There are plenty of benefits to working from home. You can make your own schedule and dictate your own work hours; you’ll be much more comfortable sitting at your computer than you would in an office, and you’ll save a whole lot of money thanks to not having to commute. Unfortunately, one of the downsides of home working is the possibility of distraction, and so it’s important to build yourself a well-crafted home office environment in which you can be free of diversions. Here’s how you can build the perfect home office.
Get Some Funds Together
If you want to build an effective home office, you’ll need to shore up some cash. A good home office setting is more than just a room you’ve converted; it’s a purpose-built environment to help you work. As such, you should think about sources of financing for your home office. Dip into your savings, talk to your family about helping out, or think about a second mortgage loan if you’re a homeowner. However you do it, it’s important to shore up a decent amount of money to help you embark on your home office building journey.
Build for Comfort
The first and most important rule of building a home office is to make sure it’s a comfortable environment. You’ll be spending a lot of your time in your home office, and so an ergonomic work setup is an absolute must. This means investing in a good-quality chair and desk combination; if you’re sitting at your desk all day, the last thing you want is to start feeling the twangs of strain and backache not two hours into your workday. Your computer should be at eye level and your keyboard and mouse should be within reach and easy to access.
Don’t Skimp on Your Computer
Many home workers neglect the importance of a good-quality computer set up when they’re building a home office. You won’t necessarily have the same priorities as other people when you’re looking for a good PC. for example, a high-quality graphics card may not be high on your priority list, but a wireless keyboard and mouse are likely something you’ll want to invest in. Similarly, make sure to get good-quality monitors with a reasonably high resolution, or the display could make your eyes hurt.
Keep it Free of Distractions
Try not to station any equipment that you know is going to be distracting in your home office. This includes hobbies like gaming, music, or art; while those are excellent ways to wind down after a difficult day, they’re not going to help you stay focused on your work. A more spartan home office environment ensures not only that you remain on task, but also that the quality of your work doesn’t suffer because you’re constantly looking elsewhere or being distracted.
Put Some Plants in your Office
Plants have proven beneficial effects on your physical and mental health, as well as the quality of the air in any space in which they are installed. They’ll help to add a touch of nature to your home office, which will likely feel a little synthetic given the amount of computer equipment and other work paraphernalia in the room. We’d recommend something with a fragrant scent, too; this will act as a natural air freshener, ensuring the space is always pleasant to be in.
Natural light is Key
While good-quality ambient light and smart lighting should be a consideration for your home office, always make sure there is a source of natural light. During the winter months, you’re likely to be completing at least a portion of your work in darkness, so having access to natural light throughout the rest of the day feels more freeing. When things do get darker, make sure you have soft, dimmable lighting; this way, your eyes can adjust to a less harsh light than that of your computer screen.
Keep it Tidy
There’s nothing less satisfying from an ergonomic perspective than a cluttered, untidy home office environment. For this reason, it’s very important to keep not only your desk but also the entire room free of unnecessary clutter. Everything that is in your home office should either be beautiful or useful, to paraphrase William Morris. If you cannot give a reason for an item being in your home office, it’s time to remove it. Be harsh with yourself, because otherwise, the clutter will build up.
Don’t Relax in your Home Office
It’s a good idea to allocate your home office as a space in which you exclusively work and don’t relax. This way, you can segregate the idea of your workspace and the place in which you relax or unwind. Keeping work and home life separate is paramount for good mental health, so not only should your home office be free of distractions, but you should also ensure that everything you need to relax is in a different space. If you can, try to use a different computer for things like watching Netflix, gaming, or chatting with friends.
Set “Do not Disturb” times
If you have a family, then as much as you love them, they can sometimes prove a distraction during work hours. They’ll be understanding if you need to set “do not disturb” hours during which they can’t simply walk into your office. After all, they wouldn’t visit you at work, right? It might seem dictatorial to set times during which they can’t go into a room in their own house, but this is your workspace, and it’s crucial they afford you that courtesy.
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