How to Design a Home Office Space

Recently, I made major changes to my home office.

It included designating a space for work at home (Yup! all this time my “office” was laptop on my kitchen table) and also gathering essential furniture to keep zillions of papers I deal with and other knick knacks at one place.

How to Design a Home Office Space to Increase your Productivity

I can’t believe I got away without creating a home office space for 3 years! Okay, that’s a bit dramatic. In all fairness, there are reasons why I didn’t have an official space for work at home.

One, I have been running this blog for about 3 years now. I did not deal with too many papers until recently. Yes I get them occasionally but often times, its all online. So, really no need for a filing cabinet.

Two, the sole piece of office equipment which is my laptop is pretty mobile and it goes with me everywhere.  Most of my creativity flows while I am in kitchen (no brainer there) so my laptop stayed there too. Kitchen table is quite wide, there is room for everyone you see? 😉  So no need for an official work desk as well. 

Third and most important, I had a full time job and worked outside home. Who cares about having a home office,right? 

Anyway, things changed when I started working as a self employed Insurance Broker as of last year. Let’s just say, my career took a complete 180, in terms of schedule and environment. Being  the owner of my business, I am ultimately responsible for its success -be it bringing in more clients or being effective in book keeping and other administrative tasks. Mind you, you are a one man operation. There is no Assistant to help you out or a Boss to deal with. If you do not perform well, no one is going to breathe hard on your neck, one of the joys of self employment.

My work desk this afternoon..a bit of planning, a lot of dreaming ❤ #erincondrenlifeplanner #writerslife

A photo posted by Vinma Joseph (@amomlessmom) on May 30, 2016 at 1:53pm PDT

But it is also a drawback.

How you ask? You would’t know if you go off track. Your performance might be lacking and you will have no idea until shit hit the fan. You can’t be bothered with too much paper work because hey, you are busy being on the road and dealing with your customers. Plus you keep misplacing important papers as you do not have a work desk with proper drawers. I know this is such a trivial detail but take it from me, having a proper desk and a filing cabinet is SO important. I have been in both situations and my work life before a “proper home office” is not pretty. It was hard to stay afloat in the mayhem of  work life balance and I realized the hard way what could be the reason. I do not have a damn office space to call my own at home!

I have been employed full time for the past 8 years and worked outside the home. I was spoon fed too much. I had a desk at work and drawers with keys. At the end of the day, I safely tucked away all my documents in them, locked it up and went home. Next day, I sweep in again to live another day at work. Rinse and repeat. There was order because the Company took care of every aspect of my work life. Starting from training and vacation scheduling to providing office space and  stationary to its employees.

As a self employed person things are different.  YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE ALL THE WAY. And it starts from creating a proper office space. And remember, no one else will create it for you, but yourself.

My home office is still a work in progress, but I like it already!

[bctt tweet=”These #tips on how to design a home office space will make you want to dive in and get to work! #workingfromhome “]

Following are few tips on how to design a home office space.These are some basic suggestions if you are self employed like myself and is pondering to bring order to your home working environment. Hopefully, this will make you want to dive in and get to work!

1. To maximize efficiency, the desk must be tidy and well organized. Have a pen/pencil holder on hand to corral writing utensils as well as small containers for erasers,staples and paper clips. Everything you need should be  within easy reach so that you don’t have to get up each time you need something.
2. Arrange storage space nearby for papers and books such as an armoire, shelf or a filing cabinet. Be sure to start by evaluating your needs and available space. 
3. Avoid hanging too many pictures or pieces of art that could catch your eye and distract you. On the other hand, a bulletin board placed at eye level is a great place to stick important notes to remember, a calendar or reference material. 
4. Choose a comfortable chair so that you don’t develop back or shoulder pain when working long hours. Consider an ergonomic chair whose seat and back swivel are adjustable.
5. If you can, place the desk as close to the window as possible. That is where my desk is and I love the natural light that helps me concentrate on my work. Also, install a lamp with an adjustable head so that you can orient it as you would like.  

Creating a space that you enjoy and that is comfortable will significantly increase your productivity and concentration- key requirements to be successful in what you do!

Hopefully, going forward I will see better results both in my blogging and insurance business working from a properly designed “home office’.