live in northern latitudes are negatively impacted by fewer hours of daylight. Here’s a very short explanation. Increased amounts of sunlight cause levels of the hormone serotonin to increase. Serotonin is known as a mood boosting hormone. When there isn’t enough sunlight, serotonin levels go down, and many people feel sad or depressed.
Updating the break room is one way to offer everyone an opportunity to relax, smile and laugh during the workday, and happy employees are more productive employees. Consider the following five areas when updating a break room: color, convenience, relaxation, fun & refreshment.
Color: Lack of color or bland colors have been shown to make people feel sad or gloomy, and that is especially true at work where access to the outdoors can be limited. Yellows evoke friendliness and cheer while blues and greens create a sense of peace and tranquility. One word of caution; before running to the paint store, remember that colors affect people differently.
Convenience: How is your break room organized? Is everything convenient? Offer multiple types of seating that encourage conversation, a coffee or meal break, or a few minutes of relaxation. That might include different areas with sofas, tables and chairs, booths or even a rocking chair or two. Don’t forget to offer easily accessible outlets or charging stations.
Relaxation: Once an aesthetically pleasing color is on the wall, it’s time to look at other ways to encourage relaxation. Many employees find increasing the amount of natural lighting, updating fixtures, and incorporating aspects of nature such as plants, wood, or water appealing. Plants are especially functional as they help clean the office air too.
Fun: A break room should not only be a separate space from the rest of the workplace, but it should also feel different. Multiplayer games such as Foosball, table tennis, pool and even board or card games provide a break from work and encourage team bonding. Decorate the space for holidays and special occasions or as a central location for a company-wide fundraiser.
Refreshments: Before diving into all the different options available, let’s consider an important question. Which types of refreshments are important to your current New York City employees? Will those same refreshments help draw in new employees? Once those answers are clear, it’s time to consider coffee-shop quality coffee services, healthy snacks and beverages, and fresh food. Helping employees stay hydrated and healthy also contributes to overall productivity.
Small changes can make a difference, but if you’d like to see an example of a complete break room makeover that includes color, convenience, relaxation, fun & refreshments, check out the break rooms at Cool Breakrooms.
For more information about customizing a new refreshment menu or updating your current one, call Group C at 800-761-0810. We look forward to helping you get your break room ready for fall.