5 Ways To Make Over Your Desk So It Inspires Creativity

Your outer landscape has a direct impact on your inner one, whether you realize it or not. When it comes to decorating your home or office, there's real power in designing a space that speaks to your goals and intentions.

Plant-based athlete, author, and mbg Collective member Rich Roll said it best in a recent Instagram post about his at-home office scene: a converted shipping container filled with books, notepads, a skateboard, and other trinkets he finds inspiring. "The more fertile the space, the more fertile the mind," its caption reads. "Put intention into your personal space. Create the environment to create."

When Sara Combs, interior designer and author of At Home in Joshua Tree, isn't in meetings, she likes to move around instead of staying confined to a desk. "I personally feel most creative when movement is involved: A change of scenery helps me stay inspired and energized," she tells mbg, adding that going outside, sitting at her dining room table, or heading to a coffee shop helps her mind stay open and receptive to new ideas.

"Bringing the outside in helps create mental serenity in your workspace, which leads to overall physical and emotional well-being," holistic interior designer Laurence Carr shares. Spruce up your desk with photographs of the outdoors or a diffuser filled with essential oils if that's an option.

In feng shui philosophy, mirrors represent expansive, creative energy. If you can, NYC-based feng shui architect Anjie Cho recommends buying two small, round mirrors (around 3 inches in diameter) and hanging them on the walls in your space so they're reflecting each other—one on your left side, one on your right. If you don't have walls on either side of you, simply placing a mirror on your desk will do. Just make sure that it's reflecting something that brings you joy, such as a window with a view to the outside or an art piece hanging in your office.