Image via workingnaked.com
Whether you’re shoved into the only free corner you can find or you have an entire room to yourself, take the time to look at your workstation and integrate some calming elements to boost productivity and your overall work happiness level.
Look Into Light
The lighting of your home office is an important element in managing your productivity and comfort level. If you have an office with southern facing windows, you have access to a good deal of natural light. However, if you feel that there’s too much light filtering in and causing glare on your monitor and mobile devices, use sheer window treatments to filter out some of the light to a more manageable level. Informed Design suggests that using a focal point with your lighting can help focus your attention.
For example, if your lighting is centered primarily on your workspace, you are going to be more focused on that than the comfortable looking chair in the corner of your office.
Declutter
You are going to have a hard time finding a zen place in your mind if you have toys, mail, home decor, and everything else scattered over the surfaces of your home office. Take out everything that isn’t directly related to your business, and minimize the amount of business related equipment you do want in your office.
Consider Feng Shui
Feng Shui is a Chinese practice that focuses on promoting good energy within the home by adding specific elements in certain configurations around each room. Whether or not you believe in the art, Feng Shui does have a few solid principles for creating a calming workplace. Inc.com reports that adding plants to your workplace is one calming element that works in nearly any home office without taking up a lot of room.
Inc. also recommends placing your desk in such a way that you can see who is entering and leaving the home office. Even if you don’t bring clients into your home, it’s useful to have a heads up before your partner or children come barreling in the room, disrupting your work flow.
Go for Broke with Your Chair
For many home businesses, the majority of your work is done in front of the computer. Instead of grabbing the chair that came with your desk, or the cheapest special you could find, look into higher end chairs. While the upfront cost may seem steep, the fact that you’re going to be sitting in the chair for eight hours or more per work day means that a third of your day is spent in the chair. If you’re not going to skimp on the bed that you sleep in, you shouldn’t skimp on the chair that you’re sitting in.
