Member Article

Setting up the perfect SME home office environment

Though it might seem trivial, the working environment of an SME has a major effect on its success. In essence, qualities such as organisation, efficiency and creativity are characteristics that best thrive in the right surroundings. Many startups however don’t have the luxury of renting out plush offices in the city. In fact, many startups don’t have luxury of renting out any sort of offices at all. A home office is therefore the obvious and necessary alternative, and it is no disadvantageous alternative at all. When designed well, a home office can inspire as much productivity than an office in the city.

Strictly Business

The first rule when it comes to designing your own home office is to ensure that your workspace has its own room and is separate from the rest of the house. This is essential for self-motivation, since ensuring your SME has its own room all to itself attributes importance to your business. Furthermore, separating your home office from the rest of the house prevents the typical distractions that one might expect to occur within one’s home from disturbing you in your workspace.

Home offices can only work well if they are kept as workplaces, rather than a mixture of one’s personal life and their business.

Ensure that everything that is in your office is related to your work with minimal bits of pieces concerning your personal life present. Furthermore, you should keep the rest of your family and housemates well clear of this space.

A Workspace With Windows and Light

It is terribly important that you ensure your workspace has windows within it. Windows providing natural light positively affect the human psyche, creating a relaxed and upbeat mood through the room. Since you will no doubt expect to operate much throughout the day, you will need as much natural light as possible.

Furthermore, rooms without much natural light can create emotions of laziness, sluggishness and even sleepiness.

Most businesses will continue to work once the sun goes down and so artificial lighting is also needed in a home office.

There are several different artificial lighting types that you could use for your home office and your choice will depend on the design and layout of the room. You should avoid parabolic lighting however as it is known to strain the eyes and make workers less productive.

You should also consider adding a wall lamp – like this Francesco Dei Rossi lamp: http://www.lampcommerce.com/en/catalogue/brands/de-majo/ottoxotto-a2-wall-lamp– where your chair is placed.

Sufficient Office Chair

We spend a lot of time in our offices and this naturally means a lot of time spent in our office chairs.

You will therefore need good seating support and a work chair that doesn’t hinder your health.

In order to prevent yourself from suffering from back problems, which may even be chronic and long-term, you should only use an office chair that supports a good posture and keeps your back straight, with comfortable back support. You should not need too lean forward on your office chair, whilst the chair should also have arm support.

You DO NOT want a chair that causes you to hunch forward in order to get closer to the computer screen.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sue Williams .