With the worldwide outbreak of Covid-19 changing how and where we work, many people have made the transition to working from home permanently.
This new norm may be a difficult transition to make for some, as home may be chaotic, cluttered, or may be too small a space for you to work in comfortably.
If you’re wondering how to set up a comfortable, productive workspace in your home, not to worry. You can work just as well from home as you could from the office before the pandemic with just a little guidance.
Read on to learn some easy tips and tricks to make your at-home workspace cozy and dynamic.
Find the Right Space for Your Home Office
The best space for your home office is one that’s either empty or not being used. Ideal spots for this are spare rooms, attics, basements, or flex rooms. Maybe even a guest room if that’s the only available space.
Attempting to set up for work on the couch could make it hard to focus, especially with the TV remote just an arm’s length away.
But what if you have no spare room in your house? An out-of-the-way space can work just as well, such as a nook in the kitchen or dining room.
The only areas of the house that should be avoided entirely are the bedroom and living room, as these areas are intended for relaxation and rest. You may easily start to feel burnt out if you work and relax in the same space.
Keep Your Workspace Bright
Essential to a healthy psyche and feeling of productivity is proper lighting. If you’re forced to work in a dark, gloomy space, you may suffer from eyestrain or even dips in your mood.
You may want to add a floor or desk lamp for added light, even if you already have overhead lighting.
Better than artificial lighting though is natural light, which you can get from setting up by a window. This can provide good lighting for your office while promoting mental health and improving your mood as well!
Find the Right Desk
When setting up your home office, it’s important to take into account how much space you’ll need. You wouldn’t want to use a desk that can’t fit all your things on it, for example.
A desk can be a huge asset to your productivity, or if not selected properly, a hindrance.
Working from home, you may have a set of dual monitors hooked up to your work computer to facilitate ease of use. A small or shallow desk may not accommodate this set up, so you’d need to find one with appropriate dimensions to fit your equipment.
Or if you only need a temporary set up, and dining room table will work just as well!
Now if you don’t already have a suitable desk, you may be wondering where to get one that fits your needs. You can easily find one from various online stores, or even local retailers and furniture stores.
Desks come in a wide assortment, including writing desks, corner desks, L-shaped desks, or even standing desks if you don’t like sitting for long periods of time. Whatever desk you decide on, ensure it fits your needs and the size of your desk chair.
Find a Comfy Desk Chair
If you’re going to be sitting at a desk all day, you’ll want to make sure what you’re sitting in is comfortable and has good support. There are few faster ways to get a bad back than sitting in a bad chair all day!
To make sure you select the right office chair, determine the best height and back rest rigidity for you and your workspace. For example, if you sit in a chair that’s too high, you’ll be hunching over all day to see your computer screen at the right angle.
And if this is more of a temporary or impromptu set up, you could also opt for a chair you already have around the house, such as a living room accent chair or a dining room chair.
Shameless Plug: For recommendations on chairs and other essentials, check our Home Office Essentials: 5 Things You Need
Maintain Productivity with a Schedule
It can be difficult to stay on task when your boss is miles away and not looking over your shoulder all day. As such, it may be in your best interest to invest in a planner or some other kind of productivity tracker.
If you get a planner or calendar for your home office, it can make it much easier to keep track of upcoming deadlines and meetings.
And of course we all have schedule planners in our phones, but there’s just something different about having a physical planner on the wall. It’ll catch your eye and will be harder to ignore than your phone planner, for one, and it can also round out your home office look.
Add a Personal Touch to Your Workspace
Okay, we’ve got the basics out of the way. But are you worried your home office will look drab and boring? Not to worry, you can make your workspace more inviting and cozier by adding some personal touches.
Add things like signs with inspirational quotes to motivate you, posters or paintings of things you enjoy, some fun knick-knacks on your desk, or even a house plant to make the space feel more organic.
Really the sky is the limit here. With no corporate regulations to hold you back, you can go absolutely crazy with the personalization of your workspace.
Final Thoughts
Perhaps one of the most important aspects of creating your dream workspace is to establish clear boundaries between work life and home life. Because you aren’t heading into the office to work every day, the lines between these two can become a bit blurred, which can lead to loss of motivation and productivity.
Having a dedicated space to do work in is essential to maintaining this balance. Hopefully the tips outlined above will help you to create a healthy, productive workspace!
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