Houston Bookkeeping Tip: 7 Home Office Setup Ideas to Boost Productivity

A home office has become more necessary than ever these days. It’s important to have one that is organized, as well as conducive to getting you jazzed for work, even though your lounger may only be a few feet away. Did you know there are ways to design your office to actually get you working? At B&J, we’re not just bookkeepers, we also have home office setup ideas to boost productivity.

1. Choose a Location

You’re likely to spend a decent amount of time in your home office. Choose carefully. Stay away from corners in rooms, as well as rooms that hum with activity like the kitchen. Do you expect to have clients visit in your office? Keep this in mind when choosing a space. In this scenario, a study or dining area located in the front can be converted to your office. You may choose a spare bedroom or other out of the way area if you don’t expect to see clients at home.

2. Home Office Setup Ideas for Clutter

Some of you may work better with a little chaos. Do you have a pile of papers yet know each one by heart? It’s not great for a regular office, much less a home office. Having a home office that is clutter free isn’t only great for aesthetics. Too much clutter has been shown to slow productivity by distracting. Below are a few great and easy tips for getting organized.

Ditch the file cabinet – Your stuffy office may use tons of them. This is your office. You don’t need them. Using a simple scanner can get rid of 10 filing cabinets. It even lets you instantly search for documents by name, date, etc.
Use an app – Have tons of little yellow post notes lying around? Use an app to ditch them all. PC users can use the note taking app that is already installed on their machines. Apple users have similar apps as well.
No print materials – The same goes for those paper calendars, address books, calculators, etc.
Get documents off the web – We do it all the time. For example, the IRS itself has tons of most commonly filed federal forms available to download for free.

3. Organize Smart

You may have all the clutter gone. Not all papers can be gotten rid of so easily. A great home office setup idea is to use a personal touch to sort items like the mail, client files, etc. Poppin is a great site for those who want to add a touch of color to that dusty, wooden desk. You may shop by color, style, and much more for all sorts of desk organizers. We also recommend using a bulletin board to keep all your items off your desk yet still within your eye line.

4. Invest in a Good Chair

Let’s face it: other than your mattress, you spend more time in your office chair on a weekday than anywhere else. Don’t scrape the bottom of the barrel when looking for one. Go to an office supply store to sit in all of them. Get the one you like the most. Don’t worry about the price. End up hating the chair? Take it back before the store’s return policy expires. Need to research a ton before you buy? Just go to a site like Office Depot, Amazon, etc. to sort chairs by most popular. They even make office chairs with massage features to ensure you never want to get up.

5. Let There Be Light

Much like your chair, lighting is everything. You’ll probably working in both day and evenings, so be sure to have a lighting scheme for each. It’s best to have a source of light behind you during the daytime. This is to help light your work, not your face. A simple ceiling light may not be enough to do the trick when working during the evenings. Feel free to get some lamps that can go on the floor, desk, as a clip, etc.

6. Get Painting

A simple can of paint can do wonders for your home office. Those of you using the home office for the room’s main purpose should feel free to paint as you like. After all, if guests are only going to occupy it for a fraction of the time, choose a color you like. A can of premium paint is only about $30, which can really liven up a room. Some productive colors include lighter ones such as a toasted gray, earthy green, or whatever works best for you.

7. Inspire Yourself

What inspires you? An athlete? A painting? A picture of your dream home? Go nuts with your inspiration by putting up items that make you feel like working towards something. If the skull on Shakespeare’s desk worked for him, imagine what would work for you? Best of all, you’re in your home office, which means you won’t have to worry about some corporate mandatory hoops to jump through in order to put up something personal.