You might be lighting scented candles, sipping matcha, and telling yourself you’re being productive — but if your desk is in the wrong spot, no amount of to-do lists will help.

Feng Shui teaches us that your physical environment constantly shapes your energy. Especially when it comes to your workspace — the place where ideas are born, income is built, and strategy becomes success.

If your Qi (气) is stuck, your career progress will be too. Here are 3 workspace layouts to avoid — and why they silently sabotage your performance:

🧱 #1 Workspace Under the Staircase

Sure, it looks practical. But in Feng Shui, placing your desk under the stairs is like parking your energy in a shadow zone. You’re surrounded by 压迫感 (yā pò gǎn) — a sensation of being compressed or restricted.

What you might feel:

• Creative block

• Constant distraction

• A vague sense of being overlooked or “stuck in limbo”

Qi doesn’t flow well under staircases. It drops, scatters, and loses momentum — just like your ideas might.

🪑 #2 Workspace Too Tight

We love minimalism. But there’s a difference between sleek and suffocating. A workspace that’s too tight, especially one squeezed into a dressing table or corner, sends the message that your goals don’t deserve space.

Symptoms you’ll notice:

• Lack of mental clarity

• Decision fatigue

• Constant multitasking with no momentum

  
  

In Feng Shui, we believe in 空间决定气场 (kōngjiān juédìng qìchǎng) — “space determines energy field.” When your desk is cramped, your vision is too.

🔺 #3 Triangle Workspace

This one’s trendy — the Pinterest-perfect loft desk tucked into a triangular nook. But sharp angles and sloping ceilings are notorious in Feng Shui for causing 煞气 (shà qì) — cutting energy.

While it may look cozy, this shape creates:

• Mental tension

• Burnout risk

• Pressure to “produce” without flow

  
  

You end up working in a space that feels more like a deadline dungeon than a clarity zone.

Final Thought:

In Feng Shui, success is not just about what you do — it’s about where you do it.Your desk is where your thoughts turn into actions. So give those thoughts space, support, and alignment.

🙌 Thanks for reading!To learn more about Feng Shui, BaZi, and Qi Men strategies for real life, visit danielsiew.com, follow my Feng Shui visuals on Instagram, or subscribe to my weekly insights on Substack.

Featured in Bernama TV, UK Health Radio, and theSun Daily.