Someone once said, "If you fail to plan, you should plan to fail".
Whether it's a room, an area of your basement or attic, or even a closet, home office design needs to start with proper office space planning for the area that will act as your home office. Without good office space planning you probably will never achieve your home office design goals and will live with lackluster results each day you have to work at home.
Step 1: Consider the Tasks You Perform in Your Home Office Design and Space Planning
The first step in home office design and specifically, office space planning, is to consider the types of tasks you perform while you're working. Here are some examples of tasks you may need to perform while working in your home office:
- Making telephone calls
- Accessing the Internet and using a computer
- Preparing letters, memos or other documents
- Packaging and/or otherwise preparing items for shipping or mailing
- Sending or receiving faxes
- Sending or receiving items by courier, delivery people and your mail carrier
- Bookeeping, data entry, invoicing, filing
- Visiting with clients or prospective customers – either at your home or at their location
Your office space planning should consider which tasks you perform most often, second most, third, etc.
Step 2: Consider The Tools You'll Need or Already Use
Next, consider what you need to perform the tasks of your work so you'll know how much office space you'll need to plan for. For example:
- Home office desk or writing table
- Chairs and lamps
- Computer equipment - keyboard, printer, monitor and the space they require to be used comfortably
- Telephone and accessories, such as a headset and or a speakerphone as well as answering machine if you use one.
- Fax machine, copier, and scanner – or a multi-function machine that does it all
- File cabinets or boxes for records storage
- Any packaging or shipping materials and equipment, such as cardboard boxes, envelopes, tape, stationery, padded mailers, labels, postal scales and metering equipment, stamps
- Supplies – including printer supplies, paper, lined tablets, file folders, pens and pencils, paper clips, stapler, hole punches, note pads, and batteries.
- Storage containers for organizing items, such as letter trays, bins, shelving, baskets
- Reference books, binders and any cabinetry or shelving to house them
Step 3: Consider the Work Environment in Your Home Office Design
In addition to the physical space required for your tools and equipment, your home office design also needs to consider whether these tools or the tasks you need to perform have any special physical or environmental requirements that need to be considered in your office space planning. For example:
- Do you need additional ventilation or climate control?
- Do you need additional electrical outlets, cable outlets or phone lines?
- How will you provide adequate light to your office space work area? Lighting is one of the most important and perhaps the most overlooked aspect of a great home office work environment
- Do you need to take steps for noise control, such as installing (or removing) carpeting, adding insulation, or installing a door or partition wall?
Don't neglect your physical and spiritual needs. Consider feng shui principles in your home office design layout to increase your sense of well being. For example:
- Do you work best with soothing music in the background?
- Do you really want to be staring at a blank wall every day or would you function better by being able to look out a window?
- Artwork, family photos, favorite knick-knacks, and other items can all help you cope with the stresses of the day, especially when you need to take a moment to breathe or you need inspiration or motivation.
All of these factors should be considered in your office space planning so that you home office design will be the best it can be.
Knowledge is Power in Home Office Design
Once you know which tasks you perform most often in your home office, the tools and equipment you need to accomplish those tasks, and the physical requirements for your home office work environment, office space planning becomes much easier and your home office design should start falling into place. Budgeting for your home office space will also be easier.
Setting up or redesigning your office at home should be fun and exciting. Knowing what you need will make the process seem less like a chore. Once you've set your budget, get additional home office design ideas through magazines, websites and home improvement TV shows. You may see several ideas that you'll want to include in your home office design.
Once you've got your office space planning ideas in your mind, the next step in home office design is to start putting your plans on paper.
Next: Designing a Home Office - Drawing Up Home Office Furniture Plans
