How to Create an Effective Home Office Environment
Photo taken by author
Research has consistently demonstrated that certain characteristics of the office environment can have a significant effect on the behavior, perceptions, and productivity of workers. In the throes of quarantine, we need to take advantage of as many of these tips as possible and translate them to the home environment. When we’re lucky to find something that drives us, something that forces us to get out of bed in the morning, whether it’s knitting, painting, starting a website, or writing a hundred words a day, the next step is to build a space that encourages us to keep at our new hobbies. A space and an environment where, as soon as we sit down, our brain switches gears: it knows it’s time to focus. How do we go about creating a space that works as our own personal cheerleader?
Get dressed in the morning
Don’t do work in your bed or in your pjs!! Please!! The Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard asserts that keeping work materials and electronics out of relaxation spaces “will strengthen the mental association between your bedroom and sleep.” Harvard Business Review’s Guide to Being More Productive also stresses the importance of drawing boundaries between work life and relaxation, warning “Unless you are careful to maintain boundaries, you may start to feel like you’re always at work and losing a place to come home to.” Getting dressed can start your day off productively, distinguish each day from the blur, and help ground you in reality.
Incorporate natural light
Introducing natural light provides vitamin D (integral to bone and heart health), wards off seasonal depression, improves sleep, and reduces the amount of times under fluorescent bulbs (which can cause elevated stress levels). Additionally, a study performed by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology found that employees working with natural light as opposed to under fluorescent bulbs recorded higher levels of energy and productivity.
Follow ergonomic rules
Ergonomics ensure that your joints stay comfortable while you work and minimizes stiffness. Your screen should be about an arm’s length away from your face with the text at eye-height. Your wrists should stay straight and at elbow level when typing. Find a comfortable chair that supports your spinal curves and adjust it so that your feet can plant firmly on the floor while your knees stay in line with your hips.
Opt for muted tones & comfortable furniture
A traffic cone orange wall behind your desk might look great in a photo for a pop of color but ultimately is detrimental to your focus. Make your office space a place you want to be with muted colors and a chair that you could sit in forever. Maybe even light a candle or play music with elements of nature as Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have recently discovered that this type of music is likely to boost your mood and concentration.
Sufficiently light your space
This one seems obvious, but is so often neglected and is vital to the quality of work you produce. When it gets dark, resist the urge to simply turn up the brightness of your screen as this can damage your eyes. Instead, turn on a lamp or surrounding light. Wearing your glasses or contacts to help ease the strain the screen puts on your eyes.
Add plants!
Adding plants to a workspace has been proven to decrease stress levels as it decreases blood pressure and reminds workers of natural scenes. They are also a great way to decorate and enhance a space without incorporating distracting elements.
Think about where you work best
Do you thrive working in a place with no noise? A little chatter? One that’s very busy? Determining this could help you determine where to set up your office: in the kitchen, a table in the living room, or in your bedroom.
Make it personal
Add pictures of your family, a collection of colorful gel pens, craft a to-do list, have your water bottle or hand lotion on standby. Make your office your space with everything you might need or want throughout the day.
Now, go and change out of your pajama bottoms and start the day.
References:
Altman, I., & Lett, E. E. (1969). The ecology of interpersonal relationships: A classification system and conceptual model. In J. E. McGrathe (Ed.), Social and psychological factors in stress. New York: Holt Rinehart.
N. Kamarulzaman, A. A. Saleh, S. Z. Hashim, H. Hashim, A. A. Abdul-Ghani (2011). An Overview of the Influence of Physical Office Environments towards Employees. Perak: Elsevier Ltd.
https://buffer.com/resources/work-bed/
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/why-you-should-get-dressed-up-when-working-from-home
