Many of us have been working from home for the past several months. The team at Vujovich has gone from a “makeshift workspace” to “legit workspace”. Is your home office optimized for the tasks you need to perform? We’ve got some adjustments to make your home office work better for you!
Here are 5 areas where small changes can make the biggest impact on the look, feel, and functionality of your home office:
1. Light – One of the most important elements of any area. Task lighting allows us to illuminate our workspace, directing light right where we need it, the desktop! If your only source of light is coming from the overhead ceiling light, the space in front of you will be in shadow. Place a lamp at your desk, most task lights are designed to direct light down onto your tabletop. Your eyes will thank you. Are you participating in a lot of zoom meetings? You’ll need to illuminate your face. For optimal video meeting lighting, avoid sitting with your back to a window. Set up your desk facing a window or place a lamp behind or next to your computer to direct light toward your face!
2. Seating – Optimal ergonomics is the real deal. I’ll be the first to admit, I pulled up an old rocking chair to my makeshift desk the first week. It was too low. Having a chair that is comfortable, supportive and the correct height will keep you focused on your work, instead of getting distracted by the weird pains in your wrists, back, bum, etc. Sitting at a counter? Try placing a box for your feet to rest on. You’ll be surprised what a difference it makes.
3. Technology – Determine what you need to do your work from home. Do you have everything you need? Dedicated landline, fast internet, a good printer, larger monitor? While you may have some or most of these things at home already, take a look at what will keep you efficient and focused. I added a printer and larger monitor to my home office- it made a huge difference. Perhaps upgrading to a wireless keyboard and wireless mouse will help keep your desktop looking clean and inspiring!
4. Layout – Let’s talk about what you actually need around you. How much space do you need for your work? Do you need a printer at arm’s length? Do you need a phone nearby? Charging station? Sure, it’s fun to have a cup of pens, notepads, calculator, stapler, hole-punch, lotion, a cup of coffee, a framed photo… the list goes on. If you’ve got drawers or a cabinet near your workspace, I encourage you to use them! Having a place where all your essential desk items can “live” will help keep visual distractions to a minimum, and a cleaner aesthetic to your pace. A drawer with dividers goes a long way. Get yourself set up with what you need, and remove the other distractions.
5. Personality – Keeping the ideals from #4 in mind, we don’t want a ton of things sitting around, but think of the idea of curating the items at your workspace. Make this area special, with things you enjoy. Choose a fun lamp, put some artwork on the wall, put a vase of flowers in the room. This is a chance to see your home differently and get creative with making your home office into a space you’ll like to spend time in. Make it yours paint the walls, gather your essentials and get to it!
