But most of my coworkers want to plaster their iMac's with to-do post-its, put up photos, store snacks/Advil /whatever in their drawers, keep knicknacks/do

But most of my coworkers want to plaster their iMac's with to-do post-its, put up photos, store snacks/Advil /whatever in their drawers, keep knicknacks/doodads/plants on their desks, etc. -- personalize their space. I get it; I'm one of those types. I do like a small amount of space that's "mine." :) I think the answer can be as simple as giving each worker a small home "cave" and then having some shared spaces that encourage collaborative work. Not that different (and not even necessarily more space-hungry) from what a lot of companies do anyway, really, with the old "cubicles and conference rooms" setup. The only problems with that setup are 1) the cubicles are rarely quite private enough for real deep, contemplative work, and 2) grabbing a shared space is enough of a pain (having to reserve a conference room through the receptionist, or whatever) that it's subtly discouraged for purposes of impromptu collaboration. I believe Pixar's offices are arranged something like this. Each artist has private space, but the common areas linking private spaces are hubs that encourage interaction and cross-traffic.