What Furniture Do I Need to Work From Home?
Due to social distancing, millions of Americans are now working from home. If you have been working from home for a long time, you probably havea devotedwork spacealready set up. Maybeyou never thought you would be working from home and now you are.Maybe you don't even own a desk! If you’re new to working from home, we have some tips to help make your home feel more like a work space that you can be productive in.
Tips for Setting Up the Perfect Home Office
- Make sure your work space is in a well lit spot.
- Declutter the area. Start to create your new work space by getting rid of extra clutter. This will clear up some extra physical space and also give you extra headspace you need to focus better.
- A new desk chair is not a necessity, but at the very least, select a chair that you can tolerate sitting in the entire workday. An inexpensive way to improve a chair you currently have is by purchasing a memory foam cushion or seat pad.
- One benefit of working from home is that you have windows! Setting up your work space near a window can help boost your mood.
- Customize your home work space like you would an office work space—add pictures, plants, knick-knacks, ordrawings your children have done. You can set up an oil diffuser or scented candle to make it a more peaceful space.
- Never underestimate what adding an extra monitor will do for your productivity, even if it’s a TV! It really puts you in work mode and not on your laptop for entertainment purposes. With all of these tech options we have now, you can mirror your screen from your devices to your TV with things like Apple Airplay AppleTV or Google Chromecast or perhaps with an HDMI cord.
- Don’t let papers stack up on your desk. Take a few minutes at the end of each day to declutter your desk. If you find yourself surrounded by bowls, mugs, or stacks of office supplies throughout the day, take a short break and tidy up so can can get back to productive work time.
- Have a dedicated workstation! Maybe using your dining room table as a work desk isn’t the job done. Below are some tips on buying a new desk, or setting up your very own DIY desk space if you can’t fit a desk.
Tips for Buying a New Desk
You’ve probably heard by now that sitting all day is not the best for your health. Standing desks or adjustable height desks go from sitting to standing allowing you the flexibility to work comfortably standing up and sitting down. Remember to shift positions throughout the day to help prevent your muscles from stiffening up.
Shop Adjustable Height Desks
A traditional seated desk with storage pedestals or a hutch might be a better option for you if you have a lot of paper work to manage. Having a seated desk at home can help you feel the normalcy of a traditional office desk.
Shop Desks with Storage
What's the Right Size Desk for Me?
- To avoid unnecessary neck pain, be sure your eyes fall about two inches from the top of your monitor.
- To avoid unnecessary back pain, be sure your hands sit flat on your keyboard.
- Don’t strain your muscles by stretching to type or write. Rest your elbows close to your body and bent at a 90-degree angle.
- An easy way to find your ideal desk height, take your height in inches then divide it by 2.5. Example: 5 foot 7 inches (67 inches) divided by 2.5equals 26.8. This means your ideal desk height is 27.5 inches.
- A quick test to see if your desk is the right height is to see if you can type standing up. Your elbows should rest at your sides with your forearms angled slightly down towards the floor.
- Monitor risers are great to bring your monitor to eye level like it should be.
- The tabletop should be at or slightly below elbow height. Your hands should be at the height of your elbowsor slightly lower while yourelbows should be close to your body withyour keyboard around hip level.
Discover the Right Desk For You
Maybe a desk isn’t in your budget or floor plan. No problem!
Transform your existing furniture into a desk or DIY one using inexpensive materials.
Anything can become a desk if you're creative enough. Here are some options that can become an instant work surface: