20 Things To Improve Your Work From Home Space
By now you’ve probably gotten used to working from home. You’ve got your nice little home office set up with your work essentials set up just the way you like, but are you sure your set up in a way that maximizes both your productivity and comfortability on a daily basis?
Everybody feels that they have a setup that is perfect for them while they’re working from home, but there’s always a handful of things that can improve your work from home space. If you don’t have these things already, here are some must have items for your home office as well as things that will make life so much easier:
- Desk – Because where else are you going to set your computer and do your work?
- Comfy chair – Ditch the stiff wooden chair and look for something that’s much more cushioned so your ass doesn’t get so sore!
- Lamp – You might already have a source of lighting in your work from home space, but a lamp provides more controlled lighting that will give more focus to what you’re working on.
- Portable Speaker – Playing some music is a great way to help you focus!
- Headphones/Ear Buds – If a Bluetooth speaker doesn’t do it for you, definitely invest in some noise cancelling headphones or some ear buds.
- Small TV – If you think you can handle it, have a little TV near by and catch up on your shows. Don’t let this be a distraction!
- Writing Utensils – These are a necessity, even if you’re going to be spending a lot of time mashing the keyboard.
- Calculator – Plenty of jobs you work at home for are probably dealing with some sort of numbers or even sales. And, you know, calculators are really good with numbers.
- Computer Accessories – Get some padding for your wrists to sit on as you type all day. Get a computer stand so your computer sits up right. Make sure to have a USB flash drive to back up all of your work just in case.
- Fan – Keep a small fan nearby for a gentle breeze or just for some white noise!
- Kleenex – For when those sneezes and sniffles arise.
- Trash Bin – Because where else are you going to throw those used Kleenex and excess worksheets away?
- Printer – If you ever need to make a copy of any important documents for work, you should consider having a printer nearby.
Each of these items will no doubt help you be more productive and/or comfortable in your work from home space. However, there are still additional steps you should take to give your production and comfort an additional boost:
14. Adjust The Room Temp
You wouldn’t want to be shivering or sweating in your seat while you’re trying to work, now would you?
The great advantage about working at home is that you can adjust the room temperature to your preference instead of having to deal with a neutral setting. Toy around with the thermostat, crack open a window, or have that mini fan as mentioned earlier on full blast!
15. Cut Off All Outside Distractions
Working from home is really sweet and all, but it is still you doing your job at the end of the day. Do your best not to let family life intermix with your focus on work by having your door closed, putting up a sign or simply talking your work schedule through with everyone in the house.
Make sure your family knows and respects your work time, but do your part in minimizing your interactions with them when there’s work to do!
16. Take Breaks
Work is your priority, but don’t have your face glued to the screen all day and burn yourself out.
Give yourself some breaks throughout the day. This is the time that you should make to talk to people in the house, walk around, stretch, grab a drink in the kitchen or kick back and watch some TV or scroll through your phone.
17. Have Lunch/Snacks Ready
It’s much easier than ever to eat what you want on your lunch break while you’re working from home, but don’t kill excessive time putting your meals together!
Have some snack food and a drink by your side at all times, and try to have a premade meal for lunch ready to go that you can just heat up or put together in a jiffy. Your lunch break isn’t the time to try and cook up something too crazy!
18. Stay Off Your Phone If You Don’t Need It
Phones can be a great work tool, but an even greater distraction.
One moment you could be making and taking important calls for work, and the next you just might find yourself surfing through social media and scrolling through an online store.
Your phone can go from a useful tool to a complete distraction in the blink of an eye. Maintain your focus!
19. Write Out A Checklist For The Day, Everyday
I’ll say it again: maintain your focus!
Not only does having a visual form of your to-do list for work great for helping you stay on task, it also is a smart idea for staying organized, and all of this will do nothing but improve your productivity in your work from home space.
20. Stick To The Same Work Routine
The hours you have at your regularly located worksite will likely be the hours you continue to institute in your home office, but if your job offers some flexibility, create your own scheduled time to get things done and stick to it.
Staying disciplined and following a consistent work schedule is going to further improve your focus, which will translate to better productivity.
Being at home consists of comfort, and being at work consists of production, so it’s only right that when you’re working from home, you do your best to create an environment that you can be both comfy and hard working at the same time!
