Still Using Your Lockdown Home Office? It Might Be Time for a Redesign
Do you all remember the scramble to set-up a Work From Home space super fast! These spaces were cobbled together so fast with whatever we had. A complete reactionary response to events well beyond our control.
I still remember that time. I was working in food safety, so I donned the uniform and steel-cap boots and took my solo lunch to work every day. My husband stayed home, tried to work some during the day, but was the parent predominantly involved with trying to help our two primary-school aged kids navigate their studies. Evenings we’d switch shifts and I’d look after the kids and the house giving him time to catch up on his work. Unfortunately, his workstation wasn’t ideal. Tiny desk with an aluminium navy kitchen chair to sit on all day long. And like lots of others, no access to the equipment needed to do his job. Luckily we had a pair of old ex-uni microscopes at home so he could id insect samples (he’s an entomologist).
I think a sense of inertia set in. We all got on with the job and then that odd cobbled-together home office became our normal. Other than an upgrade to a digital microscope and a proper office chair, the original set-up has stayed. And so, it’s no surprise after like 5-6 years post covid that I am getting a lot of calls about re-organising home offices. These offices were set up in a hurry and became a permanent fixture instead of the temporary solution we all thought they’d be. They also do double-duty holding home documentation, plus our work files & equipment.
So what now? It’s time to do an audit of your home office. Step back and see if the space actually works for you. For our home office the tiny Ikea desk is getting replaced because it just manages to hold the two screens, laptop and wireless keyboard, without room to physically write and deal with traditional paperwork. The four-drawer filing cabinet has been condensed down to two drawers, so it will be replaced with a smaller under-bench style cabinet. And the layout of the room will change because the afternoon sun makes it hard to look at the screens.
Think about ergonomics – our tiny desk not only doesn’t have a large enough surface to hold everything needed for my husband to work effectively, but it also means when he tries to make it work he’s sitting in a way that’s causing some back issues. Which is extra incentive to re-think a home office design. Think about how you work. What equipment you need nearby to be able to do your job. And then add that extra layer of what household items need to be stored in there as well, and flow. Our home office is right at the back door, so our home office is a workspace plus a landing zone for when we all get home so there’s a coatrack and shoe storage, plus the microscopes, a professional library and a printer.
We are halfway through our home office re-design. One end of the office has been set up with shelving for the professional library, printer and stationary supplies, and as I said previously our household paperwork has been decluttered and condensed by half from 4-drawers to 2. The other end of the office with the desk has been measured and we have planned to put together a desk to fit the new space.
If you are going to tackle your Work From Home space, do the audit and see what you need in your office, what you like and what works for you. Check what doesn’t – what are the things that make your job harder? Does it hurt to sit and work in your space? Is the lighting ideal? Is it a thoroughfare? Once you’ve established these parameters you’ll be able to declutter and re-organise your space. And this time you don’t have to cobble it together overnight like we did when we all got locked down. Now we have the luxury of time to play around and put together a space that works for us.