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Builder & Developer: Taking Charge With Feng Shui
Here is an article I wrote in the Sep/Oct 2020 edition of Builder & Developer Magazine…
Taking Charge With Feng Shui
Building professionals working from home can use Feng Shui to improve experience and productivity
By Jessie Kim
By the time this article is published, I can’t say whether we will still be working from home due to the issues of shelter-in-place orders or if we’ll be back in the now-seemingly relaxing comforts of the office. Either way, you’ll have some tools here to make immediate changes to relieve much of the burden you’re likely experiencing.
Probably like you, I went from driving to school, to the office, to visit clients, back to school, to the kids’ practices, to now setting up work meetings (as well as my kids’ distance learning and virtual practices) all from the “comfort” of my home via videoconference. For the first two weeks at home, I felt overwhelmed, frustrated, angry, sad, and just wanted to be left alone—not typical traits of mine. And then I was reminded of the solution while on a videoconference with a client.
The modern practicality of the 3,000-year-old practice of Feng Shui consistently amazes me. Most people, particularly in the homebuilding industry, only think of Feng Shui for its placement of objects, but it’s also about the placement of ourselves within our environment. Working from home is a challenge because the environment is designed primarily for relaxation, not laser focus on work when others are also home. The good news is that Feng Shui helps us integrate better with our environment, even in times like these.
In a famous incident a few years ago, BBC World had a live video interview of a political analyst from his home office which was crashed by his two small children before his wife could drag them out. Since the quarantine started, such incidents now seem normal. Our efforts to find a quiet place to work or conduct videoconferences have resulted in multiple examples of poor office Feng Shui, which also happen to have real-world implications, even for a videoconference. The client video call included an example of someone who had her back to a window, darkening her face in the video and overwhelming her with energy. Another had their back to the office door, just like the political analyst, where we saw kids running down the hallway and probably giving that person an anxious feeling of people watching over their shoulder. Yet another had a poster behind him of large waves crashing onto a lighthouse, symbolism that probably manifested into a feeling of unease that would explain the bags under his eyes. I even saw someone working from her closet, probably the only way to provide segmentation between home and work life.
It was this video call that reminded me of my bad Feng Shui positioning that needed to be remedied. In an effort to give my husband space for his video calls in the home office while being close to the kids to help with their distance learning, I unwittingly placed myself in a position on the dining table near a fireplace where my back was to the patio door. Once I realized my error, I moved to a location at the table where my back was to a solid wall and I could see all of the doorways to the room. My mood immediately improved. Though I’m still juggling the same workload, I no longer feel stressed out, sad, or overwhelmed. I have perspective over the entire room. It also prevents my kids from videobombing my calls, allowing me to preserve my professionalism. I feel in control again.
If you feel overwhelmed, uneasy about your work environment, or simply can’t stop working at all hours, try to implement these tips for your workspace, however small it may be:
- Keep your back to a solid wall where you can see all windows and doors in the room.
- Ensure proper lighting is in front of you, rather than only behind or directly above you.
- Make sure only calming pictures and elements surround you.
- Eliminate clutter from your space.
- These same principles apply to your workspace at your office, so make sure to apply them when restrictions are lifted.
Oh, and be sure to wash your hands and don’t touch your face!
Jessie Kim is a third generation Feng Shui consultant who works with home builders and now provides
virtual home and oÞce consultations. She may be reached at her contact page.
Originally posted on Builder & Developer Magazine.
Feng Shui Your Home Office for Increased Productivity and Success
With more people working from home, we need to know how best to maximize our efforts for success by using feng shui.
Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice that involves the arrangement of objects and space to create a harmonious and balanced environment. By following some simple feng shui principles, you can create a home office that supports your work and helps you achieve your goals.
- Choose the right location for your home office. The ideal location for a home office is a room or corner that is quiet, private, and separate from the rest of the house. This will help you focus and minimize distractions. If you don’t have a separate room for your home office, consider creating a designated work area in a quiet corner of a shared space.
- Make sure the home office is well-ventilated and well-lit. Good ventilation and lighting are essential for a comfortable and productive work environment. Make sure there is plenty of natural light coming into the home office, and consider installing a fan to circulate the air.
- Keep the home office clean and clutter-free. Clutter can be a major distraction and can block the flow of positive energy in the home office, so it’s important to keep the space clean and organized. Regularly wipe down surfaces, sweep and mop the floor, and get rid of any unnecessary items.
