The coronavirus and Covid-19 pandemic has meant that many of us can no longer work in our usual office spaces or other commercial premises and are beginning to work from home on a remote basis instead. It’s much easier to comply with social distancing rules and regulations from your own four walls, which can significantly help to minimise the spread of the virus. Now, working from home comes with plenty of perks. You don’t have to commute. You can wear more comfortable clothes while you work. You can make nicer lunches in your kitchen. But you are going to have to make a few changes to your home work environment to ensure that you have a productive and effective space to work within. This largely means creating some sort of home office. Working for your bed or sofa isn’t going to produce the best results possible. So, here are a few things you can do to make sure you’re working to the best of your ability, even from your own home.
Invest In A Desk
Working from a desk is the ideal when it comes to working from home. Sure, you can work with your laptop on your lap. But this is unlikely to be ideal for your posture. Where possible, invest in an ergonomically designed desk. These have been specially designed to maximise your posture while you work. You should also have a comfortable chair with a comfortable and adjustable backrest. Most of us will find ourselves sitting at our desk long periods every day – generally eight hours. So, see this as an investment. You can then make sure that your network cabling is carried out in the right space in your home, reaching your desk and ensuring everything can be plugged in in the right place.
Natural Light
Make sure to set your desk up in a space that has plenty of natural light. Various studies have been carried out that have gone to show the positive effects that natural light can have on your productivity. The results of these studies are generally conclusive. Put simply, we need natural light to be healthy, happy and in order to reach our maximum productivity levels. Why? Well, our bodies are regulated by circadian rhythms. These let us know when it’s time to perk up and get to work and when it’s time to wind down and get to sleep. Natural light lets us know that it’s time to perk up and be awake. If you’re working in a dim or dark room, your mind is going to start winding down and you’ll feel sleepy or drowsy instead of alert and productive. So, set up near a big bright window if possible!
Storage
Storage is going to be essential when working from home. Think how many papers, files and other bits and pieces you keep around for your work. Invest in some sort of storage solution like a filing cabinet. Sure, it may not seem homely. But it will make things a lot neater and more organised for you.
Sure, working from home is going to be a big change. But it’s an inevitable one and many businesses are now deciding to cut commercial rent costs and overheads and have their teams work remotely on a permanent basis now. So, make sure to put the time and effort into making your home office comfortable and supportive.