What Furniture Do I Need to Work From Home?
Due to social distancing, millions of Americans are now required to work from home. If you're a seasoned remote worker, you've doubtless already got your work space all figured out. But what if you're one of those people who never thought they would work from home? What if you don't even own a desk? If you’re new to working from home, read on for tips and tricks to make your home feel more like a work space.
Tips for Setting Up the Perfect Home Office
- Find a space that’s well lit.
- Declutter your space—its going to be easier to set up your office initially if you get rid of some of the extra stuff taking up your physical space and depleting your focus by crowding your mental headspace.
- If you’re not in the market for buying a new desk chair, at the very least fashion yourself a chair that you can tolerate sitting on for eight hours a day by buying a foam seat pad or memory foam cushion.
- Setting up your workspace near a window can help increase productivity, boost mood, and allow the opportunity for little peeks outside. Oh yeah! That’s what the outside world looks like!
- Add some joy to your work from home space. Family photos, plants, or your kid’s drawings are all surefire ways to make your space more cheery. If scents foster happy emotions for you, you can set up a scented candle or oil diffuser in your work room.
- Adding another monitor—even if it means using your TV—does wonders for your productivity. It really underscores that you are at work and in the productivity zone, not just tinkering on your laptop while sitting on the sofa. With modern tech options that let you mirror your screen from your devices to your TV (Google Chromecast or Apple Airplay AppleTV are two easy ways to do it), you don’t even need to worry about HDMI cables.
- An important tip for everyone but especially for small spaces—declutter your desk at every opportunity. Nothing robs you of your focus like having to reach around empty cereal bowls, mugs, and stacks of office supplies.
- Have a dedicated workstation! Read on for tips on buying a new desk, or setting up your very own diy desk space.
Tips for Buying a New Desk
We now have a wealth of research to prove that sitting all day is bad for your health. That’s why standing desks and adjustable height desks that go from sitting to standing are so popular now. It's important to change positions regularly, even with a standing desk, so sit/stand adjustable desks are a great choice.
However, if you find you’re more productive when seated or a standing desk isn’t an option, consider a seated desk. A lot of standing desks don’t offer a lot in the way of storage, so a traditional seated desk with storage pedestals or a hutch might be a better option for you.
What's the Right Size Desk for Me?
Sitting
Standing
- Your eyes should fall about 2 inches from the top of the monitor to prevent neck pain.
- The height of your desk should allow your hands to sit flat on the keyboard.
- Your elbows should bend at a 90 degree angle and rest close to the body.
- To find your ideal desk height, take your height in inches and divide it by 2.5. So if you are 5'9'', the ideal desk height is 27.5 inches.
- When you're standing, you should be able to type with your elbows at your sides, and your forearms slightly angled down towards the floor.
- Your monitor should be eye level.
- Elbows should be close to the body and the keyboard should be around hip level so the hands are at the height of the elbows, or slightly lower. That means that the tabletop should be roughly at or slightly below elbow height.
Discover the Right Desk For You
For more advice on buying office furniture check out our Office Chair Buying Guide
Not in the market for a desk? No problem!
Transform your existing furniture into a desk or DIY one
Anything can become a desk if you're creative enough. Here's some ideas for an instant work surface:
- Wall shelves / Floating Shelves
- Kid’s Desk
- Kitchen counter
- Dining Table
- Floating drawers and other built ins
- A makeup vanity
- A sofa/console table
- A rolling bar cart or serving cart
- A workbench
- A wood slab (plexiglass / laminate) laid across two file cabinets
- A wood slab (plexiglass/ laminate) laid across two sawhorses
- A wood slab (plexiglass / laminate) laid across two short bookshelves
- A wood slab (plexiglass / laminate) laid across two large stacks of books
- Mount a wood slab in an old closet or wardrobe for an instant desk
- You can always use a laptop desk while sitting on your sofa!
