9 tips to designing a home office that works
Photographs: iStock
Several companies have embraced the concept of allowing their team-members to work from home, so long as the given work-targets are met. It saves them huge resources, especially the cost of space, which is getting prohibitively high. For the self-employed, who are working either as professionals or running their own business, working from home is a wonderful option. Women, who need to strike a smart work/life balance will find the home-office a great idea. Interior designer Swati Seth tells us the basics of setting up such a place.
A small home office — one that is part of a room, for instance — needs to employ clever space-utilization strategies. This one uses the dead space below the desk by accommodating a smart set of drawers.1. Spaces where one can create a home office in smaller apartments could be:
- The guest-room, as most of the time it is unoccupied;
- A spare corner where it does not obstruct movement;
- A wide corridor which is big enough to have space for movement;
- Bedroom, if no other area is available for use or
- A portion of the living room.
2. Ideally, the home office should be located such that it does not affect the routine household chores. If working from home entails visitors dropping by, it should be close to the entrance of the house, to prevent visitors from invading into your private space or disturbing other members of the house.
3. If the house is a villa or a bungalow, the home office, besides being accessible from inside the house, could have a separate entrance from the outside as well. One can also make a home office in the garage or an attic. This space would be well suited to a workshop as well.
4. Recommended colour schemes for a home office include:
- Neutral shades: Beige, brown, white, grey
- Muted shades: Blue, pistachio, green, mauve, wine, deep maroon
- Bright shades: Yellow, pink, orange (as highlighters)
Even if you are lucky enough to have a home office that is blessed with a decent footprint, take care not to clutter it with too much unnecessary stuff.5. A home office also offers the luxury and freedom to do up the interiors of one's own choice. Several interesting things can be done to enliven the space, such as:
- Walls with inspirational quotes, wallpaper or graffiti
- A white-board, chalk-board and/or a pin-up-board to reflect your thoughts
- A dash of your favourite colour
- Wall organisers to keep files and papers neatly
6. Create a working atmosphere which looks pleasant but avoid too many items to personalize the space.
7. Provide a minimum space of 60 sq ft to every worker in the office. A connection to the outside landscape is ideal — this way people will also be able to locate your workspace easily.
8. Last but not the least, maintain discipline while working from home. The flexibility in the hours of work, style of work and system of work, can work wonders for the desired results.
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Swati Sheth
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