As employers are revaluating the way we work more than ever due to the pandemic, there were many forward-thinking employers who had taken steps to allow remote work already. Working from home can improve work/life balance, boost productivity and let’s not forget the reduction in pollution as well. As workers across the country are adapting their home to meet their working needs — having a dedicated ‘office space’ has never been more important. Home offices can look and feel different, depending on the requirements of your professional role. When designing your dream home with Old Town Design Group, understanding your working needs can be important when deciding where and how to design your home office.
WHEN DESIGNING THE OPTIMAL WORKING-FROM-HOME ENVIRONMENT START WITH A SELF-EVALUATION:
o Does your job require quiet time for focus?
o Do you need space for creativity, idea thinking and brainstorming?
o Does your role require a frequent number of virtual meetings or phone calls?
o Do you often have lots of paperwork or materials that you pull for reference?
o Does your job responsibility vary from day to day and all of the above apply?
Which of the above rang true for you? As a custom home builder, we can design anything to suit your needs.
Consider the following room styles based upon your answers from above:
Loft-style office
Thanks to the open design of a loft-office, this type of space is perfect for creativity and movement. When working, if you prefer to have a brainstorming space and a separate desk space, consider adding a loft-style office in your home.
Traditional, closed room
If your job requires a great deal of quiet time for focus or lots of paperwork/reference materials, a traditional closed-door room would suit you best. This allows for added privacy when making phone calls or virtual meetings.
Pocket office
Pocket offices, often located off of the kitchen, are a great space for those who mainly work from computers without physical materials. While you can pair hanging cabinets and desk drawers in your office space, it’s not always a necessity.
Dedicated corner
If having an entire room dedicated to your office isn’t an option – don’t worry! Sometimes a home office can work just as well in a corner of the living room or off the master bedroom. Whatever space you have, dedicate it to working from home.
FEATURES TO INCLUDE IN ANY HOME OFFICE:
o Natural light – depending on what time of day you prefer to work at, natural light is something to consider when designing your space. If you prefer to work early in the morning, having windows that face east could energize your mornings even more! Likewise, if you’re more active working in the afternoon, consider having windows that face the west.
o Ample Storage – From built-in shelves to standing drawers, it’s imperative to have enough storage in an office. This will allow you to keep your space dedicated to work rather than have papers and projects slowly start migrating into other areas of your home.
o Comfortable Furniture in Neutral Tones – When you’re spending hours at a times sitting at a desk, having comfortable furniture is a no brainer. Purchasing good quality furniture that can withstand daily use but also supports your body is necessary when working from home. Often, neutral tones are more soothing to work with since they will just fade into the background, however design towards your tastes!
o Enhanced WiFi Networks – Reliable internet is key to being able to efficiently work from home, especially if there are other family members at home also working or studying. Make sure to never disconnect from a conference call or video chat again by enhancing your WiFi Network.
Design a home that works for you.
At Old Town Design Group, we take the time to get to know our clients prior to designing and building a home. This allows us to provide design recommendations based off of their lifestyle and working needs. We have dozens of pre-priced plans to work off of or we can create a design from scratch with our in-house architectural designers. Contact one of our new home consultants today to get started designing your dream home or call 317.816.3150.