home office

Where do you put your office?

Most often your home office tends to be squeezed into whatever space you have left after your family, your cars, and your LIFE. Sometimes this isn’t the most optimal location or amount of room. Do you have to keep your business inventory close at hand? What about supplies and documents? Are the kids running in and out of your office while you are on important calls? Do clients visit your home office?

            These are just some of the considerations you must take into account when planning your workspace. This is where you may spend at least half of your waking hours. Don’t let your workspace be dictated by what’s left over — PLAN IT!

            With planning and creativity, your home office can be a capable and quiet working environment that will allow you to maintain a professional, low stress, cost effective and efficient business in your home.

The Needs of a Home Office Worker

            Every modern home office today will require all the basics that we don’t even think about: light, electricity, access to the internet, a cool comfortable temperature of around 74 degrees, a sufficient work surface area such as a desk or elevated table, and a comfortable work chair or stool. You must add to this the “nice to haves” of filing and supply space, and some level of sound segregation from the rest of the house for taking calls, not to mention creativity and business concentration. Most unused rooms or areas within the walls of your home can provide all of the basics, but that’s not going to make the most of the space that you have.

            Modern home office workers require a bit more than just the basics. Ann Gildersleeve of AE Interiors, a Southern California Interior Designer specializing in small office interiors, says, “A professional home business environment with complimentary colors and natural lighting; comfortable and professional furnishings; and easy access to reference materials, tools, supplies, and office equipment is essential to personal productivity.”

Go Vertical

            Wherever you put your office to meet your basic needs, making the most out of the space that you have may require some creative thinking. If you’re limited in the horizontal space available, you will have to think vertically. There are many choices today for deep vertical open shelving that can accommodate modern office equipment, such as a printer/fax, shedders, and scanners. Most newer office equipment designs have significantly smaller footprints than their predecessors of just a few years ago. When using vertical shelving of any kind, try to stay with open shelving (no doors), and be especially careful to secure it directly to the wall studs to prevent it form tipping over. Make sure that you place heavier items (including bulk paper supplies) on the lower shelves.

            If your desk is near a wall, you may also have the option to use vertical shelving above or adjacent to your work surface for general supplies or reference materials. Mount a large white board close by for quick notes or short-fuse items, or to sketch out quick ideas or action items.

            Making the most of the vertical space around you will free up the valuable horizontal space that is always at a premium.

Be Space Creative

            The ability to make the most of the available space requires that you think out of the box. Try to select a room (or an area within a larger room) that will allow you to see more than just the wall in front of you. Ann is discriminating about lighting, “Selecting an office space with windows is ideal, but should be supplemented with both ambient and task lighting to avoid eyestrain. The lighting source should come from above or from either side of your computer. Be sure to cover the windows with shutters, decorative blinds, or sheers to provide relief from window glare.”

            Adds Ann, “Since you'll likely be spending a lot of time in your office, it's important that you love your color scheme. Studies have shown bright colors, particularly warm hues, seem conducive to activity and mental alertness. Keep in mind, however, that large amounts of bright color in a small room make the room feel smaller. It may be better to add punches of color if room size is particularly tight.”

            We all understand the difficulty of separating work from family; however, it’s vital to build a home office design supportive of your personal productivity by designating a separate room with a door or closed space in the house for your business. If clients will be visiting, a location near the entry is ideal to avoid disruption to other family members and protect privacy.

            Noise in your office environment can have a greater impact on productivity than you may think. “I take the necessary steps to pinpoint office noises for my clients,” says Ann. “I create a space plan that locates noisy office equipment away from the walls, and I add carpeting, office dividers, or curtains to reduce noise, often adding real plants for fresh oxygen and noise control.”

            “Often, I’m asked by clients if the décor within the office should match the rest of the home. I advise that it may actually benefit you to create a specific office environment. The design should be extremely comfortable and have personality to spark creativity and prevent you from feeling isolated,” says Ann. You can accomplish this by adding color to the room, soft fabrics, and personal touches such as family photos. Draperies and wall-to-wall carpeting will provide warmth and control noise.

Leverage Technology

            Some months ago, I wrote about leveraging some of the newer technologies at very cost effective prices today such as Bluetooth™ and WiFi. I use a WiFi-enabled laptop so I’m not chained to my desk. I can remove the laptop from my docking station and spread out plans and documents for hard core brainstorming, while still engaged in an online meeting. This is often accomplished in a collaborative conference call with either a Bluetooth™ enabled ear-bud for my business cell phone or my wall mounted speakerphone. This frees me to roam about, refer to books or plans, or jot notes on my whiteboard while taking my calls.

            Most printers and other standard office accessories today can be specified with both WiFi or Bluetooth™ connectivity which will greatly reduce the amount of cables and wiring you have to manage. These technologies are very mature and reliable and will provide you with additional options in locating and managing this equipment.

Be Neat – And Gain Space!

            Handle each piece of paper you have only once. I’m not a neat freak, but I do know that it’s easy to shuffle paper over and over again — I was the king of this skill. Now I try to handle each document only once, and then I either scan it, shred it, or throw it away. That’s not always possible, but it sure helps to keep my desk clean.

            The less clutter you have, the more useable space you have!  HBM

Gregory Grabowski, a registered Professional Engineer and reserve Naval Officer, focuses his Project Management talents to design and build facilities for corporate and government clients worldwide. His professional experiences have taken him to six of the seven continents. He resides in Southern California and enjoys adventure sailing.