Office ergonomics

So, you're stuck in this grotty office (why?) which doesn't help you to be productive and you don't know what to do about it (again I could ask why? but won't). Feng shui? That's perhaps a bit New Agey for some -- and besides the boss might not like it if you start talking about the negative flow of thought across the building.

How about something more scientific? Ergonomics is a science and, in my opinion, an art but let me go and "Google Define" the word and see what I get. OK -- that gave me far more information than I needed so I'll just choose a few examples:

• The applied science of equipment design intended to maximize productivity by reducing operator fatigue and discomfort. Link
• The science of designing the job to fit the worker, rather than physically forcing the worker’s body to fit the job. Link
• Ergonomics is sometimes used synonymously with human factors and is probably the title of choice in Europe. One sub-domain of human factors (sometimes referred to as ergonomics) deals more with the physical attributes of human and less with the cognitive attributes. An ergonomist typically has extensive knowledge of human performance, biomechanics, and anthropometrics. Link
• Ergonomics (from Greek ergon work and nomoi natural laws) is the study of optimizing the interface between human beings, and the designed objects and environments they interact with. Link

I liked the final one best (Wikipedia) and found that many of the links were to suppliers of e.g. office furniture, machinery etc who used the word ergonomics to prove that their equipment was better than someone else's.

However, I'm concerned today with you -- and that less than well-designed office that you are sitting in.

Which brings me back to where I started -- with a video about office ergonomics. I've been wondering what to do about this video I found a while back from the Kearney-Abrams Learning Library. Speaking personally I found the style a bit boring and skipped several of the frames BUT the message is good even if the medium of presentation is ....

and it's FREE