What does it take to set up the right home office? Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of people across the world are compelled to work from a home office. But, is it possible to get the same experience as that of your regular office while working from your home office? Well, it all depends on how smartly you can transform your room into an office space for remote work.
Let’s delve into some of the top home office tips that can enhance your comfort and boost productivity. We will also discuss the role of customized task management software in making your work from a home office more productive.
Here is the first step-
1. Creating Environment
What is better than taking a laptop and starting your work straight away from your bed? The comfort is unlimited and therefore, a market research survey has revealed that 80% of young professionals in NYC work regularly from bed! But, here is the catch! Our brain is ‘programmed’ to work from the office. In other words, as we step into the office, our brain gets ready to work. Chances are high that your brain does not get ready to work from home and productivity decreases significantly.
The following tips can be handy for overcoming this situation–
- Select the room– If you live by yourself, you can easily create a small home office in the living room. But, if you live with roommates or family, then it is quite a task to select the right room where nobody disturbs you. You can choose a room with a door and a strong wi-fi connection. It should be spacious enough for placing equipment and necessary furniture with a window for ventilation.
- Make it ready– Comfort and convenience are two major things you can focus on while setting up a home office. You can either use your best chair or bring a good office chair and a table. If you are a night owl, make sure that your desk has a lamp to reduce eye strain.
- Natural light is important– While a desk lamp is important at night, natural light is essential in the morning. Direct sunlight can not only give us Vitamin D and energy but also revitalize us and improve our sleep. The room you choose for the home office needs to be airy and shiny with natural light.
2. Setting the Mood
The best thing about a home office is you can customize it the way you want. The home office should be arranged in a way that sets your mood to work more and remain efficient.
- Keep it clean– Think of it this way- how do you keep your desk in the office? Is it piled up with random sheets of paper or an old coffee cup or two? The answer is ‘No’. Decluttering a desk can give us a sense of accomplishment. It gives us the motivation to accomplish our goals. Also, if we keep the desk clean, it helps us reduce distractions that help us to focus on the task at hand.
- Consider music– Light music can work wonders in enhancing efficiency and increasing productivity. If you miss the office chatter, you can count on light music. But, if music or any kind of noise is disturbing for you, you can opt for instrumental music in a specific wavelength. It can boost your focus and increase efficiency.
- Add fragrance– Many companies use air fresheners to make the workplace more appealing for employees. While working in your home office, you can also implement this technique either by using room fresheners or any of your favorite perfumes. You can also keep an essential oil diffuser near your desk to reduce your stress. In absence of an oil diffuser or room freshener, you can use fresh herbs or scented candles.
3. Making Everything Right
When we are in a normal office environment, everything is more scheduled like lunch time, tea break, etc. In other words, our routine is set for weekdays and work hours. But, how about the work-from-home practice? Well, we need to make a routine for WFH as well.
Here are some of the important tips to follow.
- Get ready for work– It may sound strange but when you dress up like for a regular workday, your productivity increases. However, while working at home, there is no need to wear stuffy work shirts, a black or red tee will also do. When you get ready for work, it makes you feel more professional and you can focus more easily on your daily tasks.
- Stay Away from the Phone– A mobile phone can be a major distraction. Many are highly addicted to social media and even text messages, checking the phone frequently. It’s distracting and reduces productivity significantly. Therefore, it is better to keep a simple phone with minimum features nearby while working, ensuring a greater focus on work than on the phone!
- Maintain Work-life Balance– While working from home, chances are high that you might be preparing a presentation at 4 am or filling in a worksheet at 2 am. To maintain a work-life balance a schedule for home office hours is necessary. While surrounded by children or family, you should keep to a schedule to maintain productivity. Customized task management software can help with this. A feature-rich task management app or tool can help schedule daily tasks and accomplish them with ease.
- Stay Healthy– Last but not least, it’s important to remain healthy and hydrated. The main reason for working from home is to keep employees fit and healthy during the pandemic. Dehydration can bring many physical and mental consequences and therefore, it is better to keep water close by.
Apart from these tips, it is advisable to take breaks at regular intervals to remain fresh. Today, we have advanced task management tools to simplify our workflow and accomplish tasks on time. We can use them at the office and at home to complete our tasks efficiently.
