Freelancing has long become a full-fledged format for organising life. And the number of specialists working remotely is constantly growing. Yes, while in 2019 only 12% of Britons worked from home, in 2022 this figure has risen to 30% on average, meaning a comfortable home office is a must. At the same time, every fourth employee has a hybrid work week, combining office tasks and homework.
Some people sincerely envy freelancers, while others understand that working at home is not so easy. One of the main challenges is maintaining a balance between office tasks and personal life. After all, to ensure proper rest and start enjoying work, you need to properly plan your home office. Let’s see how to arrange your workspace to achieve great productivity at home.
Zone the space wisely
You can perform work projects in bed, on a soft sofa, or at the dining table. But being in such settings distracts from work and reduces productivity. The main thing in working from home is to clearly delineate the office and recreation areas.
Freelancers often talk about how they work almost around the clock and never get enough rest. Most often this happens due to improper organisation of the apartment space. The most important task for remote employees is to learn to separate work from personal life. Someone solves it by going to a cafe or coworking space. This is a good alternative, but there are not always such establishments nearby. Much better is to set up a comfortable workspace at home – it will inspire you to be productive.
Therefore, set aside a place dedicated only to performing tasks. This is necessary to maintain balance between different areas of life. In addition, your work-related materials will never get lost or mixed with children’s toys and personal belongings thanks to this approach.
For example, if you want to take a break and watch a movie, leave your desk and go to the relaxation area first. You need to estimate in advance how much space you will need and what will be included in the office area. If you only need a laptop for work, a small folding tabletop or pull-out table will be enough. Choose comfortable and healthy furniture, preferably made from natural materials.
Think over home office design
Deciding on workspace design is as important as, for example, searching for Dublin Airport car hire options – you need to find a perfect solution in both cases. Indeed, if you are going on a road trip, prefer Enterprise car rental, the industry leader. Enterprise at Dublin Airport offers a large selection of high-quality deals at reasonable prices resulting in an enjoyable travel experience. The same strategy works with home office arranging, where proper design is a priority.
The big advantage of a domestic office is that it can look like anything you want. Work will become more productive if you feel comfortable – it’s all just about your imagination and taste preferences.
For example, paint the wall near your desk an unexpected colour, decorate it with motivational pictures, hang a chalkboard there to write down important ideas, or buy an aquarium with fish. Fresh flowers help to refresh the work area as well. At the same time, don’t overdo it with decorations, as a large number of decorative elements will distract from the work.
In addition, the design of a home office shouldn’t conflict with the overall interior of the room. If you conduct video broadcasts and online meetings while working, think about the background. It can become part of your corporate identity. Let it be a plain wall of a neutral colour: such a background won’t distract the audience’s attention from the speaker and the information shared. If the view behind you is not the best, buy a collapsible background or decorate the wall with beautiful posters.
Experts also recommend paying attention to the psychology of colour in the interior. Different shades can have different effects on our performance, mood, and well-being. For example, white tones and activates the visual organs, while blue encourages out-of-the-box thinking and stimulates the creative process.
Use niches and window sills
If you don’t want to sacrifice a separate room, look for an alternative workspace location. For example, only 45 centimetres of window sill width is enough to create a full-fledged home office. Better is to choose a room with a large window. If there’s not enough light, use LED lamps – their light is more comfortable for the eyes.
Owners of cramped apartments, where every square metre counts, should pay attention to storage rooms and wall niches that can be turned into excellent workspaces. The main thing is to use light colours in their decoration. One more interesting solution for placing an ergonomic home office is the closet system. This way you will save space and can hide your work area behind sliding doors at any time.
Organisers, folders and boxes for work materials can also be compactly built into the closet system. Alternatively, you can try placing your office on a windowsill. For this, expand it to the size of the tabletop. If you take a creative approach to remodelling the window sill, you will get that very missing space.
Someone instals a desktop on a balcony or loggia as well. There is a lot of natural light and fresh air, so it’s especially pleasant to work in such an environment. However, additional investments may be required, for example, for insulation and glazing of the balcony. If you want to avoid expenses, you can fence off part of the room with a screen, a special partition, or a small shelving unit.
Move all your things to one place
A focused and thoughtful work process requires free access to all necessary items, chargers, and equipment. Put them in one place so you don’t get distracted again and again. At the same time, the most necessary things for work should be located as close as possible to the centre of the work area.
If you frequently print documents, place the printer next to your desk rather than in the next room. Give preference to multifunctional equipment. This way you will free up useful space in the room and save your time. Organisers and small shelves also help to unload the work surface. Hang them on the wall and place a few containers for office supplies in your desk drawers.
Disguise wires and cables
Tangled wires spoil the appearance of the room, clutter up the space, and also waste your time. For example, it will be difficult for you to find the location of damage if one of the cables stops working. In addition, they pose a potential danger.
Today, you can find many devices on sale that help disguise cables. Velcro fasteners easily collect them into compact bundles while special clamps allow you to secure them in any convenient place. In addition, many desktops have special built-in holes for wires. If you don’t have them, you can buy a stylish cable box.
Summing it up, creating a comfortable home office comfort is as easy as finding convenient transportation in Ireland. You just need to follow all the guidelines to achieve the desired result. So, follow our tips and enjoy the perfect work-life balance!