Working from home has many advantages. Fewer stops at Esso, less distracting chats over the water cooler, and the ability to chuck a load of laundry into the washer during your lunch break.
One of the downsides? You need to properly outfit your space with quality furniture, lighting, and network needs. Here are five things to consider when designing the perfect remote working space.
1. Lighting—Your eyes will thank you
You probably recall from Balaklava’s last blog called “How Improper Lighting Is Affecting Your Health in Ways You Didn’t Even Realize” that appropriate illumination is essential for good health. It’s also critical when it comes to creating optimal working conditions. Functional lighting means increased focus, fewer headaches, and increased productivity.
Care to guess what the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) claims are the most common workplace lighting issues?
- Insufficient or poorly distributed lighting. Do you find yourself squinting or suffering from dry eyes?
- Glare. If you need a set of office aviators to get the job done, there’s a problem.
- Improper contrast. Your work area should be brighter than the surrounding office areas.
- Flicker. Loose bulbs, overloaded circuits, old wiring or incompatible dimmer switches can cause irritating flashes. You want to avoid this—unless you’re aiming for the Studio 54 vibe, of course.
2. A stable network—Your patience will thank you
When it comes to your network, your business needs reliability and uninterrupted connectivity. No one wants their network buffering just as you’re about to present year-end figures or Zoom with a key client. Bufferbloat (say that fast ten times) is not as fun as it sounds. Rather, it’s what happens when software spikes during uploads or downloads. Balaklava can help ensure that the dreaded Bufferbloat doesn’t happen in your home office space.