- Incorporate the five feng shui elements. The five feng shui elements – wood, fire, earth, metal, and water – are believed to balance and harmonize the energy in a space. To bring these elements into your home office, try incorporating natural materials such as wood or stone, using the color red to represent fire, adding plants or artwork to represent earth, incorporating metal accents such as desk lamps or hardware, and using water features like a fountain or aquarium.
- Choose the right colors for your home office. The colors you choose for your home office can have a big impact on the overall energy of the space. Soft, calming colors such as green, blue, and purple promote a peaceful and focused atmosphere, while bold, vibrant colors like red and yellow can bring energy and excitement to the space.
By following these feng shui principles, you can create a home office that supports your work and helps you achieve your goals. Using these tips can help you create a positive and harmonious energy in your home office, but be sure to read my previous post about how to feng shui your desk.
What now? Well, learn more about Feng Shui on my website.
If you are interested in improving your life through Feng Shui, I can help.
I am a 3rd generation Feng Shui expert and have helped thousands of people add harmony and balance to their homes and offices without making it look like a Chinese restaurant exploded.
I can help you attract the life that you deserve with Feng Shui. Contact me today!
Be sure to register for my email newsletter or like me on Facebook to stay up-to-date with my latest posts.
Feng Shui in Quarantine
Use Feng Shui to lose the overwhelming, uneasy or overworked feelings that can come with working from home.
Probably like you, I went from driving to school, to the office, to visit clients, back to school, and to the kids’ practices, to now setting up work meetings, my kids’ distance learning and virtual practices, all from the “comfort” of my home via videoconference, while giving in to provide snacks seemingly every fifteen minutes to the kids. That run-on sentence captures how this new normal can make us feel. During my first two weeks at home, I felt overwhelmed, frustrated, angry, and sad. I just wanted to be left alone. These are not typical personality traits of mine at all. Then, during a teleconference with a home builder client, I was reminded of the solution.
The Ancient Meets the Modern
The modern practicality of the 3,000-year-old practice of Feng Shui consistently amazes me. Most people only think of Feng Shui for its placement of objects and the use of colors. But it’s also about the placement of ourselves within our environment, whether-or-not we have an expansive home office. Working from home is challenging. The environment is designed primarily for relaxation, not for focused work, especially when others are also at home. The good news is that Feng Shui helps us integrate better with our environment, even in times like these.
In a famous incident a few years ago, BBC World interviewed a political analyst from his home office. Midway through, his two small children crashed his interview. His wife had to drag the children out, knocking books off the bed on the way. Since the quarantine started, such incidents now seem normal. Our efforts to find a quiet place to work or conduct videoconferences have resulted in multiple examples of poor office Feng Shui, which also happen to have real-world implications, even for a videoconference.
Our New Normal
The client videoconference I alluded to had many examples of bad Feng Shui. One person had her back to a window, darkening her face in the video and overwhelming her with energy. Another had their back to the office door, just like the political analyst. We saw her kids running down the hallway and probably giving her an anxiousness of people watching over their shoulder. Yet another had a poster behind him of large waves crashing onto a lighthouse. That symbolism probably manifested into a feeling of unease that would explain the bags under his eyes. I even saw someone working from her closet, probably the only way to provide segmentation between home- and work-life.
It was this video call that reminded me of my bad Feng Shui positioning that needed to be remedied. I unwittingly placed myself in a position on the dining table near a fireplace where my back was to the patio door. My intention was to give my husband space for his video calls in our home office and to be close to the kids to help with their distance learning. Once I realized my error, I moved to a location at the table. I did this so my back was to a solid wall and I could see all of the doorways to the room. My mood immediately improved.
I still juggle my work, a flood of emails, the kids’ distance learning, and snacks every fifteen minutes But I no longer feel stressed out, trapped, or overwhelmed. I now have natural light hitting my face and perspective over the entire room. It also prevents my kids from videobombing my calls, allowing me to preserve my professionalism. I feel in control of my domain again.
Next Steps
If you feel overwhelmed, uneasy about your work environment, or simply can’t stop working at all hours, try to implement these tips for your workspace, however small that workspace may be:
- Keep your back to a solid wall where you can see all windows and doors in the room.
- Ensure proper lighting is in front of you, rather than only behind or directly above you.
- Make sure only calming pictures and elements surround you.
- Eliminate clutter from your home.
- When the workday is over, hide it from view however you can, even if that means covering your computer with a blanket or storing your documents in a closet at night.
