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“Choose Joy” is the favorite saying of my longtime friend, Nancy. She ends every email in it and often uses the phrase to diffuse conflicts in her office.

While it seems like a simple concept, it’s actually very powerful. Turns out, joy is more powerful than good genes according to an 80-year Harvard study of their graduates. The ones who found joy in life lived longer.

This begs the question: How can the homes we design and build add or facilitate joy to the lives of the residents?

Neighborhood

A joyfully-designed community could include a place to gather and connect with neighbors. It might simply be a common green space or walking trails. In one community, the walking trails and common space were composed of legacy oak trees and azalea lined walking paths.

Streetscape

Joy can be achieved by connecting with the neighbors. Consider a pedestrian-friendly neighborhood with front porches within conversational distance from the sidewalk.

Make sure the front porches are inviting and large enough for furniture.

A joyful neighborhood should not be monotonous but should instead showcase a diversity of exterior styles, colors, textures, and materials.

Landscaping

Street trees help to make a community joyful as does a colorful landscape. Include both evergreen and deciduous trees so there is always some green.

You can even vary the color of the leaves from light green and variegated vegetation, dark green, and even red toned leaves. Fresh flowers are always joyful, so include a seasonal rotation of annuals.

Floor plan design

Moving inside the home, I think a joyful design includes an interactive kitchen. I want the person preparing the food to be connected to friends and family – not locked away in some utilitarian chore space as was the norm in the sixties and seventies.

Outdoor living is an essential component of a joyful house, especially when you consider the biophilic connection to nature.

Pet Friendly

Of course, our pets bring us joy! They are always happy to see us when we come home. Having a home that makes it easy to care for and accommodate our pets reduces the less-joyful moments that can come with pet ownership. This could mean claw-resistant flooring, a place for the pets’ food, water, and bed out of the high traffic zones.

There’s no getting around the fact that dogs get dirty.

Instead of trying in vain to keep them from finding the nearest puddle, a raised dog shower makes the inevitable bath less strenuous for both dog and owner.

Lighting

Light by itself is joyful, but thoughtful lighting is even more so. Consider ambient, task, accent, and decorative lighting. I love to add lights to stacked cabinets with glass doors and fun collectables in the kitchen. Pendant fixtures over the kitchen island should be both functional and decorative.

In custom homes, it is great to place accent lights over key art pieces.

There is also the color of the light and how it should mimic the temperature of sunlight – called circadian light. Bright cool midday sunlight is great for vibrancy and warmer tones are better to start and end each day.

Color

Adding color to the interior of homes can be tricky. Indeed, realtors often recommend you paint your interior walls neutral or white so not to “offend” anyone. Who hasn’t walked through a spec home that only features white or gray walls and ceilings, making you question if you’re in a potential home or a hospital?

There is an entire industry that focuses on the effect color has on people. Yellow, orange, and blue are colors that evoke feelings of joy. Yellow is often linked to the power and energy of the sun and is strongly associated with laughter. While red symbolizes passion, orange serves as a balanced alternative, declared by Frank Sinatra as the happiest color. Blue represents trust and serenity, bringing a sense of calmness.

Consider blue for the bed wall in a sleeping room.

I recently painted my bed wall a terracotta red.

Of course, color preference is very personal, so different colors resonate with people differently. One custom builder knows the positive and negative power of color. He includes four different wall colors in his interior design allowance, letting his buyers to pick the colors that make them happy without going overboard and creating future regret.

Personalization

I have always found the ability to personalize the places we call home to be very powerful. This could be as simple as selecting a cool tile for the kitchen backsplash or fun facets in the bathroom. But it could also include a wine display or wine wall. Hey – let’s face it. Wine is joyful.

Much, much more

I haven’t even talked about the power of interior design to provide joy. This could be in the colors, furnishing, and artwork in your model. Consider curating the choices and selections in your design center to enhance joy. It could help seal the deal.

Looking at our industry through the lens of providing joy can certainly be profitable as buyers will subconsciously be drawn to a joyful home. But more importantly, adding joy to your design could impact the health and longevity of your residence. That’s the stuff that makes me happy because – housing design DOES matter!