Today, now more than ever, more and more people are working from home. Possibly to your dismay, it is uncommon for apartments to come with a designated office space or room. No reason to worry, though; an office space can easily be created. The greatest hesitation for people to work from home are all the distractions that lie about. Make an office in your apartment to be more efficient and stay on task.
Pick the Right Spot
Figuring out the right area to build your office is essential. While you may be tempted to throw a box by a chair and get to work, that most likely is not the best way to go about it. The largest consideration to take into account is lighting. The best spot is going to be near a window; windows will allow the most natural light to shine in on you while you work. Besides lifting your spirits, natural light is stimulating and will prevent you from dozing off into a desk nap. If there is no way for you to have an office space or desk by a window, keep it well-lit with other forms of lighting in your apartment. If you do not have light fixtures to spare, you can always take a look at the local thrift or antique store and see if you can a new lamp or desk lamp for your workstation. Following lighting, is sound isolation. You do not want to put your office right next to the wall that borders a busy street or a loud neighbor. On the flipside, if you can set your office space up next to a wall, you will give you more organizing options as you can make shelving for storage on the wall. The third and finally consideration for choosing your office space is where the electrical outlets are and how many of them there are. Nothing is worse than having a perfect space but a whopping two outlets to plug into. Should you run into this scenario, a power strip can be used to make up for the lack of electrical outlets available to you.
Remove Clutter and Stay Clean
When you have a bunch of random clutter messing up your workspace, it is really hard to stay focused and get work done. Keep your space as clean as you can to work as efficiently as possible. Nail in a couple brackets to a piece of wood and next thing you know, you have yourself floating shelves you can throw up on the wall near your desk for more storage space. Small jars, cups, or trays can be used to hold paper clips or extra pens and be placed on your new shelves. You can improvise with belongings you already have in your apartment, like an ice cube tray or a muffin tin, to act as drawer organizers for your desk.
Somewhere Between a La-Z-Boy and a Wooden Stool
It is vital to have a comfortable to chair to work in. No one says you have to drop hundreds or thousands of dollars on the most ergonomic office chair, but you should not be sitting on an uncomfortable stool for hours at a time either. You do not want a bean bag, as this may be a little too comfortable, and you will spend more time hanging out relaxing instead of working. Look for a chair that has enough cushioning to sit tight for a few hours but also has an adjustable height to be able to fit behind any desk. If you are pursuing a different seating option that is not a regular office chair, try experimenting with an exercise ball to sit on. This will kill two birds with one stone; you will be able to get a core work out in and have a comfortable place to sit all at the same time.
Personalize Your Office
It is normal for people to have pictures of their family and friends in their office, so your apartment office should not be any different. Make your office space as inviting as you can, this will have you associating happy thoughts with your workspace which will inevitably make your study space more uplifting. When your office is inviting, you will be more inclined to go in there and use it. If your landlord is okay with it, paint an accent wall to add some poop, put up some art on the wall, throw a rug down on the floor, or just use colorful office materials to keep it fun and light-hearted.
