5 Ideas For Designing A Home Office To Be Productive

Working from home is an appealing concept, but the thought process behind designing a home office can be intimidating. As a business owner with the liberty to work from home, your main concern is how you can continue to be productive while out of a generic office environment. Minus the coworkers and public surveillance, motivation to complete tasks may be lacking. To spur some inspiration and confidence, these are the top ideas for designing a home office to be productive.

Invest In Sufficient Lighting

Sufficient lighting is a component when designing a home office that you cannot afford to overlook. Office lighting can make or break your productivity. Eye strain can lead to headaches and further discomfort, both of which can tank productivity. Natural light is your friend, as sunlight increases mood and energy. For paperwork, invest in a desk lamp to illuminate what you need to focus on. To work comfortably and consistently, windows, desk lamps, and non-fluorescent lights are all lighting supplements to consider when designing a home office.

Organize Your Office

If your home office is lacking in organization, it can seriously impede your productivity. It is just as crucial to success as personal planners are to keeping track of meetings and due dates. Thankfully, a home office is far more flexible than any cubicle or on-location office. Know yourself, and implement organization systems that not only suit your needs, but are easy to use. Make it easy on yourself every time you need to pull a file or find a pencil and pad. If you plan to organize your home office to be productive, then that is as good as a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Color Psychology

Workplace efficiency and productivity can be directly tied to your work environment, which is why choosing the right color is paramount when designing a home office. Believe it or not, color psychology is a powerful tool. Certain colors elicit emotional and physical responses from individuals. As a general rule of thumb, neutral tones mixed with a more grabbing accent invites comfort, relaxation, and energy. Green, white, gray, and tan are neutral tones that do not overwhelm the senses. As an accent, red, yellow, and purple have shown to stimulate energy, excitement, optimism, and the imagination. Do yourself a favor and color your home office accordingly, taking into account your own preferences.

Decorate to Motivate

When designing a home office, a barebones design can leave you feeling empty and alone. We recommend you take a different approach, and decorate to motivate. A home office adds the benefit of expanded design options compared to a shared workspace. Add photographs of family or beloved pets, and inspirational quotes and goals. To inject some life into your work space, place some vibrant plants or your favorite knick-knacks onto your desk. Designing a home office to be stimulating and motivating is essential for productivity, so do not hold back on filling it with what you love.

Remove Distractions

Keeping your home office design motivating and interesting is important, but you do not want to incorporate anything that will cause distractions. Consider what sorts of things distract you from your work, and space them or your workspace far away from them. For instance, most business owners avoid purchasing TVs because of how distracting they are. Many also invest in noise cancellation devices to eliminate distractions from outside. If you are the type to get lost gazing out a window, face the opposite direction, or hang a curtain that you can draw. Ultimately, be honest with yourself and take responsibility to know what distractions you need to remove when designing a home office.

Designing a home office to be productive is a manageable goal. Ensuring your work space is lighted adequately will keep your eyes rested and focused. Keep your things organized to keep yourself moving. Use color to exist in an environment that promotes peaceful calm and positive energy. Similarly, surround yourself with decorations that move to inspire you. As a final safeguard, remove distractions from your work space to keep it just that: a work space. By adhering to the fundamentals behind a modern office workplace with a splash of personal touch, you can design a home office to be comfortable, yet productive.