This is why, when people complain about cubicles, I tell them how much better a cubicle is than open floor plan.

I have had private offices, two person offices, cubicles, and once in a bull pen with a glass wall. (we called it 'the fish bowl').

Private office comes in first! Cubicle (as long as the walls are at least five feet) comes in a close second.

Open floor plan (or a bull pen) comes in far far far last.

The best time I ever had was in a "bull pen" situation (our team at the time called it alternatively the "oven" or the "barn"). It was at a new job, doing something new to me (server automation), and our team consisted of one of their senior devs, myself, and two really "green" new guys who were also hired along with me. One was new in the sense that they had a fresh comp-sci degree but had never worked in the field before, and the other had worked in the field, but never at an employer (only as a remote contractor).

The place had no open desks for us, so they decided to turn the small conference room (we had interviewed in) into our shared "office". Trouble was, it had no A/C vent in it. Hence, with four people and four computers and four monitors - it became "the oven" (there were other reasons we named it what we did, but they aren't relevant here).

But the camaraderie we built in a short amount of time as a team was beyond anything I had experienced before. We'd keep the lights off, a fan running, and a spotify playlist cranking out weird music (our lead controlled it, he was younger than me by many years - as an older person just turning 40 - his choice of music was both odd, and interesting - I'm glad for this, as I discovered new music genres I never knew existed - like Pirate Metal - yes, Alestorm was one such band).

Eventually we got a portable A/C unit, which made things more tolerable.

Ultimately, though, that room helped to form a team that cranked out some interesting code in a very short period, which I think helped to lead the company to be sold to a larger competitor about a year or so later. I ended up leaving the company (the new owners did a "rehiring" process in which they offered me my position at a 25% pay cut - yeah, sure, let me get right on that).

Cubes are almost always back to the people coming so it’s anxiety inducing to me. An office with you facing the door is the only way for peace in my mind.

If it happens again, I've been told that having a mirror on your desk so that you can see what's going on behind you can help a lot.

Or if putting a mirror on your desk is the best resolution your employer can offer, run away screaming...

I tried this and it absolutely did not help.

In a "normal" situation where your desk faces the rest of the room, you would become aware (in an "ambient" way) of people wandering into your field of view.

But with your back to the room/hallway/whatever, you need to explicitly scan the mirror (sort of like polling, in computer terms) with frequency to know if somebody is approaching.

It's like trying to work while also focused on a video playing in a desktop window or something.

Of course, as with anything, some people are not bothered by this. (And, of course, some of those people are fooling themselves into thinking there's zero impact on their focus/productivity)

After we moved to another floor/office, I forced my team lead to move to the desk with back facing the door while I conquered the desk with a wall behind me, after spending 4+ years with the back facing the open office we had previously.

I improved exponentially my concentration and quality of work while he showed up that previously he was spending large amount of time watching YouTube/news websites/shows instead of doing work and he is frustrated that he has to do real work now.

Or if your monitor is one of those glossy ones, just glance into a darker part.

I had a coworker try this, and it made her more jumpy, as she would catch somebody in her rear vision across the room.

She would audibly be surprised and distract others.

You likely already have one.

The upper bezel of your monitor is likely shiny black. It makes a great mirror to know when someone behind you is taking interest in you. It is also completely inconspicuous and you do not need to move your head from your monitor to use it.

I’d say that it’s only likely conditional on having a Mac.

Wouldn't that cause even more distraction as you see all the people walking behind you?

Apparently (it's not something I suffer from), people who prefer to be facing the aisle tend to glance out at people from time to time, which makes them feel at ease. Having the people at their back makes them uncomfortable because they can't keep tabs on it. For some people, this is apparently so bad that even if they are in an individual office they need to have a window, or keep the door open.

> I've read that in feng shui what you describe is called the "command position".

Thanks - now you say it, I think I've heard that before. (Perhaps from my father, who I know 'suffers' from the same.)

And in fact, when working from home (nobody around so it's not about being in 'command' of others at all, as a quick search tells me it isn't in feng shui either) I often prefer to sit at a table where I can see down the corridor to the front door.

Or when it's hot, on the balcony (as I am now) sitting back from the table such that my back's to the corner and my peripheral vision covers both out over the balcony to outside, and through the windows into my flat.

...interesting. It's totally sub-conscious - I always know where I want to sit in a room, or at a table in a restaurant, etc. it doesn't require thought but it certainly isn't random. I don't think about it while sitting down, but I'm sure if you asked me afterwards why I was sitting there I could tell you.

I startle very easily, especially if I'm snuck up on from behind, so if anyone comes up behind me, I unintentionally scream loudly as soon as I notice them. I have found that this tends to discourage that sort of behavior.