Many of us work from home these days so that we can be near our families, avoid long commutes, or so that we can avoid having large overheads that are perhaps un-necessary. In our eagerness to get on with business home workers often take over a spare bedroom, corner of a dining room or small study room without planning what they need and where they are going to put everything. This haphazard way to setting up an office area usually results in mismatched items, overflowing storage and a bland and un -welcoming working environment. It has been proven that offices with a more stylish design, with good lighting and a comfortable desk area mean better productivity at work. If you are serious about your business, why not take a bit of time to plan your office, making it a welcoming, bright place that you are happy to spend time in. Don’t forget you have chosen to work from home so that you can suit yourself in many other ways - why not allow yourself the luxury of not having to work in a uninteresting, uninspiring office space as well. You can personalise your space, stamp your character on your home office and make your working environment whatever you want it to be. Here are a few ideas to help you get started:
• When painting the walls, a lighter shade will work best, reflecting any natural light and keeping the area bright -however allow yourself to choose your favourite colour –don’t be restrained by “normal” office colours of pale green or cream.
• In a home office cheerful wallpaper can be an attractive alternative to paint, but make sure you choose something that is not too wild and distracting, and something you will not tire of quickly.
• Wall decoration – brighten up your home office with some favourite photos or prints to personalise your space. If your room does tend to be on the dark side try putting a mirror opposite the window to reflect the natural light around the room.
• If your office is in a dedicated room of its own rather than in the corner of the dining room, you can choose window treatments to suit you. If your office is on the ground floor you may like venetian or vertical blinds for privacy, but you could add colourful curtains or a roman blind to add warmth and character to the room.
• Choosing the right furniture is important. Try and choose a matching desk and storage so that your office really looks like you mean business. Do you need a large desk with drawers? Do you need space for drawing and/writing?
• Before buying any furniture consider carefully what your storage needs are –do you need lots of filing space? Have you got lots of brochures and books that need to be on bookshelves? Maybe you need storage crates fitting onto shelving?
• It’s a good idea to draw a scale plan of your room to enable you to work out the best options for positioning furniture, taking into account telephone points, electrical sockets and position of natural light etc.
• Desk chairs come in all shapes and sizes and to fit all budgets. Make sure you spend some time finding one that you find comfortable, after all you are going to be spending a lot of time sitting on it!
• Lighting is very important when you are working all day in the same place. You need to make sure that your lighting is adequate for all the activities you undertake - for working at the computer, for writing, reading, sewing etc.
• Think about the type of flooring you use as well – durability, cost, style, maintenance and comfort and things to think about here.
With a little forward planning your home office can be turned into a practical working space that reflects your character and makes going to the office everyday and absolute pleasure!
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