Jake Nickell, CEO of Threadless, is an increasingly rare example of a founder-CEO who bootstrapped his company to profitability.

What began as a $1,000 investment and a t-shirt design competition seventeen years ago is today a $30 million e-commerce website and online community of artists. Every week, thousands of t-shirt designs are submitted to Threadless for an online public vote, with about ten designs being selected for production.

Jake shares 5 tips for creating spaces where creativity flourishes:

1. Don’t over-design. Nothing kills creativity faster than a space where every square inch is already saturated with someone else’s design.

2. Give teams budgets to customize their space. See point #1.

3. Create pockets of inspiration. Carefully select certain areas in your space that employees can flock to when they need help getting the creative juices flowing.

4. Space acoustics matter. They literally set the tone for your entire company culture. Figure out what works for your environment and don’t cut corners making it happen.

5. Invite visitors. Sharing your space with others is a great way to learn and pick up some new ideas.

For more about Threadless, click here.

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FIVEinSIXTY is our web series with thought leaders whose stories provide insights and inspiration for the next generation of go getters—our own little brainchild outside the wide variety of videos we produce for our clients.