10/11/2025
Your environment matters more than you think 💫 Ever noticed how some places make you feel instantly calm and others make your brain buzz?
As someone with an ADHD brain, I’ve learned the hard way that my surroundings can either fuel my focus or completely derail it.
Being a typical ADHD brain, I spend a lot of time exploring ways to minimise procrastination. One of the biggest things I’ve learned about myself, and that I notice in so many of my coaching clients, is just how much our environment affects us. Every space gives off a different energy.
In his book Think Like a Monk, Jay Shetty says that “your Dharma (your purpose, your calling) will either thrive or falter in specific environments.” And that really stuck with me.
Earlier this year, I was meeting someone for a potential work chat. The place he first suggested was a big no for me; high ceilings, echoey, too loud. I’ve realised I much prefer a cosy nook, tucked away rather than in the middle of the room. I like uncluttered spaces that help me focus (hence the new drawers in the photo, my latest mission to declutter and reorganise my home workspace!).
Having that awareness serves your Dharma. It means when you walk into a job interview, or start a new project, you already have a sense of whether the environment will help you thrive or drain you.
Jay also talks about keeping our personal spaces devoted to clear purposes; “a bedroom for sleeping, not Netflix or eating.” He explains that when we blur those boundaries, we blur our energy too. Every space should have its own intention: a place to rest, a place to create, a place to feel calm and grounded.
After reading this, I made changes to my workspace. As Jay puts it, “workspaces should be well lit, uncluttered, and functional, with art or objects that inspire you.”
When we identify the environments where we truly thrive, we can start expanding those opportunities. That awareness helps us understand what makes us impatient, stressed, or drained, and gives us a guide for what living in our Dharma, with the right energy, in the right environment, can really look like.
Do you notice how your environment affects your focus or energy? 🧡