If you feel distracted and unproductive at work, your office may be partially to blame. Perhaps you work in an open office. Originally popularized by startups with little funding for cubicles or private offices, open offices are increasingly becoming the norm. This is often due to their lower construction costs, modern aesthetics, and seeming appeal to Millennial workers. If you are accustomed to the privacy of partitioned spaces, however, you may find it difficult to focus and work in view of your boss and other employees.
The open workspace concept is not new. In the late 1930s, architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson corporate campus in Racine, WI, which featured what was dubbed the Great Workroom. This half-acre open space was remarkable for its soaring ceilings, air conditioning, and modular furniture, all of which were intended to increase employee productivity...
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