Posted by ryangilbert 6 hours ago
I compiled all of the data from 500+ interviews into one easy to read report: https://workspaces.xyz/gear-report
I will try to add some "messy reality" ones as well going forward!
"Brutalist" maybe... I could convince myself of that being a positive trait. The unguided wires and bare deskpad-less desktop is a desk that's honest [0] about the materials making it up.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brutalist_architecture#:~:text...
NOT A DIG AT THESE PEOPLE! The spaces look great! And clearly, they own all the things listed/shown, so there's nothing disingenuous. It's just a bit of a stretch to say it's their workspace... this is the collapsed superposition of their workspace once you measure it with a photo. They took the photo, sat down, realized the pile of books is now where there arm should be and then entropy takes the wheel.
The few that don't have that manicured aesthetic, I love [1]. The books have been opened, the sticky notes are actually used, pens are in the broken mug, and fun knick-knacks are fully deployed to every flat surface EXCEPT the one you have to put your arms on. Tessa dedicated like 15 minutes to these photos then moved on with her day and got shit done. I get the same feeling from that video of Linus Torvald's "zombie shuffling desk". [2] If he spent, like 3 hours organizing and manicuring this, it could fit in on this site just fine, but he probably has other stuff to do.
[0] https://workspaces.xyz/p/507-lubos-volkov
This whole comment reads as a dig against these people. They like to have it tidy/or they like to tidy up before photographing their desk.
I should try to add this soon.
There's nothing interesting to me about a workplace with a clinically-tidy desk and a LED ring light. I want to see metalsmiths, woodworkers, electrical engineers, etc. Even software occupations often have interesting workspace setups dictated by the nature of the job - for example, many CAD and music / video production setups are eclectic - but these ain't it.
I do agree that I should attempt to share more of the "messy reality" alongside the more staged photos, though.
Mine is a real mess (partly because of ADHD, but not only)
Also noticing a lot more creators on youtube who are metalsmiths, woodworkers, electrical engineers.
Many seem to only have started the past few years, and the rest may have not been presented to me by the algorithm because the algorithm cared to keep me watching and not if I might have diverse interests.
One of the other realities is more and more people are distributed, and having communication be clearer (sound, light, video) is increasingly becoming more common in any field.
The thing that stands out to me about some of these designs is they look great, but not enough show the functionality that needed to be designed as well (organization, storage, etc).
I originally launched Workspaces on April 5, 2020 when world shifted to remote work.
The original idea was simple... interview one person a week, ask them about their setup, publish the photos and gear list.
It's now been 6+ years and 500+ interviews.
Each feature includes workspace photography, a short bio, a full gear list with links, and four interview questions. New issues go out every Saturday morning.
Would love to hear what you think!