How to Set Up an Efficient Home Office
When you work at home, you need to make sure your space is set up for success. As someone who’s worked online as a freelancer for years now, my home office needs to be ready to handle my busy schedule.
This guest post is all about how to set up an efficient home office, no matter your space’s size or limitations. I know for myself just how challenging (and necessary) it is to live in a small apartment without a dedicated home office, so these tips are so important!
Working at home has become the new normal, and the number of freelancers who work from home has greatly increased. For safety reasons during COVID19, more and more people seem to be interested in working remotely.
These remote workers will not be granted the chance to work in traditional offices, therefore they need to find an appropriate space at home that can play the role of an office. Not only does a home office help you set boundaries and get more done, but it makes you feel more professional.
Whether you set it up in one corner of your bedroom, dining area, or allocate a whole room for it, there are things that you need to install to make your home office efficient. Here are five solutions that you need for a functional home office.
1. Get Proper Lighting
Having sufficient lighting in a home office is critical because it impacts your productivity. Ample lighting ensures that you don’t strain your eyes when working long hours.
What is the best lighting for a home office? If you can get natural lighting, that would be perfect! In case you didn’t know, there is an association between natural light and work productivity and satisfaction. This light also gets rid of harmful bacteria that might make you sick, hence the need to have it in your office.
When you don’t have access to natural lighting, you can install an LED illumination plan. The work area should be 500 lux while the direct surrounding area ought to be 300 lux. To achieve this, you should get a lamp with 1000 lumens for the workspace and 600 lumens for the surrounding.
2. Set the Temperature
To achieve the right comfort in your home office, you need to get a digital thermostat for your home. This device will help you keep your home office warm during the colder seasons.
The best thermostat is one that comes with sensors that can be placed in various rooms in your home. Rather than having the whole house at the same temperature, the sensors will ensure that each room is maintained at your preferred temperature so that you can work efficiently.
As the name suggests, these thermostats are automated and can be connected to your home Wi-Fi enabling you to control heating and cooling from any location in your house. Unlike a big office, you can be fully in control of the temperature of your home office—and this is quite the perk.
3. Choose a Comfortable Chair
It is not advisable to just grab one of your dining area chairs and get a cushion for it for your home office. Why is it not a good idea? When you are a remote worker, you tend to sit for long hours.
Having a bad chair hurts your back and affects your posture, and this is bad for your productivity. For these reasons, you need to get an ergonomic chair that offers the right kind of support.
Among the things that you should look out for in an ergonomic office chair is a 360° swivel base, adjustable height, in-built lumbar support, and adjustable armrest, backrest, and seat depth.
4. Invest in a Good Desk
A bad desk can also affect your efficiency while you work for long hours. Therefore, you should get a desk that promotes your workflow, fits your working space, and is within your budget.
An ideal office desk is one with an adjustable height that allows you to lift it so that you stretch your legs and lower it to a standard level when working. Standing desks are more popular for a reason—they’re good for you.
Next, once you get a functional desk, you need to position it in a location that allows staring at something other than a blank wall.
Should your office lack a window, you can still spruce up your space. You could add beautiful art pieces on the wall that you can look at when you lift your head from your computer. These small touches make a big impact.
To make your office trendy, you also need to get a minimalist office desk that allows you to only keep the essential items on it. Minimalism ensures that your office is not cluttered which can be distracting. Additionally, such a desk will also make your office look appealing and fun to work at.
5. Add Pops of Color
Last but not least, don’t underestimate the impact of color in your home office! Painting the right shade could make your office bright, warm, and more inviting.
Some of the most trendy office colors that you can choose from are grey, light blue, pastel yellow, purple, green, blue-gray, or orange. When it comes to picking a color, you should choose what appeals to your eyes. However, you should make sure that it flows with the style and theme of your home. Your home office is an extension of your space, not completely separate.
Improve Your Home Office
Whatever you incorporate in your home office, whether it is proper lighting, an ergonomic workstation, a thermostat sensor, or paint, it needs to enhance your workability. Working from home has a lot of challenges, though it can also be a big relief. Take this opportunity to maximize your workflow.
Following all of these simple yet effective steps is a sure way that you as a freelancer will thrive in every work that you do. Remember that you have the power to customize your office however you want!
About the author
Catherine Cortez is an architect, interior designer, and a writer for design websites. She is young and ambitious, with a degree in architecture. She has 7+ years of experience in interior and exterior design. Her mission is to inspire others to live their dreams and create their perfect sweet home.
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