Aren’t we all, always, looking for signs?
And god knows signs are everywhere. Even in the least expected places.
Signs give us direction, they help us understand our environment and the socially acceptable behaviors in a given setting or situation.
But not all signs are created equal. And when it comes to common living spaces, it seems to be a very divisive topic.
I have had a few different jobs in the last 15 years. For a long time, I worked in the restaurant/cafe industry. I waited tables and eventually ended up managing a few people. That was probably the hardest job I ever had. But that is another story.
What I learned there (I worked both in London and in Stockholm) is that the majority of people do not read signs.
I imagine that it is either because:
they can’t be bothered and prefer asking
they really can’t see the signs. That can be due to poor eyesight, poorly designed or placed signs, or simply that we are so overloaded with signs that we are indifferent to most of them unless they are blinking right in our faces.
Fun fact.
So when it was time to open our seasonal coliving at Selgars I thought to myself, no signs.
There is another reason behind that decision. I don’t like them. I find them aesthetically unpleasant and polluting the sense of “home” we try to convey. What childhood home has signs in the kitchen?
Fast forward 4 months. At the end of the first season, I was convinced we needed signs.
And so when we prepped for our second winter coliving, I used my best Canva skills to design signs that would enhance the experience of the space.
I followed the basic rules of signage:
simple,
“on brand”
but I could not help but make it a bit witty. Cause' that’s what I do.
I also tried to stay away from bright colors and icons.
While I am aware colors play a bit part in passing on a message, I was just really afraid it would make the whole place feel like an office or a doctor’s waiting room.
I went around the house pinning those signs on doors, above the hob, in the laundry room…
Places I assumed would be visible to all, several times a day.
And then I waited.
The Shelf Life of Signs
What I have learned from this experiment is that signs have a shelf life.
1. Getting Your Bearings
When people arrive in a new space, most of them are looking for points of reference as they are getting their bearings.
That is the period they are most attentive to signs. They are searching for them. But that is also the moment where everything is new which means if the signs are not very visible they will get lost in the amount of visual novelty.
2. Getting into routines
After a few days or weeks, they know where things are and how things work (or how others have shown them how it works) and they assume they do not need to read the signs anymore. They will be ignored on purpose.
3. Getting complacent
That is the scary spot for coliving owners. The signs are now invisible to colivers.
To the point where you will see people do the exact opposite of what the sign says, right next to it. Not by malice, simply because the sign is now part of the furniture. It blends in.
(Especially beige signs like mine I’ll admit).
4. Accountability buddies
The only chance for them to “reappear” is to be used to prove a point and remind someone that they are not doing things according to the rules.
Housemate 1: “Look, it says right here, no sharp knives in the dishwasher!”
Housemate 2: ”oh sorry. Wait, has that sign always been here?!”
Yes, it has.
Better than signs, nudges.
That is not always possible and that is why many of us rely on signs still. But nudges are an interesting path to go down and geek out about.
A bit of Psychology and behavioral architecture
So all of that is based on my own experience, but some people have actually worked on those topics who you can trust if you don’t want to take my word for it.
As I was doing research for this piece I came across an article by Architect Clovis Heimsath titled: Behavioral Architecture, Design as if People Mattered. What a fascinating way to put it. When designing a space, think about how you want people to use that space. It might sound basic but it is rarely properly thought through.
There is so much to talk about when we go down the Behavioral Architecture rabbit hole. That might be for a dedicated piece.
One thing people might be more familiar with is the Nudge Theory.
based upon the idea that by shaping the environment, also known as the choice architecture, one can influence the likelihood that one option is chosen over another by individuals.
One example I always give that absolutely fascinates me, is the cigarette studs bin.
Back in my 50+ housemates coliving in Stockholm, we had an issue on one floor noticing that people were not recycling as much as on the other floors.
Turns out that because of the smaller size of the kitchen, the recycling bins were located in the hallway while the general waste one had found its spot just by the sink. It was only 3 meters away but it made all the difference.
We first tried putting basic signs on the general waste one to encourage people to sort out their mess. But those signs never really worked. Then we upped our Sign Game and put some of our housemates’ faces in them, hoping to strike an emotional cord. I think we got a few laughs, and a mention at the house meeting, but no great progress in terms of saving the planet.
After reading about the cigarette studs experiment I placed the general waste next to the other bins in the corridor and watched the magic happen: people recycled more!
That was until someone got upset lazy and put it back where it used to be. I probably forgot to make it fun…
But I remembered the experiment. And have applied it to myself a lot since then: placing the vitamins next to the water jug, and having a pile of books by my bed to encourage me to read rather than scroll on my phone at night.
When it comes to the coliving house, it is still a work in progress. I sense a “Choice architecture” Audit coming up for our season 3.
Honorable mention: The Rise and Fall of the Whiteboard.
A whiteboard should be used like a stream, not a pond.
It might be a weird analogy but for someone who has a pond leading to a stream through a sluss in her backyard, it makes a lot of sense. If the pond water stays still for too long it gets murky and unappealing. If the water keeps flowing it will remain clear and exciting.
Well, same goes for your board.
When people arrived last December they got excited by the idea of whiteboards. We set one up for our dinner rota but that was not enough. They wanted another one for ideas of activities to do together. So I brought one up. Within one night it was covered with ideas from “a trip to the sea” to “meeting a beaver”.
And then it stayed there. It has been more than 2 months now. I don’t think much has changed on it and I doubt anyone has actively looked at it for ideas on what to do. While the dinner rota one is constantly updated, the activity board is forgotten. And that is not a location issue as they are at each end of the dinner table.
My guesses are:
no clear system on what goes on the board and what happens when something is done
not properly introduced at onboarding
no consistency
More activity on Slack and face-to-face
Whiteboards are erasable for a reason. Don’t keep stuff up on those for too long or they’ll turn invisible (and damn hard to erase).
Takeaways
you need signs but do not rely on them 100% - you need to show AND read the signs to the people when you onboard them - Repeat the information as often as you can. Signs are reminders.
Your signs will become invisible the longer people stay
Keep your signs up though. They will be used for accountability buddies.
In doubt, use choice architecture (nudges) rather than/in addition to signs.
Too many signs will kill the Home vibe - Harsh rules/symbols/colors/languages too
Whiteboards and chalkboards should be used for erasable and updatable information - they should keep flowing
To conclude, I will keep my signs up. I will keep them to a minimal amount.
Unless it is actively required by the group like the laundry booking list was back in December.
Interesting article Mo! We have the same problem in our community… the signs become part of the interior, and people tend to do the exact opposite of them.
I want to try to make the opposite of what you wrote (sorrrryyyyy),,, but it might not work haha. I wish to make very colorful signs with illustrations, and with a sentence that makes people feel that the action they do is actually important! Because if we maybe create a feeling of responsibility, and that we are proud of the ones following the signs, then maybe it will work? No freaking idea. But the experiment of the perfect sign continuous! Thank you again for these interwtsing points of view about “the sign”
I'm always a sign person! Maybe because I know the effort people put into them so I always read and make sure to follow. Interesting to know that in a coliving setting, they have a shelf life.
I relate to the whiteboard of ideas, it's like the physical version of a group chat with your friends where you say you'll meet but 124091273498 years later, the meeting is still not happening 😂