The very idea of working from home tends to come with all sorts of positive and upbeat connotations of breaking free from the rat race, being a successful entrepreneur, being the master of your own time, and more.
Working from home certainly can mean all these things – but these kinds of benefits inevitably come with their fair share of trials, tribulations, and setbacks as well.
And – the first hurdle that you’re likely to experience when you first are working from home has to do with the very layout of your home itself. Specifically, whether it’s the right environment for the home office of your dreams.
Here are a few tips for creating the perfect work-from-home environment.
Buy the right furniture and equipment to keep you comfortable and energized at work
If you’re going to be in your home for the majority of your waking hours, while simultaneously trying to be productive, you need to have the right furniture and equipment in place to keep you simultaneously comfortable and energized.
If the chair that you plan on sitting in for hours and hours every day feels something like a medieval torture device, it goes without saying that you will not be able to concentrate and produce your best work. You’ll also inevitably feel pretty disheartened at the same time.
On the other hand, if you try to work from bed, don’t be surprised if you find yourself lacking all energy, and drifting off to sleep periodically.
Before you start working from home in earnest, take a look at an authentic Eames marketplace, and other retailers that provide high-quality furniture. Then, stock up on things like practical desks, standing desks, and plush office chairs.
Audit your home environment ruthlessly, and massively cut back on potential sources of distraction
One of the biggest issues with working from home is that distraction abounds absolutely, and there simply are not the same kinds of accountability mechanisms in place to keep you focused on the task at hand.
Keeping this in mind, it’s all too easy to find yourself absent-mindedly wandering off to do some chores, playing video games, or idly surfing the web, for hours at a stretch.
To make your home into the kind of environment where you can actually be productive, audit the place ruthlessly for any potential sources of distraction, and cut back on them as and when you can.
That might mean, for example, unplugging and hiding away your games consoles during the day, installing a web blocker on your computer, and so on.
Create a daily schedule to work according to, and use props and other design features to help that along
As mentioned above, it’s not easy to stay productive and focused when you are working from home, without external supervision.
For that reason, it’s more important than ever for you to get accustomed to creating and working with a daily schedule if you haven’t yet picked up that habit.
Every night before settling down to bed, plan out your next day in a daily calendar format, assigning different tasks to different hours of the day.
Then, when you’ve got your plan laid out, use props and other design features in your home to help you stay consistent. Inspirational posters, for example, may be useful.
