You love what you do. Now love where you do it.

Do you find the office on the left inspiring?  My guess is no.  We spend the majority of our days in our offices, and we’ve worked so hard to be able to do inspiring work that we love.  Here at Marie Mae, we believe it is important that our workspaces be just as inspiring. 

The aesthetics of our environment can have a powerful effect on our productivity and mood through out our workday.  In order to maximize our efforts, we should have a workspace that is pleasing to the eye as well as, in line with our world changing vision.  Our offices say more about us than we think.  Let’s make them look good and do good.

So how do you go about turning your workspace into a place that changes the world and looks good doing it?

1.  Evaluate your work style.  Do you prefer working fully electronically, or do you need to spread out and write things down on paper?  Do you prefer to work sitting at your desk or standing up?  What office products do you need to do your work?  Is ambient noise a problem?  All of these things should be taken into account before you turn to the aesthetics.

2.  Define your aesthetic.  Do you like a minimalist design, or a more industrial feel?  Would you like your office to be mid-century modern like Don Draper’s on Mad Men, or would you prefer a warmer feel like Alicia Florrick’s on The Good Wife?  What colors and lighting do you prefer?  What materials do you gravitate towards?

3.  Decide what type of impact you would like to make.  Once you’ve decided on the above, you need to decide what type of impact you would like to make and promote in your workspace.  Do you love supporting small US businesses?  Would you like to support artisan groups around the world?  Is there a particular social cause you care greatly about, as we do about promoting a business education for women around the world? 

We make an impact with our purchases, whether we think about it or not.  The products we use in business matter, and will also influence our co-workers to think about them the same way.  We can make an impact each and every day by making conscious decisions about how we dress up our workspace.

We believe that people in business are natural connectors, and we want to connect you with some of our favorite brands that are making an impact around the world.  We are introducing a series of posts called "Creating a Workspace that Looks Good and Does Good" that will make designing an inspiring and original workspace impactful and easy.  We will also discuss some different design styles and how to achieve a seamless balance between an aesthetically inspiring space and one that promotes social good. 

If you know someone that would be interested in this upcoming series, please feel free to forward this email or have them subscribe to our blog here. 

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THIS SEASON, GIVE CORPORATE GIFTS THAT MAKE AN IMPACT.

At Marie Mae, our premium paper products are made in America, and we insist on only using the best materials. As we believe a business education is the most sustainable way to improve lives, each box also provides an hour of business school for women in emerging markets.

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