Tech
Making a Home Office That Works
The sharp increase in home working hasn’t slowed down as much as expected as the pandemic begins to pass. Instead, home offices are a source of productivity and freedom that some people will be sticking to their whole life. Establishing a home office set-up isn’t as easy as a tablet in bed, though. It’s still a workspace and deserves to be looked after and thought about in the same way as an office space (albeit with more cups of coffee, half-empty candy packets, and pets involved). Here are the core elements to include in your home office to make it a home office, rather than just a home with a PC in it.
The Desk
The starting point for the entire layout and feel of your office space. Even if all you have is the corner of a living room, you can transform that corner with the right desk. Home office desks need to be compact and full of utility. You don’t want a huge and empty space to fill discordantly with papers and technology. Instead, that space should be utilized for shelves, drawers, and cubby holes. You can add to this sense of organization with things like desk organizers, boosting the simple architecture of the desk to be truly office-like. Everything you need in reach, verticality to keep you engrossed and focused, and clear space behind you to step away when needed.
The PC
Once you have a dedicated worktop, you can add a PC to it. However, just because it’s a home space doesn’t mean you need to add a clunky desktop under the desk and trail cables all through the office. Laptops are at a peak when it comes to competing with desktops, and utilizing that advancement is vital for establishing an accessible home office.
Being at home means you’re more likely to wander and incorporate work into other aspects of your life. Being able to simply pick up your PC off your desk and carry it elsewhere is a huge part of creating more interactivity with your work while at home. As often as possible, you want to prioritize working from the desk space itself, but the option to be flexible is a huge relief to people who work from home permanently.
The ThinkPad L Series is a great example of how far laptop technology has come, and how varied the specifications can be. No matter what you are working on, the series can be tweaked and adjusted to suit it. The screen size suits desk work, the security and port options make the system interact with your phone, tablets, or other devices, and the camera enables videoconferencing. Being able to combine all that with a 6 Core processor, without a hefty desktop taking up space, is a no-brainer for a home office.
The Environment
Once you have your desk and a system to work on, you might be tempted to leave it at that. However, like student accommodation in college, you can add fairy lights. If fairy lights aren’t your thing, that’s fine, but remember that this is your own office space. No one else is going to have to look at it or work from it, so if having a pinboard, strings of lights, motivational posters, or anything else will help you feel comfortable and motivated, do it.
Lighting can have a huge effect on our perception of time and our mood. By lighting your desk well, and in the right color, you can ensure you’re relaxed and productive in your own space.
Kenneth is a proud native of sydney, born and raised there. However, he pursued his education abroad and studied in Australia. Kenneth has worked as a journalist for almost a decade, making valuable contributions to prominent publications such as Yahoo News and The Verge. Currently, he serves as a journalist for The Hear Up, where he focuses on covering climate and science news. You can reach Kenneth at bloggerjohnsmith12@gmail.com.