It doesn’t matter if you need a home office because you work at home as a business person or freelancer, you telecommute a few hours a week from home, or you simply want/need a place to pay bills and organise your day – you really do deserve much more than a rickety old metal desk and a second-hand chair. Designing the perfect office means that it’s going to be a place that is comfortable, but also a place you will want to return to often. The perfect home office is also efficient, organised and makes you more productive. Here are a few tips when it comes to designing your home office:
- Location Does Matter
You are going to spend hours on end in your home office so when it comes to the location or space, don’t stiffen up yourself! Make sure you have a nice place to work – not just some tiny space you can barely get in and out of. Consider these “extra” spaces you might not think about: An unused closet can be converted into a nook. Also, under the steps – you probably have a little nook area you hardly ever use. This can be a great place for an office set up. Another option is can be a poorly used or rarely used extra room.
- Invest In a Great Chair
Don’t get some cheap-no-brand office chair. Remember, this is something you will be sitting on for hours on end. First off, make sure that it has a function that will let you move the chair height up and down. Second, make sure that it has a function that allows you to change the back and forth movement on the back of the chair itself. Thirdly, make sure that its cushioned for your body. Lastly, make sure that it has arms on the side so you can rest your elbows/arms when you aren’t working.
- Invest In a Great Desk
Also, you should be investing in a good desk. It doesn’t have to be some £5000 L-shaped desk with a ton of space you won’t use. But, it should be comfortable; it should offer ample storage space and places to place things like your desk lamp, computer, hard drive, mouse pad, mouse, paper holder, folders, office supplies, etc.
- Paint The Walls
Painting the walls is going to be a surefire way to increase productivity and efficiency in the office. Don’t paint it a colour you hate! And make sure you look into colour psychology on how colours make us feel. If you absolutely don’t want to paint the walls or can’t – at least add in some cool artwork that you love, something that makes you happy or something that inspires you.
- A Room With A View
Make sure that you place your desk towards a window. Even if you don’t look out of it for a break from the mundane work you are doing, that natural light, that will come in will make you feel more energised and happy. Again, if you don’t have windows in the space, that’s okay, hang some nice art, a poster you love, or even a TV monitor with moving images.
- Choose Comfort Over Everything Else
When choosing your desk, your cabinets, shelves or whatever else – choose comfort and likability. If you really love that mug pencil holder, keep it. This is your home office, you should be able to decorate it however you want.
- Build Up as Well as Over
When people design a home office, they always use the floor space for things like cabinets, shelving, plant holders, etc. Why? You have all that lovely wall space. This is really important for smaller spaces as well because you won’t have a ton of floor space. So don’t only think about floor space and building/designing from left to right, but also go for the wall/vertical space too.
- Keep Your Office “Tidy”
If you have a printer, fax machine, laptop/PC, a desk lamp, a fridge, a TV, etc., that is a lot of wires to have to deal with. Make sure that you look into a way to hide and organise all of your cords. There are quite a few DIY cord organising ideas available online to organise those unsightly (and accident prone) cords.
- Add Some Light
Your home office design should have plenty of light. Not only is this for physical reasons; lack of light can cause eye strain, headaches and can even make you sleepy, but adding light can breathe life into space. It’s also essentially for tasks like light reading on the clock, heavy reading on your break and of course while you are working at your home office desk.
- Inspiration Is Key
In the same way, I mentioned you should add art to the space, you should also add other items that will inspire you. If you are a Mystery Writer, consider adding a cool typewriter from the 1930’s to inspire you. If your kids inspire you, place their pictures on your desk. If something like a picture of a house you want motivates you to work harder, go for it. Put it on your desk or in front of your desk so you see it every day. Like a certain quote? Awesome, get it painted on the wall.
*This is a collaborative post*
This post has made me excited about decorating our study
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