How To Create the Perfect Home Office

The global Covid-19 pandemic of the early 2020s led to many people in the UK working remotely. This change may have been temporary for some, but it has led to a whole new way of working for many. The world realised how effective working from home could be. It meant that new job positions were opening up worldwide without needing to take the employees' location into account apart from the consideration of time zones and language. The new way of working means you can now be based in London but have colleagues worldwide who are part of your team. Some industries had already taken advantage of remote working, with the technology industry regularly employing developers and specialists based in different locations from a company's headquarters or office buildings. Your company may have had other offices across the world that didn't communicate with each other, but now we have realised that there are no barriers to working together that can't be overcome.

When working remotely, you will know how important it is to have a dedicated space within your house to conduct your tasks. Whether this is a corner of your living room or an entire room of its own, having a separate area for working means that you can try to maintain your work/life balance.

While it can be tempting to take your laptop and sit on your favourite armchair, stay in your pyjamas and even have Netflix on in the background, this is not the most productive way to work, and it starts to blur the lines between your work and leisure time meaning you don't make the most out of either. This vital boundary is why you need to create the perfect home office for you.

Creating a home office that makes you feel comfortable and motivated doesn't take long to set up, but the benefits of it are felt every day. There are simple and effective ways to brighten up even the smallest space by introducing easy to manage plants such as succulents and cacti. Make sure you have plenty of cold water available to you throughout the day by placing a carafe on your desk, ideally located near a window. While being located near a window might seem like it could be distracting, you need to be able to look into the distance at regular intervals when working predominantly on a screen to make sure your eyes are adjusting to different lengths. Changing the distance of your viewpoint is a great way to help prevent deterioration of eyesight and reduce headaches from staring at a screen for too long.

Whether your office needs to be high tech or not will depend on your job. If you are setting up at home for the first time and working in a technology-based field, you may need to request specific PC components from the UK to get quick delivery and so you aren't waiting to start any new projects. Ideally, your workplace will know precisely what you need, but if there is anything specific that would be beneficial to you, don't hesitate to raise this with your employer. If you can prove that a particular item will help you do your job better or more efficiently, it is worth investing in. Some workplaces may give you a budget to set up your workspace at home and if so, try to consider all of the essential items you will need apart from the tech. An adjustable chair is a key to comfort and is necessary for your physical health. When we spend so much time in our day sitting down, it is vital to do so in a way that isn't causing any damage to our spine and retains a healthy posture. Adjustable desks can be great if you can work effectively standing up. Working while standing can improve your posture and wrist position and help with your energy levels.

While the space you use is essential, the routine around your working day is equally crucial. If you previously had an office job, you would generally wake up at a specific time and get ready to leave the house, most likely with a set of clothes that you only wore for office hours. It's great to keep this routine when working remotely as it sets you up for the day and keeps the barrier between work and leisure firmly in place. 

However you choose to set up your home office in terms of the aesthetic, you need to make sure it is comfortable but healthy. When selecting your furniture, keep your physical and mental health in mind, being incredibly kind to your back and eyes.

Resources:

• Gaming Graphics Card - ArtStation
• Graphics Card for Gaming - IBM
• Gaming Keyboard - Telegraph
• PC Builder - The University of Texas at Austin