Jul
Depending on the nature of your work, you may benefit from having a home office - particularly if you run your own business or are allowed to work from home on occasion.
The key difference between your home and a traditional workplace is that you are surrounded by your comforts and can immediately relax once off the clock. However, your home office should be set up for productivity. No matter how big or small it is, a devoted work area at home works when you design it so that you can stay focused.
In today's blog, we've listed some key points to remember with setting up a home office, from where you can set one up to the importance of finding a way to make it feel separate to the rest of your home.
A room or nook will work
Whether you have a whole room to work with or just a random nook/corner in your home, a home office can be set up in either. Of course, if you do prefer more privacy when in work mode, then a room will probably be more appealing. However, sometimes this may just not be possible depending on where you live - and this is when those little nooks come in handy.As long as you have a little space to work with, you can set up a desk and create a work space in your own home.
If privacy and/or being by yourself when working is an absolute must, then take the time out to ask fellow housemates/family/partners to reduce the amount of time they spend around that specific area during your work hours. It may require some organisation, but you should be able to reach an agreement.
Make your office wall work for you
Chalkboards are commonly used in schools and outside restaurants/cafes, but they're also fantastic for a work environment. You can constantly jot down new ideas and to-dos. But if you don't want to take up space with a chalkboard, why not just paint one of your walls with chalkboard paint instead? It's a fantastic way to inspire a creative space while also accounting for the aforementioned issue of space.
Organisation is key
As with any workspace, making sure you home office has clear organisation is important. Allocating different areas for specific purposes, properly filing documents, and keeping your space clean are all important. Make sure you purchase folders and some type of filing cabinet/paraphernalia. Drawers and shelving are also strongly advised, but it all depends on how much space you have to work with.
Create a barrier
Following on from our first point, in general you'll want your home office to be somewhat separate from the rest of the home. It's the one place where you go to work, whereas almost every other part of your home is for recreation and/or relaxation. Having some clear separation between your at-home work environment and your actual home is more important than you may think.
If your home office is an entire room, then chances are there's a door to create that sense of a barrier. You could even close it when you're done for the day so that it's out of sight and out of mind. If, however, your home office is situated in a nook somewhere in your home, creating that separation will have to be achieved differently.
Even if it's not an overly tangible barrier, you'll want to do something that helps your home office feel like it is separate from everything else. One basic option is to buy a mat/rug to place on the floor. Once you walk off that mat/rug, you're officially out of your home office. It may not seem like that big of a deal, but it's a simple measure that helps create definition between home and work.
