What is it about offices that gets people so riled up? What is it about space that it became a way to define an identity? Did it start with medieval castles, or before? Is there a culture in which small, intimate spaces are considered more powerful? Is our office size just a proxy for the size of our country? If we can't be generals or kings of a country, we can at least be kings of some small empire.
Space is on my mind as I get ready to move into a new office. Who knew it was such a momentous occasion. I have a nice office. It is spacious and quiet. I put up some personal touches, so it feels homey. BUT, it does not have a WINDOW!!! I wondered if that would bother me, but it doesn't really seem to have an effect that I can tell. When I agreed to accept the dean's appointment as director of CPR, I thought I might move into a new office, but I didn't really care if I did. I could do the job just fine from where I am.
But, since I don't have a WINDOW, I have to move. I guess the director has to have a window, and reasonable square footage. Okay, move me. My new office is likely to be somewhat centrally located, some think this is bad...I'll be too "available," too accessible. Is that bad? I don't think so.
Do our offices reflect our personality? Certainly there are the messy offices, the cluttered ones, the every paper edge straight ones. But what about the location, the size, the WINDOWS. Will visitors think differently about me and my job because of my office? Maybe. But I won't.
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