The pandemic forced many of us to start working from home. Many businesses have since continued to allow their employees to work remotely. Meanwhile, more entrepreneurs are launching and running businesses from home, realizing that they don’t need to acquire office space to run a successful business.
Working from home has many benefits such as eliminating commuting time/costs, reducing business running costs and improving work/life balance. However, there are drawbacks to working from home such as home distractions and difficulty separating work/leisure. To make sure that you are productive when working from home, it’s important that you find the right space in your home to work from.
So just what is the best place in your home to work from? Below are just a few of the different places you can work and the pros and cons that come with each place.
Should you work in your bedroom?
If you live in a small property or share with lots of other people, the bedroom may well be the only place where you can find the space and peace to work. It’s also convenient being able to roll out of bed, open up your laptop and start the working day.
However, a bedroom isn’t the ideal work environment for everyone. Being confined to one room day and night could start to make some people feel imprisoned. Some people may even find it difficult to get to sleep at night because they’re still in work mode.
The key to keeping this space productive is to never work from your bed. Set up a desk in the corner (ideally by a window) and use this desk only for work so that you have a separate work zone and separate personal zone.
Should you work in the living room?
Sitting on a sofa with a laptop on your knee can be a cozy way to work. In a small apartment, living rooms are often better suited than a bedroom for working in – it encourages you to get out of bed and work.
At the same time, if you live with other people, they may want to use the living room for watching TV and relaxing. This could be very distracting. It’s best to only work from the living room when no-one else is there. You should also leave the TV off, or leave it on a music/radio channel for background noise.
Should you work in the dining room?
If you have a dining room, the dining room table could operate much like a desk. Dining rooms are also much less likely to be used by people than a living room and tend to not have the distraction of a TV. All in all, they can be very productive spaces to work from if you haven’t otherwise got a spare room to work from.
You will need to be prepared to clear away all your stuff before lunch or dinner if you usually eat here – unfortunately, you can’t treat it as a permanent desk. A dining room may also not be ideal if you have an open plan layout as you’ll still be distracted by people using the living room or kitchen.
Should you work in the kitchen?
A kitchen with a dining table or breakfast bar could be another great place to work from. It could serve as an office while still allowing people to use the living room and also getting you out of your bedroom. You also have immediate access to coffee, drinks and snacks.
Like a dining room, a kitchen isn’t ideal to work from in an open-plan home shared with lots of people. Other people may also distract you while making meals (if you all make meals together, this shouldn’t be too much of an issue, but if people make meals at different times, you could find that you’re constantly being interrupted).
Can you convert an unused room?
The ideal option is to convert an unused room into a home office. This could be a spare bedroom, a garage, a loft, a basement or a dining room you never use. You can take everything out and put in your own office furniture and equipment, turning it into a permanent work space.
Having a dedicated office space means no distractions from other people – no-one else will have a reason to use it while you’re working. You can also more easily separate your work life and personal life, getting into work mode whenever you enter your office and returning to leisure mode whenever you exit.
Just make sure to consider exactly how much work is needed to convert the space. For instance, if your garage or loft is currently full of clutter, you’ll need to be prepared to spend time decluttering it. Such spaces may also not have lighting, sockets, insulation or even adequate flooring – consider whether you need to spend money and time installing all of this.
You may not want to fully convert some rooms into an office in case you occasionally need to use them for another purpose. For example, it could be useful to have a spare bedroom that you can still use to accommodate guests, in which case you may not want to remove the bed.
Can you work outdoors/in your yard?
Some people may have the option to work in a yard or on a balcony. There are benefits to working outdoors such as fresh air and sun exposure, but you may also have to contend with the risk of a sudden shower, wind blowing away documents of sun glare preventing you from using your laptop.
The ultimate home office solution is to build a home office building in your yard. This could be a converted shed or a dry box turned into an office building. It will give you the feeling of leaving your home and going to a separate work place and no-one will be able to distract you here. You may even be able to invite clients over for meetings without having to invite them into your home.
Of course, such an office could be expensive to build and you may need to get planning permission if you’re building a new structure. If you’ve only got a small yard, it may also not be viable.
Finding the best space
The best option is likely to depend on the size of your home and who you share it with. You are likely to have more options if you live alone or if you have a big home with lots of rooms and ample yard space. If you live in a small home or live with family/friends, you may realistically only have the option of the bedroom or the living room. Try out different spaces to find out what works best for you.
