Hello, hope you are well.
Today I am writing about the importance of having a mindful environment in your Home office. This blog post has been inspired by my change of work habits. I used to work full time in an office job. Currently, I am part-timing from home, this led me in adapting my surroundings into making it comfortable to work from home. In the office, all the Health and Safety aspects are taken care of by Health & Safety regulations that governments and companies put in place for the wellbeing of their employees (or supposedly so!). At home, however, we are alone in designing our own work environment, so here are 9 items that can make your life in your home office more comfortable.
Let’s get into it…
1. Comfortable Chair
Swivel or not, it needs to be compatible with the type of flooring you have (wood floors, or carpet), adjustable in height, with armrests, and with good back support. Mine is not the most ergonomic chairs I must admit and it was lacking lower back support so I have added this Memory Foam Half-Moon Cushion which I lean against.
2. Good screen
Preferably glare-free and with a size tailored to the application you plan to use. i.e lots of tabs open, multiple screens, excel sheets, etc. Mine is the Acer ET430.
3. Good Lighting
Natural lighting is the best so place yourself in a room with a window Don’t think a single head above light will do, to make it really comfortable for yourself you also need a desk lamp or even better a wall suspended light (mine is the Ranarp from IKEA which clips on furniture) aiming at your keyboard and desk. Why is it better? Because it frees up space on your desk and it is less likely to be in your way. A white Bulb or neutral white is usually the preference for office work.
4. The importance of Desk Height and Foot Rest
This will be different for everyone as it depends on your height. A quick tip to help you figure out what is a good desk height and what footrest you need: When you look at the screen your eyes should lend into the middle of the screen, yet your feet need to rest on the floor. Based on this, try to either take your desk or chair higher/lower. There are more and more flexible height desks available for home office use check out this one or this one. As far as I am concerned, I am a shortie, with a fixed height desk and a massive screen, so I had to correct the discrepancy by getting a high footrest.
5. Wireless Electronics
Mouse and Keyboard
Reducing clutter on the desk and freeing workspace is important because it helps you to be able to give the focus on the work you are doing. That is why Wireless Mouse and Keyboard are great to have. As I have a Mac computer, it is easy to use the Apple Wireless GB Keyboard we have had for years. For the mouse, I recently changed to this Logitech M330. I like it, it is bigger than my previous one which was tiny and I like the grip material on it.
Good Bluetooth headset/speaker
Because a lot of the time, the embedded speakers and sound quality coming from screens or computers are limited. A simple and clutter free way of listening to audio content is to have a Bluetooth, wireless headset. This is one of my favourite ways to work because I am sensitive to noises so by putting my headset and playing classical music, a podcast or even just having the headset, I can better focus. I live in London and emergency vehicles is a constant noise here. Just be mindful, the doorbell might right without you hearing it :). Link to Bose On-Ear Bluetooth Headset (John Lewis)
6. Prints, Art
Prints and decoration elements in an office can be stimulating for the creation and to keep focus. So consider adding a few elements that click with you. Here are a few places: King and McGaw, Desenio, Etsy, A.simple.meandering.
7. Water Supply
Drinking water is essential and we tend to forget it while sitting down for hours fully committed to the task in front of us. Preparing a Water Filter Jug for you to keep nearby will ensure you don’t forget to pour yourself a glass regularly (and stand up as well).
8. Stationary
A few pieces of your favourite stationery and a home for each object will ensure you enjoy using the pen, the notepad, or the planner. It does help to get surrounded by things you love and as Marie Kondo says “sparks joy”. Here are a few things: Black Leather Pouch, Le Journal from Seeso, The Weekly Times from Fox and Star.
9. Good Air Circulation
Since being at home more, I noticed I sneeze very often (10 times a day at least) and in my opinion, it is due to either poor air circulation, poor air quality or perhaps some allergen stuck in the air (dust, pollen, smoke, odors, mould spores, and pet dander) . It is a key point and I don’t have all the answers but I am going now opening the windows every day hoping it will to get cleaner air at home. I am considering Air Purifier devices like the Philips series 2000.
or the Air purifier from Muji
Further reading: Here you will find the HSE “Display Screen Equipment Workstation Checklist” currently applied in the UK, Physiomed – Correct Sitting Posture: Working at a Desk
Thanks for reading !
Marlene