Pros & Cons: Office Toys
The sight of them will either enrapture you or make you scream out loud: a monster here, a bulldozer there. Yet we are still in the office! To find out more read our latest report about the affinity for piling toys on desks and shelves.Pros: There is enough space even on the smallest of desks…
I know this is not in anymore. Tough life, tough career, tough job – all that becomes manifest at the skilfully designed workplace. When efficiency and organisation set the tone, not only in abstract terms but measured in the actual cost per square meter, there is not much room left for privacy.
But there is, dear reader, room for "sentimental mood" even on the smallest of desks. Once you have tried it, you will simply love it: small tokens of past triumphs, cherished memorabilia and manifestations of hidden quirks. They will make you – as an individual – stand out of the grey mass of uniform and oppressed office show-offs!
Your co-workers will be grateful, too. They will see your true colours as soon as they spot the small, revealing and unintentional (or are they intentional after all) cues.
After all, they reveal personality! While it is more difficult to judge someone in a sterile and clean surrounding….
My heavily used anti-stress-white-shark-squeezy, my singing reindeer and my waving George W. Bush cry out for attention: "Look, this is who I am!". Pardon my inaccurate imitation of the original, but I believe: toys in my workplace, ergo sum.
Rudi Binder
Contras: No toy, but everything is a tool to play with...
I tend to get distracted by these knickknacks. Someone else's bric-a-brac can be so embarrassing. Is it really necessary? I need a "clean desk" to be able to concentrate (yes, this is how I am! and you probably think of me as unlikeable.). I rather peek out of the window for inspiration: what a great sight, the vast sky above the park.
I am considerate of others. I don't need to attract attention with souvenirs brought back from Antarctica or other trophies – be it from a private or extreme sports adventure. As a working mom I don't have much time to get cosy in my office. And why not have the office design speak for itself – and for me –, nice and simple?
I prefer to leave the toys at home. I can't think of anything that would be more relaxing and enjoyable than watching my kid convert the apartment-cum-home office into a private studio and all-over-depot – setting up highly creative installations. Using everything at hand. Now and at all costs.
Fascinating and mundane things of daily use. They are repurposed in the blink of an eye and creatively combined with traditional toys. Great ideas, very inspiring and accomplished! As the saying goes: Playing is what kids do for work. And you thought I was not playful at all.
(PS, oh, well: You don't have any kids? Why don't you invite your friends or co-workers instead? That will for sure raise your popularity!)
Dora Marquard
