When we choose jobs that would appeal to us, we tend to take a whole host of factors into account. We consider what kind of field we want to work within and what role we want to take on in that field. Some of us want careers that can provide us with a large paycheck and afford us a lavish lifestyle.
There are others of us who want to manage others and feel in control – we are most productive and thrive when given an authoritative role. Many of us focus on opportunities for progression, enjoying knowing where we can be in a given time period and working towards that. We pursue careers finding different traits desirable and opting for jobs that can provide us with certain lifestyles – whether this is a lifestyle with financial security, a lifestyle with more free time, or a lifestyle that is mainly progression oriented. Now, for many of us, the most desirable job out there would be one that allows us to work from home. This isn’t all too surprising.
There are plenty of benefits that come hand in hand with being able to work from your own private property. It allows us to stop wasting time commuting to and from our workplace during rush hour – we won’t get caught in traffic or have our personal space invaded on public transport. Instead, we could get a little extra sleep each morning, rather than rushing to miss the masses, and take less time getting ready, as we can simply slip into comfortable lounge wear or casual wear and be ready for the day ahead. We can choose to breaks as and when we please, working to our own schedule.
Sounds like a dream, right? But if you are going to work from home, you do need to make sure that you practice control and self restraint – remember that you do actually need to get some work done. In order to create a healthy work-personal life balance while working from home, it’s generally best to make your own home office!
Why Have a Home Office?
Sure, it may sound appealing to work from bed or your sofa. But chances are that you’ll end up getting pretty distracted. You’re likely to pick up a nearby magazine, turn the television on, or head back and forth from your kitchen table to the fridge in order to snack. If you establish a home office, you can dedicate a specific portion of your home to professional enterprise.
You can create a productive working environment within its confines and this helps you to accept that when you are in your home office, it’s time to get stuff done. This works the other way too. It can help to prevent you from overworking and bringing your work into your home life around the clock. If you’re a workaholic, you can make sure that professional ventures stay within the home office space. Creating a home office also gives you the dedicated space necessary to store professional documents, professional equipment, and anything else relating to your work. Knowing where everything is and being able to locate it quickly will help you to be a lot more productive, rather than you having to look all over your house for a particular file before being able to begin the day’s work.
Ergonomic Furniture
Chances are that health and safety aren’t at the forefront of your mind when you’re working from home. That’s generally considered a topic that employers are concerned about on behalf of their employees. Plus, you live in the property you’re working in well enough, so surely its suitable for working in too. But remember that you are likely to spend longer periods of time carrying out different tasks when you’re relaxing at home and when you’re working at home. When you’re working from home you sit in front of a screen for longer periods of time. You tend to type more. This can all lead to different types of strain and the development of different sorts of injuries, such as repetitive strain injury. This is why you need to take ergonomics seriously. Put simply. Ergonomics is the study of people’s efficiency while carrying out tasks in the workplace.
This area of study has helped to identify and highlight a host of potential dangers that lie in a standard working environment, which could pose a potential risk to your overall health and well-being as time goes on. But not to worry. Specialist have consequently created ergonomically designed furniture and accessories which can help to reduce your chances of injury or developing chronic illnesses or conditions. You really should invest in some of these things, whether they are ergonomically designed chairs or mouse pads… they could hold the potential to further your well-being and make you comfortable throughout your working day. Remember that nobody else is going to be in your workspace to look out for you, so it’s your responsibility to keep on top of it!
Printing Supplies
Every office requires a printer. While you should aim to cut down the amount of printing that you carry out on a day to day basis by digitizing your business, chances are that you’ll have to print something and some point or another. Whether this is a contract, a document, or other information. So, make sure you have a printer that can do this on your behalf!
The Right Printer
If you don’t yet have a printer, it’s time to buy one. Make sure to consider the amount of pages different printers can roll out per minute. This will determine how long you have to wait for your documents to be ready for use. Also consider what paper types different printers are compatible with. The overwhelming majority of printers will be able to print on standard A4 paper. But if you need to print A3 documents as opposed to standard A4 documents, you need to make sure that the printer you opt for specifies this. The same goes for different paper weights.
Ink Cartridges
Ink cartridges can prove to be pretty expensive when it comes to printing, so make sure to browse the market before investing in any. Generally speaking, you will save money if you buy cartridges online or in bulk.
The Right Paper
Also make sure to stock up on paper. This will ensure that you’re never left unable to print, as you’ll always have a backup supply that you can count on!
Laminating Supplies
You should also consider more niche equipment that you could benefit from in your home office. Consider something like a laminating machine. Think of the amount of important documents or printed pieces of work that have been ruined simply because you’ve spilled a drink over them. Laminating prevents damage and helps to protect printed matter.
A Laminator
Now, not many people really know what to look for in a laminator. While you may have bought printers in the past for personal use, laminators tend to be solely for professional use. So, where should you start? Well, first consider the type of documents that you intend to laminate. Their size may differ according to your needs. If you’re going to be laminating A4 documents, you will need a machine that can process this. If you’re only going to be laminating business card sized ID badges, you can opt for something a little smaller. Next consider whether you want to use pouch laminators or roll laminators. As you can imagine, pouch laminators require you to place documents in plastic pouches – they will then seal these pouches effectively. Roll laminators, on the other hand, tend to be larger and employ whole rolls of laminating film. This is better if you intend to laminate larger pieces of work, like posters.
Transparencies
Once you’ve got your machine sorted, it’s time to find some transparencies or transparent pouches that could be used with the machine to laminate your documents. Sure, your machine may come with some. But it’s best to stock up, ready for when you run out. You can source these for a reasonable price through reliable online retailers like Filmsource.
A Shredder
For data protection and confidentiality purposes, as well as for the sake of protecting yourself and your own information, you should invest in a shredder. This will be able to destroy private or confidential documents that you no longer need to keep a hold of. Make sure that you read any instructions that come with your new shredder, so that you can operate it correctly at all times. You don’t want to end up shredding the wrong thing!
As you can see, you’re going to have to put a whole lot of thought into correctly setting up your own office if you do end up working from home. While there are a lot of freedoms and liberties that come with this mode of work, you need to look out for yourself and ensure that you provide yourself with absolutely everything that you need in order to complete your work to a high standard.
