Why is Facebook Blue, McDonald's yellow, and Nike Black? Or Why is the Dark Mode for websites and apps becoming more popular than ever?
The reason is that we perceive things as colors. This leads to a subconscious association of certain colors with ideas that influence our feelings. Plus, the universality of this idea makes it even more special.
One amazing concept is the effect of colors on productivity. Colors like red and yellow ignite a competitive mindset. Similarly, green and blue showcase a serene work environment.
How you can use various colors to maximize your productivity is the discussion of this article.
This approach would be functional from corporate offices to your studying table and home office.
The Psychology of Colors and the Science Behind it
The Color Theory has three basic colors; Red, Yellow, and Blue. These colors are called Primary, as all other colors are formed by combining these basic colors.
Over time, studying color theory and people's responses to various colors led to the development of color psychology.
Here’s what different colors portray in general.
Red － The color red stands for danger and aggression, as well as strength, determination, and power.
Yellow － Radiate positive energy, joy, happiness, and feeling of accomplishment.
Blue － It's the most versatile color of them all, showing compassion, serenity, and warmth. Blue color portrays peace and empathy.
Green － Being a color of nature, green signifies prosperity and growth. But it can also sometimes mean calm and sluggishness.
Brown － The color of the countryside shows resilience, wisdom, and longevity.
Orange － Carry most characteristics of Red but in a pleasant way.
Pink － Color of love, elegance, decency, and femininity.
Black － Show status of power, authenticity, and formality, but also depicts grief and sorrow.
Gray －Variable presentation depending on its shade. It can either work as blue in dark shades or brown in lighter shades.
White －Color of peace, innocence, and safety, but sometimes means boring and dull.
Now, based on this general scheme of colors, let's organize these colors to be more productive.
Choosing the Right Color to Maximize your Productivity
The color center of the brain is responsible for perceiving different colors from the eyes.
This brain area is also in contact with the prefrontal cortex, an area responsible for developing cognitive and behavioral functions.
Based on this idea, scientists explain a correlation between your efficiency and the colors surrounding you.
Although there is an element of personality, i.e., different inclinations towards a different color, we're talking about the scientific aspects of things.
Choose Blue as your Safest Bet
Whether considering being productive in the office, studies, or life in general, blue surroundings are the effortless option. There are many reasons for that as a best color.
Foremost is that we are accustomed to seeing a lot of blues, mainly the sky and water. And blue is generally a symbol of optimism and calm-headedness.
Therefore, surrounding yourself with blue will intellectually stimulate you to be more productive.
Secondly, blue has no negative connotation to its name. Therefore, it stimulates calm and peaceful work vibes.
Lastly, you can choose the shade of blue depending on your work.
Generally, lighter shades of sky blue would have a serene, easygoing effect. In comparison, dark blue shades like indigo would make a compassionate impact.
Photo by Jeffrey Blum on Unsplash
White and Grey for Neutral Vibes
Most workplaces universally have white surroundings. However, the monotony of too much white surround doesn't create productive outcomes.
Instead, complementing white with gray creates both a welcoming effect and boosts creativity.
However, only use grey as an accent color and never as a primary color.
Among the shades of white, off-white is the best option. For the grey, add a light grey.
Image by Pexels from Pixabay
Adding Yellow and Orange as Mood Lifters
Yellow and Orange are bright colors; therefore, they never make a great base color for your surroundings.
However, a trace of these two colors accentuates an otherwise boring color pattern.
Yellow, for example, can be a powerful stimulant that can boost your creativity. Additionally, it could help you in being productive by providing a hyperactive focus.
Entrepreneurs and Business owners would get the most benefit from the yellows in their surroundings.
In comparison, the orange color can be an emotional stimulant. Additionally, it’s a complementary color to blue, which makes it a perfect fit to build more focus.
Photo by Jac Alexandru on Unsplash
Green for Balancing and Reassurance
Due to its presence in nature, green gives a relaxed and cheery feel. You can use this effect to balance out other bright colors in your surroundings.
Green is also a mood alleviator. You can utilize this effect to relax your mood while staying focused and productive.
However, too much green can become overly boring. Therefore, it’s best to balance it with some bright colors.
Red for Being Alarmingly Productive
Generally, a full-blown red shade around you is never a great option to be productive. However, some red is good to have. It excites your emotions while making you more productive.
Therefore, for an upcoming deadline or exam, adding some red shade is a great option for being alert and productive.
Conclusion: Mix Colors to Get Some Great Results
Regardless of how much it excites you, a single color can't improve your workflow. The reason is over time; the monotony overcomes the creativity affecting your productivity.
Therefore, our best advice is to choose a light base color for your workplace. Then compliment it with hints of bright colors to stay creative and not feel bored.
Personal color preference can also become important, as it impacts your comfort level.
Therefore, we recommend balancing color psychology and your personal preferences.
On Superdense, we allow users to choose custom colors for the bookmark's background. And thus, users feel more gratified and productive in their bookmark organization.
We also observed that the colorfulness of the favicons helps users better organize the bookmarks.
Therefore, we allow users to customize the size of their bookmark icon to get a vivid spark of color. And that's what makes Superdense, the most compact bookmark manager unique.
