Harsh is the path, my young padawan! No really, is quite simple: just avoid building rectangular boxes. I realized that all my colonies where just recatangular boxes or similar things, so I decided to switch completely, you can see the results of this approach in a beta thread ("A Long journey" or something like that, I'm not sure...). Along with that apply symmetry, or asymmetry, in a pleasing way. And keep in mind the modules you want to place and where you want to place them. More often than not I end up re-do some of the first buildings, like the carpentry, the ceramics, and sometime the kitchen.
"Those pesky COMMUNISTS!!" Spoiler: communism is the opium of the revolutionists Spoiler: truth By the way, it's made to sound really strange, since the NCO in charge of the interrogations is the cult leader...
I like the 15 X 15 square with smallest building being 7 X 7, medium 15 X 7, large L shaped 15 x 7, 8 X 7, and X-Large 15 X 15. Fits with the stock piles. Maybe I am just OCD about it!