New ask Hacker News story: I realized bad lighting is quietly hurting productivity (and no one measures it)
I realized bad lighting is quietly hurting productivity (and no one measures it)
4 by emmasuntech | 0 comments on Hacker News.
We spend a lot of time optimizing tools: keyboards, monitors, IDEs, latency, ergonomics. But recently I noticed something odd — lighting almost never gets the same level of attention, even though it directly affects focus, fatigue, and decision-making. I ran a small personal experiment while working long hours: Removed the main overhead light Used fewer, lower-intensity, indirect light sources Let some areas stay intentionally dark The result wasn’t just “more comfortable” — my working behavior changed: Less eye fatigue late at night Longer uninterrupted focus blocks Fewer impulsive context switches What surprised me is that most productivity advice assumes “more visibility = better”, while human perception seems to work the opposite way: contrast, shadow, and restraint improve clarity. It made me wonder: Why don’t we treat lighting like we treat typography or UI hierarchy? Why are there almost no tools that measure lighting quality for work, beyond raw lux? Is lighting an invisible variable in productivity that startups are ignoring? Curious if others here have noticed similar effects — or if this is just a placebo I’m falling for.
4 by emmasuntech | 0 comments on Hacker News.
We spend a lot of time optimizing tools: keyboards, monitors, IDEs, latency, ergonomics. But recently I noticed something odd — lighting almost never gets the same level of attention, even though it directly affects focus, fatigue, and decision-making. I ran a small personal experiment while working long hours: Removed the main overhead light Used fewer, lower-intensity, indirect light sources Let some areas stay intentionally dark The result wasn’t just “more comfortable” — my working behavior changed: Less eye fatigue late at night Longer uninterrupted focus blocks Fewer impulsive context switches What surprised me is that most productivity advice assumes “more visibility = better”, while human perception seems to work the opposite way: contrast, shadow, and restraint improve clarity. It made me wonder: Why don’t we treat lighting like we treat typography or UI hierarchy? Why are there almost no tools that measure lighting quality for work, beyond raw lux? Is lighting an invisible variable in productivity that startups are ignoring? Curious if others here have noticed similar effects — or if this is just a placebo I’m falling for.
Comments
Post a Comment