Home Office Tips

Hi Friends!

The past few months have been a whirlwind. Really everyone has had to adjust their daily routine in one way or another. For me there have been a lot of changes big and small, one of the larger ones that I have actually been enjoying is I am now working from home! This is something I have wanted for a while so I am really enjoying the opportunity.

Here is the thing, as much as I have wanted to work from home I didn’t consider that I would struggle with it. I went from working in a pretty large office downtown Toronto with plenty of coworkers around, to a 600 sq ft. condo with a kitten as a coworker. Now I have had just about three months to figure out how to make working in a tight space work for me and I’d like to share some tips!

To start, because of our limited space I share a desk with my partner, and we each have a desktop which makes space pretty tight. Now my partner is still going to work everyday so during my workday I am able to have the desk to myself which has been really nice.

I’m accustom to having two screens so what I have been doing is using my desktop to do any work, and my iPad for emails. Another tip especially for those who are working off a laptop and would like something bigger, hookup your screen to your TV if possible! When I work on large excel files I find that to be really helpful.

I have been missing my standing desk, so one thing I can suggest is stacking some books and creating a makeshift standing desk. I tend to do this on my kitchen counter, for a nice change of scenery. Honestly I have been sitting significantly more since working from home, so I have been trying to stand and walk around as often as possible. Bonus tip, if you are on a call with a coworker or a conference call that doesn’t require you to be on video, just walk around your space!

If you don’t have a desk in your space think about using your dining room table as a desk or even your coffee table!

It’s really important to have an area that you keep completely work free and I highly recommend this space to be your bed. When I lived with my parents my desk was in my bedroom so I understand that it can’t always be an entire room dedicated to a work free zone. But trying to keep an area completely devoted to a work free space is very important for your mental health. I think a lot of people, myself included, find it difficult to completely shut off work when the work day is done. I mean its so easy to just keep your devices on and answer emails that come in after hours, try and be attentive to how often you are doing this.

I hope you’re able to take something from this and get a little more comfortable in this new normal.