Guest Blogger: Jasmine Smith
Making the most out of your home office space is vital, especially when it boils down to productivity. Having a simplistic and practical home office space will always ensure that you can knuckle down and get your concentration cap on. There’s always room for a bit of fun, but the main key is to design a place where you can concentrate and work in peace.
Color
Choosing the color of your office is actually more important than people would think. Each color has an actual psychological effect which most people don’t realize. For example, you have blue, supposedly one of the most productive colors, as well as, making you feel calm and stable. green is the color for bolder thinking and creative thoughts whereas, red is known to be emotionally intense and reduces analytic thinking. You’re also best to avoid brown, as this stimulates laziness which you don’t particularly want when you’re trying to be productive and work. Pink has a calming effect and then you have white. White is actually the most common, the reason being that it has a clean, sleek look adding a modern touch and it opens you up to more choice when deciding on furniture and detailing.
Lighting
Lighting is the next element to consider. There are hundreds of studies showing that having a source of natural lighting in your work area can help increase productivity and alertness. If you are using artificial lighting then try and aim to have soft lighting, you don’t want anything to bright or with a bright white effect because this can cause your eyes to strain and increase the chance of headaches.
Furniture
With furniture, you’re best staying simple. You don’t want to overcrowd your space. Having a decent sized desk gives you plenty of room to get on with your work. Rumor has it that having your computer screen raised on a stand is also a better option, as the screen is parallel to your line of vision and you’re not having to bend your neck or scrunch over to view the screen. Make sure you have some drawers, and maybe a nice bookcase. The drawers will come in very handy when you want to put things away neatly and not have them taking up loads of space on your desk.
The bookcase is a great feature as you can use it for relevant books or folders that you need nearby, you can also use it to add a personal touch to your office by placing nice photographs or memorable items like certificates or maybe even trophies. Now you need to think about the most important feature of your office, your chair. When you’re sitting at your desk for potentially hours on end, the last thing you want is a sore back. It’s vital you find yourself a comfortable and supportive seat.
Office Accessories
Now that you’ve decided on furniture, you can decide what kind of accessories you want. Think about what items will really help you when it comes to productivity and motivation. For example, you can install a whiteboard, this being a useful resource to have in the office as you can brainstorm, make notes and it can all be erased once no longer needed. Pinboards or notice board can be another useful item, again being able to keep notes or important papers in one place, even reminders or invitations. Something that people often take for granted is a calendar, it’s so easy to forget important dates and as much as we say we’ll remember, we never do. Adding simple items such as a nice colorful painting or imagery to one of your walls will help give the office some life and character, brightening it up without making it feel too crowded.
Having the right balance or personality and simplicity is the main key in ensuring you get the most from your office space. Just remember to not overdo it with items that will make you feel cramped or crowded, stick with a minimalist style and you’ll find it the perfect space to work.
