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Summer can be harsh on your productivity. A recent survey1 found that during the summer, workplace productivity drops 20%, attendance drops 18%, project turnaround times increase 13%, and people are 45% more distracted.2
The temperature of your office has a huge impact on your productivity. So what’s the exact best temperature to set your office thermostat to? Here’s what the research shows:
- 70-72ºF (21-22ºC) is the temperature range that will make you the most productive.
- Any temperature above 73º decreases your productivity. At 86º and above, your productivity drops to about 90% of what it was before, a 10% decrease.
- Any temperature below 68º also decreases your productivity. Lower temperatures increase the amount of errors you make, and they also increase your chances of getting sick.
Source. (Made a couple of my own modifications to the chart.)
Another tip used by a couple of people I’ve worked with: If you have a lot of meetings or people like to stop by your office to chat quite a bit, lower the temperature of your office and put on a sweater. Your visitors will get cold faster, and your meetings will speed up considerably.
Source: http://officepulse.captivate.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Captivate-Summer-Hours-Release-Final.pdf ↩
Note: Next week is “Focus Week” on A Year of Productivity – an entire week with posts dedicated to improving your focus. ↩
