The reality is that there is no one definitive color since productivity is a relative term. What is it you need to be more productive in doing? Are you planning the wall color for an assembly room operation and wanting to know what colors will make the employees work faster? The answer is that there is no one answer. There are many variables that come into play, such as:

• How much natural light enters the area and what direction do the windows face? What is the source of the artificial lighting?
• What are the other colors that are present in the area—flooring or carpeting, blinds, chairs, tabletops, etc.?
• What is the color of the widget you are producing and is there just one color or many colors?
• What is the geographic location as that will affect the light in the space?

If you are seeking a color for your own office space, then your own personal take on color will come into play. If you are the outdoor lover and get inspired by communing with nature, then your space should be about green and filled with as many green plants as you can manage to squeeze in. Productivity is not about the "formula" color that works every time in every situation. When you seek your own comfort level, use the colors that are suggestive of a theme and utilize them in your workspace. You cannot help but be more productive.

If you have no say in the color choice, then introduce artwork and posters that are evocative of your favorite things/themes/locations into your environment. Put them in a prominent place where you can focus on them while you are working. If a canoe on a calm, clear blue lake is your idea of heaven, then get a paperweight that looks like it contains that undulating blue lake. Put it next to your computer and every time you need to immerse yourself in the scene, focus on it.

As simplistic as it may seem, your personal comfort level enhances your productivity, and the color surrounding you can help to spur you on.

Portions reproduced from "THE COLOR ANSWER BOOK" with the permission of Leatrice Eiseman.