The amount of time you plan to spend in the office might help dictate where in your home you locate it. But whatever you do, don’t short yourself on the space you need to provide storage, a proper work surface with adequate light and proper ventilation. So an unused walk-in closet might not be the best location! You should also consider the traffic and noise distractions from other household zones. If you plan to telecommute and hold conference calls on speakerphone, you won’t want to be next door to the kid’s recreation room.

Office LAyout

Remember this room is to keep you productive and organized. Grab a tape measure and a scratch pad. Define the room perimeter, windows, doors and so on. Then try sketching some layouts. Before you decide on the size and types of furniture its a good idea to try your ideas on paper first. This will develop a sense of scale and help to visualize the finished room. Then choose your desk, storage, shelves and bookcases to serve the functional needs first. You should consider your workflow and what items you need at your fingertips before investing in furniture, and then look for pieces that are both beautiful and functional. Home office furniture should complement other rooms in your house instead of looking like a cubical transported from an urban office building. There are great choices today in highly functional and well-designed office furniture to match any home décor.

You should consider various seating options as you spend time doing various tasks. A small love-seat can go a long way to reliving stress during reading times. But most of all make sure you choose a comfortable and adjustable desk chair. 

Since you spend a good amount of time in the office, paint it a color you love that will brighten up the room and get you charged and ready to go. On the other hand, maybe try some patterned wallpaper to set the tone in your home office. The color you choose can definitely affect your overall mood. You can learn more about colors and mood in our recent article here.

The ideal situation is to position your desk so that you can look up and have a view of the outside. But if you’re in a windowless room consider hanging a painting or some décor items on the wall in front of you. Something that you will enjoy, this will help with your mood and your productivity.

Accessorize

Depending on the look and style, you’re going for. The addition of some homey touches can enhance that special feeling or being at home even when you are working. Perhaps this might be sporting awards of your children or a favorite fishing rod from the cottage. A few touches like these take that “cold office” fell out of the room. After all, it is your home and it doesn’t need to be all business all the time.

Organization

Since your home office is part of your living space, you will want to insure you can keep it neat, tidy and organized. Since most home offices are typically, an extra bedroom or room in the basement there is usually limited space. You can maximize your storage buy using full wall bookcases. Or hang wall shelves to help maximize the spaces.

I mentioned natural light earlier. But you also need to insure adequate lighting depending on the tasks that you perform. Its great to have a choice as you have different seating positions and depending on the time of day. By using multiple sources, you can cut down on glare, eyestrain and overall fatigue. There are basically three types of lighting, ambient, task and accent, find out more details on possible lighting ideas from the American Lighting Association here.