With a lot of companies having their employees work from home, it’s important to know what to do to set up your home office. We are going to look at some of the things that you can do to have a home office and some of the things that you can do to help reduce distractions and increase your productivity. This will make the transition to working from home a lot easier for you.
Find the Perfect Location
Since you are going to spend a lot of hours in the home office, you shouldn’t squish your desk into a close when you have a guest room that is rarely used. Find someplace that is roomy, airy and that has enough space so that you can work efficiently.
You also want to consider the flow of traffic and how many distractions there are. Is a lot of activity best for you or should you choose an area that is quiet? If you are going to have clients stopping by, you’ll want a private area that has plenty of seating.
Don’t Choose Function Over Form
Your shelves, storage and desk should be serving you rather than you are serving them. Think about the items that are needed quickly and your workflow before you invest in furniture. Then you should search for the pieces that are functional and beautiful.
Your furniture in your home office should be complementing your home’s other rooms. If your home’s full of traditional décor, you should choose comfy, soft chairs and warm wood. Another option is a love-seat, depending on the size of your office. If your home office is contemporary, you can use metal furniture and artistic pieces.
Have a Good Chair
You are going to spend a lot of time in your chair. So you want to make sure that you are in a comfortable chair that is ergonomically correct.
Choose a Color You Will Love
One of the benefits of working from home is that your office can look the way that you want. So choose the right color for your walls. Some people love cheery bright colors such as lime green and others prefer something calming such as a light blue or a botanical green.
Have a View
Position your desk where you are able to look at something that’s not a blank, boring wall. The natural light of a window is the best choice. However, if you don’t have a window, having a nice piece of art is a good alternative.
Choose Some Homey Accessories
Unless you want a more contemporary look, select some extras that will enhance the cozy feeling of the home office, such as a something like trendy sticky notes and notepads, a floral mug to hold your pencils and a colorful trashcan is a good idea. You can wrap some fabric around that bulletin board and hide your bookshelves behind some curtains that are similar to or complement the fabric.
Organize Yourself Vertically & Horizontally
A lot of home offices don’t have a lot of space. So you want to make sure that you are using your space efficiently. Hang some floating shelves on your walls so that office equipment and papers are off of your desk. Use some vertical file folders so that important papers are kept at arm’s reach on your desk. Do you file or stack? If you are often will make miles, getting a basket for holding things like notes, papers and your mail is a good idea. If you prefer your desktop to be clean, designate one of your drawers for the papers you have to do. Metal or wooden cube storage’s a fun and unique alternative to having bookshelves, since each of those spaces is able to be used to hold baskets filled with items, knickknacks or books.
- Tell Your Family
People in the house will surely distract you, so to avoid this, tell them that they need to understand that you will not always be available because you’re working even if you’re staying at home. This applies to your kids and spouse. It’s important to explain to them that you don’t want to be disturbed when you’re absorbed in work, and what you’re doing is important for you and your family. Put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door if you have a separate home office.
- Do The House Chores Before Starting With Your “Work”
Prepare everything to do with “home life” before getting to your work tasks. Food, drinks, snack, bathing the kids, feeding the dog or anything that may distract you if you’re in the middle of something. Once everything has been prepared, take your shower, wear your comfy clothes and start working. You will be more focused when you know that everything is taken care of.
Once you have your home office set up, you have to reduce distractions and increase your productivity. Below are some tips that you can use for increasing productivity and reducing distractions.
- Play Music – A lot of professionals have said that when they play music while they work helped them with their productivity and focus. When you listen to music, it’s going to help you with getting into a rhythm, focusing, and being in the right zone. This also will help with lessening stress. It’s also a good idea to wear headphones and let others know that you don’t wish to be interrupted.
- Turn Off Automatic Alerts – Between those notifications on your smart phone and the flags that are coming up when email comes in, these types of alerts can really hurt your productivity. Therefore, you want to turn them off to stop you from getting distracted. After all, your work email’s going to be open while you’re working, so you don’t need it up on your smartphone while working.
- Declutter – A workspace that is cluttered also means that your mind is cluttered. When you have a mess of a workplace, it’s not just going to cause you to waste your time looking for something that you need under the clutter. Decluttering the office and putting everything in the proper place will make it a lot easier to find things and see that you have more space.
- Keep a Schedule – If possible, have a schedule just like you were in the actual building. This will include getting up at a regular time, getting everything ready, and following certain hours which will include having a lunch break designated. However, this will depend on you since when you work at home you don’t have to deal with things like traffic.
- Put Up a Sign – If you have children at home, it can be harder to cut down on the distractions. So, if they are older children, put up a sign with answers to questions that they might ask and let them know that you shouldn’t be disturbed unless there’s an emergency.
These are just some of the things that you can do to help you set up a home office and transition to working from home. We have a lot of things that you can use for your home office, so look around our store to see what we have.
