How we control the imbalance of ‘fire’ in Loretta’s office with Feng Shui
Loretta’s office before we began to move things around
Loretta’s office transformed
Business down, feeling stuck
Loretta, by her own admission, felt stuck. Ever since Covid, her small business run from home, had been affected by Government policy which favoured big companies as suppliers in her field of education. Her income had dropped significantly.
The room she operated from had served her well in the past but was left in limbo as business had declined and she hadn’t been able to find the right decorative accessories to finish it off. This was in stark contrast to the remainder of the house where every room was beautifully crafted to a high standard.
Lacking inspiration, the office lay in the doldrums despite her best attempts to rejuvenate the business.
Too much fire, too much of everything
As is typical of a sole trader, her home-office was an average-sized converted bedroom. It also had too much furniture and materials for the space available. A busy, active business needs space around it in which to function otherwise the owner can get bogged down and feel stressed.
Regular space clearing and decluttering makes sure paperwork and files do not pile up over the years since these absorb a lot of vital chi (life force).
In a home-office, you also need to be extra vigilant as to where the furniture is placed in the room to maintain a healthy flow of chi and to ensure it remains aligned with the business mission.
We cross-referenced to Loretta’s current vision board for inspiration and to ensure our actions were congruent with her vision. In particular, we found the pink rose, the pink office chair, the angle poise lamp on the craft desk, and the plantation shutters.
The filing cabinets before decluttering and rearranging. The transformation afterwards.
How to control the fire
The main requirement from the Feng Shui consultation was to stir up the energy. We wanted to bring movement and creativity back into the room and into Loretta’s working life. Since the outer environment and circumstances in which she operates has changed, the space needs to evolve to reflect this.
However, there is no guarantee that more business will pour in overnight as a result. But we can be sure that by improving the quality and quantity of chi energy, Loretta will feel better about the room and more hopeful about business in general. When the environment is invigorating, she will feel fresher and livelier working in it. Then, whatever changes are necessary can occur naturally and seamlessly as she becomes an even stronger magnet for new opportunities.
In order transform the energy I called upon the Chinese 5 Elements – Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, Wood. Every space contains some of these elements in varying degrees. In this instance Fire was over-powering the other elements. To bring it into balance, we needed its control element which is Water (which was virtually absent), supported by Metal. These in turn would feed the Wood and the growth of the business.
Classic colours associated with Water are deep blues, greens, dark browns. However, Loretta wished to stick with the existing pinks and not introduce any of these other colours. So, we introduced the Water element through mirrors, glass and reflective surfaces. For example we removed the larger, solid white craft desk with dense drawers on either side and kept the glass table with metal legs.
Exploiting the new opportunities
My intuitive hunch is there’s an overseas market, somewhere, that Loretta might exploit. Our task was to align the energy of the room to attract this opportunity and so I particularly recommended a beautiful large mirror placed in the Helpful People corner at the entrance to the room to magnetise this effect.
We didn’t drown the Fire element entirely because it is so much a part of who Loretta is but we made it less prominent in the room to support the business requirement. For instance, animals signify FIRE because they are creatures with heart – and we found as many as 15 hippos wallowing in this room and so many volunteered their way to charity.
Here’s what Loretta has to say so far:
“It took the best part of a week to de-clutter the room after Mary’s visit and find new homes for things. I hadn’t had a good clear out since Covid and as things have changed business wise since then, there was quite a bit of ‘stuff’ that could go. This and the relocation of the furniture really changed the energy in the room – I hadn’t realised how ‘hemmed in’ I had been by furniture previously.
Loretta, Bournemouth, UK
“I’m loving the office space now and I have also managed to keep it tidy ever since – that’s almost 2 months (the longest I have ever achieved that for!). It will take another 3 months for the final items to arrive – a reupholstered pink office chair, some blinds and shutters and the mirror at the entrance.
“It was easy working with Mary. I was able to hold onto the things I really wanted and when a suggestion didn’t work in practice, she was able to suggest alternatives for me. When I had questions following her visit, she was very quick to respond by email. This has been a very worthwhile process and I wait with interest to see what changes may transpire workwise.”
Have you enjoyed reading this? Has it given you food for thought in terms of how you work from home?
If there is anything you’d like to ask or to share please feel free to email me
You can also arrange a Feng Shui session remotely or in person be email too. Let me know what’s on your mind and what you believe you require.