For months now I’ve noticed that I no longer like using my desk. Not my WFH desk, but my home admin desk – the stylish and practical antique desk that I’ve loved for years.

The desk is the same. The chair is the same. (Hasn’t worn out and become uncomfortable, either.) The view is the same. Maybe a bit messy, but that’s not entirely unusual.

Why, then, do I no longer like sitting there? Why do I do my blogging and researching and scout club accounting in the sofa instead, which is much less ergonomic?

An interior decorating video that Youtube shoved at me gave me a possible answer: the prospect-refuge theory. The theory says that humans feel comfortable in spaces that provide a clear, open view of our environment, together with a sense of being protected. For example, we prefer sitting with our backs to a large rock, facing outwards, rather than the opposite. We see what’s ahead of us, while the rock protects our backs. Something something pre-historic humans on the edge of a savanna.

I realized then that one big thing has indeed changed about my home office. It went from being a sheltered space, enclosed by a wall of bookshelves to being wide open towards the rest of the room.

So: an experiment. I turned the desk 90 degrees so that it faces the doorway instead.

From the point of view of anyone entering the room, it’s rather ugly. The back of the desk is clearly meant to face the wall.

From the point of view of me setting at the desk, though: massive improvement. My back is protected and I have a nice long sight line through the living space. Instead of getting glimpses of people from the corner of my eye, I can see what’s happening. I can’t say the setup before bothered me, not on a conscious level at least, but this feels so much more comfortable.