Setting Up Your Home Office
I get asked a lot how do I have my home office set up. There are several tips that come to mind that I have learned over the years that increase productivity. Here are a few:
- Natural Lighting or Well-Placed Work Lights
· Your Home Office should have a Window and Orientate Yourself to be able to see Blue Skies
· Use Lamps and Work Lights that don’t cause Glare on Your Screen
· Set up your Desk/Work Station to Optimize Lighting if You Will be Using Video
2. Mitigate Background Noise, Amplify Sound
· If Possible, Work in a Quiet Room with a Closed Door
· Set Clear Guidelines with Family/Roommates on Noise
· Keep a Set Schedule around when You have the Most Quiet/Privacy (note when garbage trucks, landscapers, trains etc. make regular noise)
3. Aesthetics Keep You both Focused and Relaxed
· Inspirational Quotes/Posters/Images to rest your eyes on when on break
· Having a Plant can Increase Your Productivity by 20%
· Have a Vision Board to Remind You of Goals
4. Stay Organized, Reduce Clutter
· Have a White Board/Dry Erase Board/Poster Paper for Brainstorming
· Keep Your Desk Top Free of Clutter
· Fill Your Bookcase with How To, Guides & Inspirational Books
· Dust Often
5. Optimize Your Use of Technology
· Invest in the Highest Quality Tech as You Can Afford
· Turn Off Unused Internet Drags
· Have a Printer & Printing Supplies Handy
6. Pay Attention to Ergonomics
· Use an Adjustable Chair that Supports You Back, Shoulders and Seat equally.
· Keep Your Monitor Arm’s Length from Your Face
· Give Your Legs & Feet Plenty of Space
Bottom line, if you are setting up a room in your house or apartment to be used as a home office, you need to really think it through. Anyone can work from home, but few are really good at working from home successfuly.
A few more tips:
· Don't have a TV in the room that you can watch things on. If you are using a TV to display presentations over your shoulder or behind you when you record video, don't have it set up to easily watch Netflix on. Keep that TV as a work tool.
· If the office is also a spare bedroom, keep the bed made and neat. Don’t let your workplace look like a place that would be a good place for a nap.
If you have any suggestions or questions, please share.
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Daniel Meyer heads both Sonic Analytics and Sonic Virtual Staffing, sister companies that deliver both data analytics solutions and virtual staffing to businesses in the United States and the Philippines. With over 20 years in Big Data and Virtual Staffing, Dan is one of the most sought-after public speakers in Asia and offers big data coaching and analytics training seminars on both sides of the Pacific.
Sonic Analytics(www.sonicanalytics.com) brings big data analytics solutions like business intelligence, business dashboards and data storytelling to small and medium sized organizations looking to enhance their data-driven decision-making capabilities.
Sonic Virtual Staffing (www.sonicva.com) brings virtual staffing solutions like graphic design, social media management, bookkeeping and specialized virtual assistants for authors and professional speakers to small and medium sized organizations looking to scale on a budget and looking for 24/7 staffing options.
When not training current and future analysts, you can find Dan championing the use of analytics to empower data-driven citizenship by volunteering his expertise with schools and non-profits dedicated to evidence-based social progress.
