Setting up a clutter free home office space

With the lockdown looking like it has changed the way of working, the home office has become a huge part of our lives in the last while. While the illustration above comically depicts a mom trying to find a nook in the house to work in it, it sadly might be very close to the truth for some families in a household with a number of home workers and home schoolers.

Below we go through some easy tips to follow for the happy office space/get away from the rest of the house. Unfortunately, with the restrictions looking likely to last a lot longer it makes sense to get a proper set up for a long haul of working from home/school.

Declutter!

We are seeing a huge increase in customers using our self-storage facility of late for smaller units. These units are being packed with boxes of stuff collected over the years in the house but items that are not worthy of the bin just yet. Why you ask? The main reason is to declutter the house and make room for the office space and home school areas in the house. Back bedrooms, utilities and box bedrooms are being transformed into mini home boardrooms.

If your lucky enough to already have a home office set up why not start with chucking out any broken electrical equipment. Dump all those cords you have for that printer you threw out and finally throw out that CD of the windows 85 backup.

During all the lockdowns our facility has been operating and we also have a full packaging shop that might be useful to box up some items to store in the attic or in a self-storage unit.

Rethink the space in your house

If you think your house isn’t equipped or is too small for an office space maybe start to think outside the box. Get rid of an armchair in the sitting room and utilise that corner. When I say get rid, I mean use StorageWise store it in

Create a mindful space

Now that you have your space set out make sure it’s well ventilated, has some light and maybe get yourself some nice house plants. If you want to go down this mindful route for your working from home space check out Whitney Port’s latest blog post over here: https://whitneyport.com/creating-a-mindful-wfh-space/

The right desk and chair

If you have long work hours on front of a computer screen make sure you have the right tools for the job. The height of your desk and chair can be very important to make sure you’re not damaging your back.

Stand up desk are very popular of late not only does it make you keep your posture right it also makes sure you’re not sitting for huge periods of time. It also helps with productivity by keeping the mind and body active.

With regard to the right chair head over to this great article on WIRED for an in depth look at the right chair for your home office: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/best-home-office-chairs

Clock out when you can

The biggest tip from this post would be to make sure your able to clock out of this office space when you can. As your not in an office environment, it is not as easy to just switch off when the working day is done. It vital that this can be done on so many levels, for your sanity and the sanity of the rest of the household.

Hopefully the home office set up is away from the main areas of the house but if it’s a case you do have the set up on the kitchen table. Try and clear it away each evening if possible.

You might also find your spending increased time on screens without office distractions. Be sure and schedule in some breaks in the day just for screen free moments. It’s suggested that you should give yourself at least five minutes in every hour for a screen free break to give the eyes a rest.

We hope some of the tips above are helpful and if you do have an interest in decluttering an area in the house for a home office or just decluttering a current one, feel free to give us call or drop in to discuss renting a space away from home in StorageWise. We are open through all the levels of the lockdown as we are deemed an essential service.

Check out some more information on our units here Personal storage or call us on 061-44603