The Lighting Secret: How to Increase Productivity in the Workplace

Good workplace lighting isn’t just cosmetic; it’s a productivity tool – a catalyst fueling how you see, think, and perform. When lighting is dim, patchy, or creates glare, your visual system works harder to interpret what’s on the screen and your desk. The result? Fatigue, more re-reads, slower decisions, and diminished focus.

Studies link glare and uneven lighting to higher visual discomfort and degraded task performance, while uniform, glare-free lighting stabilizes eye activity and supports accuracy. But there’s an easy solution that can improve the way you work.

Many successful founders and engineers looking for ways to increase productivity in the workplace rely on a simple yet impactful tech essential: the BenQ ScreenBar® Series monitor light bar. By reducing eye fatigue and improving visual clarity, a ScreenBar® transforms your workspace into an uncompromised environment of professional discipline and helps you stay focused, consistent, and productive, which is critical in the fast-paced startup world.

Below are quick lighting hacks and tips for everyday habits that enable breakthrough thinking and help turn ideas into reality.

Hack #1: The Glare-Free Secret Behind Professional Desk Setups

Unlike traditional desk lights, a ScreenBar® leverages advanced optics to provide the ergonomically ideal distribution of light: clear, even illumination that brightens your workspace without glare or screen reflection. By directing light where it’s needed, monitor light bars balance comfort and contrast to keep you in a state of steady focus and clear thinking.

• Glare-free design: An asymmetrical design projects light forward and down, precisely illuminating the desktop area without reflecting off the display, thus preserving on-screen contrast.
• Even desk coverage: Uniform illuminance ensures an even lux level across the task area, reducing the visual adaptation effort needed by your eyes and minimizing fatigue.
• Auto-dimming + color temperature control: Adapts brightness to your environment and lets you switch between warm (relaxed) and cool (high-focus) light.
• Space-saving form: Easily clips on to the top of the monitor, so there’s no base, no clutter, and more usable desk area.

4 Essential Tips to Sustain Focus and Prevent Digital Eye Strain

When your environment supports your vision, focus follows naturally. Here are four actionable ways to turn visual comfort into lasting productivity and breakthrough thinking.

• Set the light, then forget it. Consistent light and minimal glare are key to ergonomic comfort when setting up your computer workstation, according to Cornell Ergonomics. ScreenBar’s auto-dimming utilizes integrated ambient light sensors to instantly adapt brightness, allowing you to focus on creating the next great idea.
• Match color temperature to the task. Different light temperatures serve different needs. Cooler tones (around 5000–6500K) help with focus and analytical work, neutral light (4000K) supports everyday tasks, and warmer tones (2700–3500K) promote comfort and reduce strain in the evening.
• Protect your eyes to protect your output. According to the American Osteopathic Association, the average American worker spends seven hours a day on the computer either in the office or working from home. To reduce digital eyestrain, it’s recommended to follow the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
• Design a workstation that prevents refocus lag. Whether in the office or at your work from home setup, center your monitor at or slightly below eye level, about 20-40 inches away. Attach your ScreenBar® to the top of your monitor to avoid reflections and glare. Proper alignment and lighting reduces eye and neck strain, improving visual clarity.

Hack #2: The Perfect Light Setting for Coders, Writers, and Designers

From writing to coding to design, light shapes how we see and how we perform. A few small adjustments can make every task feel more visually stable and ergonomically sound, supporting extended focus and workflow.

• Writers & Strategists: Use warm-neutral light for long reads and drafting. Switch to neutral-cool for editing when attention to micro-details matters.
• Coders & Analysts: Neutral-cool light enhances edge contrast on dark themes and small text. Pair with a slightly brighter workplace setting for scanning data.
• Designers & Creators: Keep ambient light stable to prevent color drift. Let the ScreenBar® handle direct task illumination.

Conclusion

Lighting isn’t background, it’s the foundation for cognitive performance, directly influencing visual stamina. When your environment supports your vision, your mind stays clear, your focus holds longer, and your ideas move faster.

Consistent, comfortable lighting is a small change with big returns. Set up your ScreenBar® once, lock in a few routines, and you’ll feel the difference with fewer distractions, steadier focus, and more done by day’s end.

Ready to illuminate innovation? Learn more about BenQ’s Light Meets Insight program that helps founders and leading developers maximize focus, efficiency, and breakthrough thinking, and join us in supporting the next generation of innovators who are building solutions for tomorrow’s challenges.