How to Organize a Workplace at Home

In this guest post, Kathrin Garner describes how to set a comfortable office space at home.

Working now transcends the four walls of an office environment. Several times there has been a need to work from home. According to experts, an effective workplace organization is an essential factor in working from home. It can be distracting and stressful at times and requires extra organization and discipline. However, it does not mean that it won’t be a productive or professional environment. Though it may also seem like setting up a workplace at home is challenging, but all you need is creativity, time and a lot of effort put into it.

A perfect and organized workplace has enormous benefits. It makes us focused, and we tend to feel in control of everything that needs our attention. We can eliminate all forms of distraction, save time and still stay super productive. The following are easy steps we can use to transform our home into an organized, effective, neat, efficient and pleasant workspace.

1. Find a Perfect Workspace Spot

Organizing a workplace is easier by dedicating a specific room for it. While creating our workspace, we have to consider which kind of environment suits us best. We should ask ourselves questions like: where can I perform well and get optimum result, do I need total privacy, do I need a little bit of background music or easy access to the restroom? After answering these questions, we should also consider eliminating different forms of distraction.

Understanding what makes our work easier and what distracts us will help in finding a perfect workspace spot. Above all, what matters most is settling in a place we enjoy spending our time. When it is comfortable and pleasant to us, we will want to sit and work in that location. For me, having a place like a specific table or a particular room, where I can go to work helps me to get into the right frame of mind.

2. Get Comfortable

To work comfortably for long hours, I once invested in footrest and a good chair. It is very easy to have a messy workplace when the arrangement feels uncomfortable. A chair that makes our back to ache or a table that does not have enough space will reduce our comfort level.

I always want my workspace to be somewhere I love. I’ll be comfortable by simply painting the room in my favorite color, investing in an ergonomically supportive chair, hanging my favorite art collection on the wall and even beautifying the room with plants. To do this, we should have the workplace assessed for ergonomics by a professional. Effective workplace ergonomics helps to protect our health and increases productivity level by saving us from stress, cramped fingers, headache, swollen feet and back pain.

For example, someone who sells items from home has enough space for storing goods, sorting, and packaging. A table at standing height is handy for sorting, packaging and wrapping.

We should not underestimate the power of comfort concerning productivity. By doing this, it helps us to set up our workplace as a comfortable and also an inspiring place to work. We can stay concentrated without interruption for a long time.

3. Remove All Clutters

A tidy office equates a tidy mind. Having clutters all around will make it difficult for us to have an organized workplace. While working from home, there is a great chance of having irrelevancies migrating into the workspace such as books unrelated to work, clothes, toys, thc detox kit and other things that are likely to be tossed into our workspace study table. As we set out to work on projects, deadlines and different items on our to-do list, a well-polished workspace enhances productivity.

We must deal with this by getting rid of every object that is not necessary for our work. We can look closely.  Do we need those pens that have stopped working? Those empty snack containers. What about those old magazines? The answer is no. So, get rid of them.  If there are more obvious things that need to be trashed, they should be. For me, I do this by taking a close look at what I am dealing with and checking out the things I need and the ones I don’t need.

After this de-clutter, there will be tons of free space. Well, after removing the unnecessary things, we need to permit ourselves to add at least three beautiful objects to inspire us while we work. We can keep it at three or even less.

4. Good Lighting

Every office space needs good lighting to help us see clearly at all hours of the day. Even though the desk and the chair are essential, taking good care of our eyes is important too. Harsh fluorescent lighting for a long period can trigger a migraine. Dim lighting can also trigger headache and eye strains. The goal is to have a workplace where the entire space is well-illuminated without contrast.  Asides natural lighting, we can also invest in sufficient lampshades to ensure that the workspace is well-lit for any activity, whether it is reading, sewing, arranging, sorting or typing.

5. Invest in Storage Boxes and Containers for Filing

You should have storage space for documents, files, work equipment that inevitably pile up and crowd your workspace. Storage boxes are a lifesaver. We can store different things in containers to help us stay organized. Examples of perfect containers for storage are cardboard boxes and plastic containers. In time past, I have bought durable boxes for storing my books, and they have proved to be very effective.

6. Label All Boxes

After arranging our files and all materials in boxes, we must label them for easy identification. We can do this by labeling them alphabetically, numerically or by using the color system. Color has always been very useful for me. I use green boxes to store my finance books, yellow boxes for all important documents, and blue boxes for all my envelopes and stamps.  Labeling helps us to put all items in the right places, enables easy identification, and it also reduces the risk of losing our important documents.

7. Categorize

We can categorize our office by placing similar items together. Our office becomes more functional in this way. Examples of common categories that I use are:

• Writing tools (markers, pens, pencils)
• Work tools (staples, staple remover, hole puncher, straight cutter)
• Mail (stamps and Envelopes)
• Budget (bill calendar, chequebook, and calculator)
• Pasties (sticky notes, stickers, and tabs)
• Accessories (cup for pens and a charging station)

8. Organize According to Use

Because I always switch tasks between typing and jotting in my notes, I want a nice way to organize my stuff. I want my most used items to always be within arm’s length. So, I arrange everything based on that. For the things I rarely use, they are tucked away neatly on shelves, and the ones I use frequently are nearby.  Everything becomes easily accessible when it is organized according to use. It speeds up the entire working process because we won’t have to waste time looking for stuff.

9. Tidy Up Everyday

At the end of each day, we should always take a few minutes to put everything back in order. One of the most effective ways to keep our workplace organized, neat and pleasant is by tidying up at the end of work. We can start by arranging all books back into their shelves and boxes, put all writing materials back into their proper place and all work equipment in their respective position. By doing this, we are ensuring that our workspace will be a neat and pleasant place to return to by the next day.

10. Inspiration

We can always design our workplace anyhow we want. This is one of the advantages we have by working from home. We have to be creative enough to make our workplace comfy, productive and super inspiring.  To stay energized and motivated to work, we need to set up some sweet and inspiring reminders around our workplace.  When working for long hours, it is very easy to lose motivation and get weak by the tons of work piled up on our table. Those inspirational messages are things that can remind us of our ultimate goals.

Can you remember that quote from your favorite author, that cute note you got from your sweetheart that motivates and revives your spirit or even a picture of your favorite person? All these are inspiring things we can put in our workplace.

Some examples of my favorite sources of inspiration that I use in my workspace are:

• Words of affirmation
• Beautiful and fresh flowers
• Quotes from writers that inspire me
• Favorite artworks
• Favorite books and magazines
• Pictures of my loved ones on my computer

Conclusion

Our working environment should be structured carefully to influence our desire to work, mood, effectiveness, and productivity.  Paying close attention to our home workspace organization is important if we want to give the best to our jobs. If you apply the tips above for organizing your workplace, you’ll get the best results soon enough.

Bio

Kathrin Garner is an enthusiastic journalist and writes articles on social issues. As an activist, she takes part in FV KASA program, which is a discussion platform on the relevant cannabis topics. So, if you want to know the best how to detox your body and hair follicle detox in a short time, feel free to contact her. Also, she is a volunteer at Marijuana Detox. She searches for current issues, and write about it to a wide range of readers.