Feng Shui Buddies

Like a lot of other earnest, hard-working people, I hope to maximize my potential both at home in my personal life and at work in my career. Phew! What a mouthful!

So, in an effort to make the most of what we have, my officemate, Kim, and I, put the time-honored and revered practice of feng shui to use in our office.

We are in a difficult position since we have a small (but beautiful!) office with hardwood floors (love them), a big window (love it), a fireplace (love it), and three doors! No blank, plain walls at all.

We think we should not have our backs to a door, or a window so we are in a tough spot. (My former boss from Malaysia and a long practioner of feng shui told me to never, ever have my desk positioned so that my back was toward a window.)


Somehow, we maneuvered our desks so that neither of us have our backs to the doors or window. Now we face each other. We felt better right away! We hung a mirror in our prosperity corner (not sure what it is reflecting but we will check on that!) – also not easy to determine which corner is what but we used the door most often used as our main entrance.

We added a plant for some life (other than Kim and I) because sometimes we are very, very tired so we want to stay on the safe side. We have books, our awards and achievement certificates, modest as they are. Next will come the tiny bells to dispel any lingering bad spirits. Who knows – it might work!


Kim and I threw away lots of stuff we didn’t need any longer to declutter our office and our minds. Ahh, it’s great. Serenity, now!

My other feng shui buddy, Annie, gave me a great book about feng shui for Christmas last year. She thought it was just what I needed and I do refer to it often. It inspired me to clean a few closets and drawers and I felt better immediately. It really does have an effect on you. Clutter never works for the positive.

As for Kim’s and my office, next we hope to paint it a lighter, brighter color. Right now, it is kind of a fiery terra cotta. It is not what I would call ‘soothing.’ In fact, if I were a Shogun warrior preparing to do battle, it would be the perfect color. (Hmmm…..??) We’re both thinking of a sandy gray color infused with light. We’ll do it ourselves as soon as we get the OK from Mel and John.

The Front Door

In a home, a beautiful entrance and front door is a thing of delight. In the ancient art of Feng Shui, the front door and entrance of a home is very important.

The energy of the universe comes to us through the front door.

The Chinese felt that people who lived with "feng shui" were much more likely to be happy and prosperous. Feng Shui literally means wind and water, and is the art of living in harmony with your physical surroundings. These homes with waterviews; ocean, entrance to a bay , cliffs and a bustling harbor are all beautifully sited, in harmony with feng shui principles.

In Feng Shui, the color of the front door should reflect the compass direction it faces according to the Five Elements.


South (Fire) = Reds, pink, burgundy.
Southwest (Earth) = Yellows or browns.
West (Metal) = White, silver, copper or gold.
Northwest (Metal) = White, silver, copper or gold.
North (Water) = Blacks or blues.
Northeast (Earth) = Yellows or browns.
East (Wood) = Greens.
Southeast (Wood) = Greens.




And then there is the color of power, Black, especially good for running a business, or a country.



I am not an expert in this field, this is just what I have gleaned from various sources, your mileage may vary, if these door colors do not work for you there are many books on the topic, this is an art, not an exact science.

We are all made up of a combination of the elements, but we have one main elemental influence in our person. To discover your native element, click here.