- Ensure you always have good posture at your computer workstation.
- Apply these same principles to your workspace at your office once restrictions are lifted.
Learn more about Feng Shui on my website.
If you are interested in improving your life through Feng Shui, I can help with a virtual consultation.
I am a 3rd generation Feng Shui expert and have helped thousands of people add harmony and balance to their homes and offices without making it look like a Chinese restaurant exploded.
I can help you attract the life that you deserve with Feng Shui. Contact me today!
Know of someone that has committed a videoconferencing faux pas? Share this post with them on Facebook!
Be sure to register for my email newsletter or like me on Facebook to stay up-to-date with my latest posts.
Fragrant Feng Shui: Essential Oils to Elevate Your Home’s Energy
Smells evoke powerful memories. Remember going to Grandma’s house when you were younger? It had a very distinct smell that we don’t easily forget. This is because our sense of smell activates our brains faster than sounds, sights, or even feelings.
Plants and Essential Oils
It makes perfect sense then that Feng Shui principles can be used with essential oils to change the energy flow in any space. Feng Shui is all about bringing, creating, and having fresh, rejuvenating, and positive energy flow in your space. A couple of the most potent types of indoor energy to benefit from are plants and 100% pure essential oils, derived right from nature. No other natural elements have as much power as plants and the distilled essence of plant chi. Read on to learn more about using essential oils to help give your space a Feng Shui makeover.
Thousands of years ago, before modern medicine came in and invented synthetic representations of nature’s chemical compositions, almost every tradition used fragrance, herbs, and plant extracts in medicinal ways. Essential oils are received by the pituitary gland which governs cell generation and growth. These potent oils provide support for every system in our body. Their medicinal properties aid in good health and healing and help support every system in the human body! Wow, Mother Nature is powerful!
What Are Essential Oils?
Basically, essential oils can be thought of as the pure essence or life energy of a plant. The oils are extracted from plants, shrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes, fruit, rinds, resins, and herbs. Using pure essential oils in aromatherapy is a great way to help create a fresh positive space and energy flow.
While there are three main ways to get the oils into your system: topically, through ingestion, diffusion or inhalation, the easiest way to get them into your space, and reap the Feng Shui benefits, is to diffuse them. Wondering which oils reap the most benefits in Feng Shui? Here’s a list of nine of the most popular Feng Shui essential oils and their uses:
Popular Essential Oils
- Clary Sage: Clary sage has been used for thousands of years all over the world. It is useful for clearing negative energies. Due to this, you can use it during meditation to help the mind to focus.
- Eucalyptus: Use eucalyptus oil to relieve fever. It is an expectorant that, when diffused, clears the airways and allows for deep breathing. This oxygenates the system and keeps the head clear.
- Frankincense: This amazing oil is the most powerful essential oil for the spirit. Use this aromatic oil to ground and balance you. It can help relieve stress, clear your nasal passages, and reduce pain and inflammation.
- Jasmine: Traditionally used by the Chinese, this oil induces a feeling of confidence and optimism. Spray your space for a feeling of euphoria and well-being.
- Lavender: This is one of the most popular and commonly used oils. Treat the air with lavender to stabilize and calm you so you can release those negative thoughts. Lavender is an antidepressant, can help ward off anxiety and is a relaxant. With so many uses, this essential oil is a must-have.
- Neroli: This essential oil is a powerful tool to promote self-love, acceptance, and inspire creativity. Physically, this oil can reduce inflammation and pain, decrease blood pressure as well as cortisol levels, and is an anticonvulsant. If you seek mindfulness, clarity, and inner peace, Neroli’s your answer.
- Rosemary: This oil helps to combat mental fatigue while also stimulating the circulatory system.
- Sandalwood: Sandalwood is extremely cleansing and helps to lift the spirits while breaking up negative thoughts. It’s woody scent relaxes the muscles and helps to relax the inner noise and busy mind, giving you the ability to relax and focus. This oil also acts as an aphrodisiac.
- Tea Tree: Tea tree is known for it’s antibiotic and antiseptic properties. Adding this oil to oil blends can freshen, sanitize, and deodorize the air. Tea tree will help purify the space after illness and creates an uplifting atmosphere.
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is a holistic art and science where you use a plant’s essence found within essential oils to help restore harmony and balance. There are about 300 essential oils on Earth and these oils have literally thousands of uses. By using only 100% pure essential oils, you are ensuring that you have the highest vibrational chi needed for energy clearing. These oils are so potent and powerful that an environment will begin to change within minutes of their use.
