Seldom does a new concept in the world of business cause a major “paradigm shift†or profound transformation in the way white-collar work is done, producing across-the-board advantages for both companies and team members. But such a change, which began in the 1970s, is now happening more quickly as telecommuting, remote work, or working from home enters a new growth phase, bringing about many benefits for owners, managers, and workers alike. Now rising numbers of people worldwide are able to save time and money by avoiding the need to commute, working on flexible schedules, and experiencing a more relaxed and enjoyable work-life from the comforts of their own homes. This work-from-home (aka WFH) lifestyle has been accelerated forward via new software technology, faster internet speeds, and premium writing surfaces like whiteboard walls.
The fast-growing work-from-home movement is capturing the minds and imaginations of people with jobs in technology, finance, internet marketing, and other fields where face-to-face interactions between staff and clients are not necessary. The ease of use and widespread accessibility of technologies to collaborate and keep in touch with team members, such as Zoom, Slack, 5G, LED lighting, dry erase painted walls, and other platforms, allow staff and management to easily adjust to the work-from-home lifestyle and perform household duties as well. Employees welcome the opportunity to escape from long commutes, care for children and other family members, have flexible schedules, work in casual clothes, avoid office distractions, and save money on gas or mass-transit fees. However, to telecommute easily and effectively, it’s essential to create a well-equipped and organized home workplace. The following are some useful steps you can take to help yourself get the most benefit, enjoyment, and productivity out of your work-from-home experience.
Establish a Designated Home Office Space
Setting up an area of your home that’s dedicated exclusively to doing work-related duties can help you with your ability to focus and with the overall effectiveness of your daily job performance. The ideal space would be an out-of-the-way area with abundant natural light that is free of potential distractions, such as a TV where family members watch shows and movies and play video games. A separate room such as a spare bedroom where you can feel free to concentrate exclusively on work for extended periods is ideal. If you have the option to close the door, do so to maintain optimal privacy and focus. The space should provide as much functionality, comfort, and quiet as possible while being big enough to have room for all of your necessary work-related items.
Get Connected Through the Required Technology
Make sure that your home office is conveniently located near a power outlet, or get a multi-outlet extension cord to plug in all the tech devices that you need for your work, such as a computer, phone, and printer. And naturally, the most important element in connectivity is ensuring that you have high-quality internet access, so to conduct business-related activities from home, you may have to upgrade to a faster and more secure connection. Also, if you need more space than what you currently have for storing large work files, you can buy an external hard drive to add to your computer or laptop. Finally, if your job involves working on large projects, a surge protector will be useful to guard against losing any crucial data during a power outage.
If you need to conduct regular video calls to stay in touch with managers and coworkers, do a sample call in your new workspace to determine how your image and backdrop appear onscreen. An uncluttered, non-distracting wall will offer a suitable background, and proper lighting will enhance the video quality. Also, be sure to test the WiFi signal in the area of your workspace to make sure it’s powerful enough for you to do your job-related activities without issues.
Make Your Workspace Comfortable and Enjoyable To Be In
Comfort is vital to a successful work-from-home lifestyle, and the last thing you want to do is try to operate in a cramped space or feel any kind of unease or irritation while on the job. Thus, to ensure your personal contentment and physical well-being, it’s important to get an ergonomically sound office chair. Enhancing the chair with back support will make the work-from-home experience much more relaxing. It’s also helpful to have wrist support while at the computer or laptop to avoid causing wrist pain or sensitivity.
Another move that will give you a more comfortable and productive home office environment is the introduction of house plants, which have been shown to add more to a workspace than just a touch of beauty. Plants also filter toxins from the spaces they grow in and help to refresh the atmosphere. Psychologists from Exeter University in the UK have found that besides detoxifying and adding oxygen to the air, workplace greenery can enhance staff satisfaction and productivity by up to 15 percent because team members who connect with their environments by looking at plants tend to have better output and focus on tasks more easily.
Install Adequate Lighting
Lighting also has a major impact on your work attitude and overall productivity. When you’re trying to do tasks efficiently, working in dim or subpar lighting makes the job extremely difficult. Hopefully, you can set up your work area in a separate room with windows or in an area of the house with a window and let the natural light flow in as you go about your daily routine. If no place with natural light is available, a good-quality desk lamp can be highly beneficial. One way or the other, you should make sure you have sufficient light to function at top efficiency, because improper lighting in a workspace can cause listlessness and fatigue.
Include a Durable and Easy-To-Use Writing and Drawing Surface Like a Whiteboard Wall
Another essential element to fit into your work-from-home environment is a high-quality writing surface like a premium whiteboard coated wall. There you can do many tasks that would typically be limited by the small size of a note pad, standard whiteboard, computer, laptop, or tablet. For example, a whiteboard wall is the ideal place to keep a daily or weekly to-do list that helps you perform work-related duties efficiently and on time. The impressive size and easy writability, and erasability of a whiteboard-coated surface make lists much easier to see and modify than on the cramped surfaces of other media. With the large lettering of your list always in view from your work desk or computer stand, you’ll be able to finish tasks more quickly and easily than if you had to check a small list written on a notepad, computer, or laptop.
Also, since keeping your day-to-day work progress in your head can be challenging, you’ll find that maintaining a daily activity log or diary on your whiteboard wall is an extremely helpful practice. A log will give you an accurate record of what you get done each day, how you use your working hours, and how you might function more efficiently. When you make notes about the amount of time you spend daily on different tasks, your productivity will improve as you can more readily avoid time-wasting activities. The log can also help you keep track of whether you’re doing your most essential tasks at the best times of the day. For example, if you’re a morning person and tend to be most active and productive before lunchtime, you can focus on doing key work activities during this period. You can then do other tasks that take less energy, like emailing, text messaging, and responding to voice messages after lunch.
Having a dry erase coated wall in your home office will also provide you with a huge area to brainstorm ideas for new projects, take notes during video conferences and phone calls, keep memos about changes in your schedule, and more.
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