Creating The Perfect Home Office

Creating The Perfect Home Office

 The COVID-19 pandemic has meant that many people have found themselves working from home for an extended period of time.  A survey of workers has shown that three out of five people want to continue working from home when the lockdown has ended (Source: HR Director).  While a short term solution might have been to set up base on the kitchen table, or sofa, it’s not really suitable for long term remote working. If working from home is going to be a regular thing for you, then creating the perfect home office for you, where you can be comfortable and productive is a must. Take that from someone who has worked from home for coming up fourteen years.

Find Your Workspace

A workspace to call your own is important for you both physically and mentally. Space at your home might be limited, so you may need to get creative.  Is there an opportunity to convert a spare room or a loft space.  A product like loft boarding from Instaloft is great for turning that unloved space into a fabulous office. 

Even somewhere such as the corner of the hallway or conservatory will do.  As long as it can be somewhere that you dedicate to your work. You might even use the mirrored dressing table in your bedroom as a desk.

Creating The Perfect Home Office: Think About Lighting

A good amount of natural light will keep you alert and help prevent eye strain.  A window to gaze out of when you are working might seem ideal but having natural light off to the side of you is far better for working by.  

For those winter months or late nights, get yourself a good lamp to work with,  

Don’t Skimp On A Chair

If you scroll through images on beautiful home offices on social media, they all look great, like the type of place you want to work, but most of them have given no thought beyond the aesthetic to the chair.  You’re going to be spending a lot of time in that chair so it needs to be good.  Do your research and buy the best ergonomic office chair that you can afford.  It might jar with your carefully chosen decor but a good chair will save you from backache, neck aches and headaches. 

Creating The Perfect Home Office: Time For Tech

You only need a laptop to work, right? Well, that is technically true, but if you’re working from home full time, you might want to invest in a few tech purchases to make your job easier.  This can include a larger monitor and full-size wireless keyboard and mouse. 

If you spend a lot of time on calls, a wireless headset can prevent neck strain and allow you to continue to do other things when you’re making a call. 

High-speed internet access is a must too.  If you’re in an area of your house with a poor WiFi signal, buy yourself a wireless signal extender to guarantee a strong signal.  

 

Sometimes your office is the kitchen table, and that’s ok. Just make sure that you utilise top tips like these when it comes to making your workspace as suitable and comfortable as possible.

Business Premises Makeovers

Business Premises Makeovers

As a freelancer I don’t have business premises. I work from home or remote work in a number of fabulous venues. The places I enjoy remote working the most, and where I’m most productive are those with a great atmosphere. Something to consider. If, however, you are a customer-facing business, or even if you have clients visit you at the office, then having a great looking office is vital.

The way your business premises looks is a direct reflection on the kind of business you are running and having the right look can lift the opinions of those that visit. Have a look at some of the changes you can make to your office to give it a fantastic look.

Effective Business Premises: Get The Modern Look

Films like the Social Network have been setting examples when it comes to offices, and nowadays, business owners want to give their business a specific look or feel.

One of the directions that business owners are travelling is the way of open offices, large televisions and bean bags to help give them a relaxed and edgy feel. The reason for this is that bosses seem to want to introduce a fun dynamic into the workplace, and it makes the staff feel like they are a part of something different. 

When the staff feel like this, it can boost productivity by massive amounts, and it also helps give the company an excellent image to the outside world. 

Businesses that opt for the modern look are often not customer facing and generally offer modern solutions to the outside world.

Get The Classy Look With Your Business Premises

When it comes to customer-facing businesses that tend to offer high-end products to customers, attaching an air of class to the premises is one of the best things you can do.

If a high-end client is coming to visit, then being greeted by a grand sight will always go down well. Businesses that want to achieve this look tend to opt for stylish flooring like castle carpet and dark woods all around. 

When you combine both of these with the right amount of light, some greenery and well-dressed staff, you are left with a warm and welcoming environment that oozes success.

The Minimalist Look

One of the simplest and most popular looks in offices today is the minimalist look. At one time offices were generally crammed to the brim with advertising material, stacks of paper and employees squeezed into every corner of the room.

Today, this is certainly not the case. Modern companies are opting for the less is more approach. To achieve this look business owners are looking toward big and bright walls, clean white finish desks and light flooring that gives an openness to the whole environment.

The minimalist look is also so popular due to the positive effect it has on employees. By reducing clutter and offering a bright and airy work environment, staff find they are altogether more positive about their job.

In Conclusion

These are just three looks that could give your business a whole new feel and change how customers see you and your business. Will I give up my freelance/nomad working life one day. I can’t see it but if I do it’ll be to work from business premises that make me feel good (don’t worry, I’d still be self-employed but with a comfy chair and my own coffee machine).