Mother Nature is so amazingly powerful and so are the people who have tried, learned, and taught us how to benefit from all-natural essential oils. These oils have over a million uses, from providing support and healing for our bodies, to emotional and spiritual support, to an alternative to cleaning with toxic chemicals in the home. If you have a need, there’s probably an oil for it. It’s no surprise that the powerful, purifying, positive energy these oils hold can help the Feng Shui in any space. They are a must-have in our Feng Shui tool box.
In order to create good, healing energy through the use of essential oils, it is necessary to get the highest quality, 100% therapeutic, Grade A oils.
Next Steps
If you need guidance on how to improve your space and your life, I’m always available to help. Learn more on my website today and book a virtual or in-person consultation. Better Feng Shui can help you in profound ways on life’s journey.
Notes: Don’t use essential oils around small children, certain pets, and anyone with allergies. I’m careful to link to products that I use myself and recommend to my clients, when those products are necessary. I earn a small commission if you purchase through these links, which enables me to produce and publish free content for you to learn from.
I am a 3rd generation Feng Shui expert and have helped thousands of people add harmony and balance to their homes and offices without making it look like a Chinese restaurant exploded.
I can help you attract the life that you deserve with Feng Shui. Contact me today!
Know someone who hasn’t yet heard how essential oils can help them? Share this post with them on Facebook!
Feng Shui Lighting Secrets: Boost Energy In Your Home
Correcting Overhead Lighting for Better Feng Shui
In Feng Shui, lighting represents the fire element and is the strongest manifestation of energy. It’s dominant influence on the quality of the Chi in your home means that it can help bring balance and harmony to every space you spend the most time in.
The light element needs to be harnessed in certain ways to make the most of its potential. Let us shine some light on this topic for you. Read on.
Identify the Problem
Balance is required for optimal Feng Shui. But, inadequate, poor, or harsh lighting can affect your mood, the way you feel, and your overall well-being. This is a problem. Before you can solve the problem, however, you need to be able to identify what the problem is.
A classic case of bad Feng Shui comes from homes that have a single overhead light as the only available light source in a room. This is the case for many homes and work spaces. Unfortunately, this is a huge no-no since this type of lighting makes it impossible to relax.
With the following lighting tips in your Feng Shui tool box you’ll be able to correct any lighting faux pas that come your way.
Optimizing General Lighting
If your home has rooms with that single overhead light we spoke about above, do not despair. You have options. Either remove them altogether or simply put them on a dimmer switch. This can help give you some much-needed flexibility. Try and create an overall glow to each room.
A torchiere or torchère is one type of light that can help you do this. They are large lights that bounce light off the ceiling which helps fill up the room. You can help adjust the mood by putting these on dimmer switches as well.
It’s also a good idea, crucial even, to consider how you use the space in each individual room. Use warm-toned lights (around 2700k color temperature) in restful places and cool-toned lights (around 5000k color temperature) in more active spaces. Doing this can help bring balanced and harmonious Chi to your space.
Natural & Ambient Lighting
Since ambient lighting sets the mood for any space, it plays an important role in the life or Chi of the home. It is a natural light that seems to come from all directions and encompasses an entire room.
Types of ambient light include natural light, accent lighting, or even candle lighting. It is light that supports relaxation and conversation and makes it easy to move about the space.
During the day, create ambient lighting by opening those curtains, blinds, or shades and letting the sun shine in. The greatest source of light energy comes from the sun. Sunlight brings an abundance of beauty and positive energy into any space.
If natural light isn’t available, full-spectrum lighting can be used here. Try placing table lamps around the room to create a triangle of light. Having three lamps balanced throughout the space can bring balanced Chi to the room.
Task Lighting
Task lighting is essentially concentrated lighting to help perform certain job(s). It’s lighting for a specific purpose like reading, working, or studying. Many times, task lighting are smaller lights placed in the vicinity of the couch, bed, or desk.
Perfect examples of rooms that need brighter lights are a kitchen or office/hobby room/art studio. Think cooler-toned lights, at around a 5000k color temperature, in these spaces since so much activity occurs here. These will help you balance the Chi and get the job done.
Next Steps
From today on, always think of lighting as an essential Chi adjustment to your space. Use different types of lighting to help serve the purpose and adjust the mood of any given area. When in doubt, using ambient lighting can always help you achieve better Feng Shui.
If you need guidance choosing the correct lighting for your space, I’m always available to help. Learn more on my website today and book a consultation. Better Feng Shui can help you in profound ways on life’s journey.
I am a 3rd generation Feng Shui expert and have helped thousands of people add harmony and balance to their homes and offices without making it look like a Chinese restaurant exploded.
I can help you attract the life that you deserve with Feng Shui. Contact me today!
Know of someone about to go on a trip? Share this post with them on Facebook!
Declutter to Feng Shui Your Space!
The notion of a neat and simplified space translates into less stress and less “stuff” weighing us down. However, just the idea of decluttering your home can make you feel anxious, overwhelmed, and just plain lost. Where in the world do we begin?
Studies have shown that out of all the things we keep, we will only actually use 1 in 20 items. You read that right, 1 in twenty! That’s a lot of clutter, and clutter is a HUGE Feng Shui no-no! Read on to find out the meaning of clutter in Feng Shui and some items currently in your home to get rid of now!
Feng Shui is all about positive energy flow to help keep us balanced and energized which will help welcome positive things into our lives. However, nothing new can come into your life if you don’t make room for it!
In Feng Shui, clutter is anything that is hopelessly disorganized (like that huge stack of old bills and magazines growing bigger by the day), unused (like all those baby toys your four year old isn’t into anymore), and/or unfinished (like that piece of artwork you were sure you could nail but looks nothing like a Van Gogh). It creates an inability to move forward oftentimes keeping us back from making progress.
Any space can be quickly transformed by first clearing the clutter. Getting rid of the clutter can breathe new life into both the space and you. By surrounding yourself with only the items in your home that you love and often use, you surround yourself with a strong, active energy that can bring focus and clarity into your life.
People are always saying they need to declutter but they don’t know where to start. Others feel a sense of loss when getting rid of items they no longer use. Nothing good can come from keeping that clutter around. It can make you feel overwhelmed, confused, tired, depressed, and even angry. That clutter keeps you in the past and prevents you from looking towards the future.
It’s time to get rid of clutter! Don’t like the thought of throwing your things in the trash? Consider donating some of the gently used items, or use apps like OfferUp or Facebook Marketplace to make some extra cash. Feeling overwhelmed? Try taking it one day, one room, even one object at a time. Try to avoid accumulating more things. If you don’t plan on using it, don’t bring it into your home.
Get rid of some of these things now and re-energize your home:
- Possible Kitchen Clutter: expired food, expired cleaning supplies, ancient spices, mismatched food storage containers, or any item with several duplicates (do you really need five pizza cutters?).
- Possible Family & Living Room Clutter: old magazines, outgrown toys, toys that are missing pieces, DVD’s that are never watched or damaged, old dog/cat toys that were destroyed long ago
- Counter Top or Office Space Clutter: piles of old mail, expired coupons, old cell phones, unread books, read books that you don’t plan to read again
- Bedroom Clutter: worn-out or uncomfortable shoes, mismatched socks, outgrown clothes, worn-out clothing, outdated clothes (so much clothes!), broken jewelry
- Bathroom & Linen Closet Clutter: worn towels, worn sheets, unused toiletries, old cosmetics
- Outdoor Space Clutter: unused sporting equipment, worn out/broken sporting equipment, outgrown outdoor toys, broken outdoor toys
With the recent end of the school year, our kiddos are returning home with all of their projects and, ahem, “artwork” from the entire school year. Fight the urge to keep it all after you’ve taken some pictures for posterity. Consider this the first step in your decluttering journey.
Remember you are not alone! We live in an age of consumerism, where acquiring “stuff” is part of our culture, but when it starts to impact the way we think and feel, we need to take steps to change it. The hardest part is getting started, but when you begin to see and feel the benefits of a decluttered space, you won’t regret it!
Next Steps
After you’ve rid yourself of clutter, you’ve made space for positive Feng Shui energy called Chi to flow through your home. Make sure you are attracting it into your home and that the flow is optimal by following some steps on my website.
If you are interested in improving your life through Feng Shui, I can help.
I am a 3rd generation Feng Shui expert and have helped thousands of people add harmony and balance to their homes and offices without making it look like a Chinese restaurant exploded.
I can help you attract the life that you deserve with Feng Shui. Contact me today!
Know of someone about to go on a trip? Share this post with them on Facebook!
