How To Make A Small Space Feel Like A Home Office

Look on the internet and you’d be forgiven for thinking not only that everyone has a home-office, but that they all have dedicated home-office spaces.

In reality, however, many people have to squeeze home-offices into the smallest of spaces.  In fact, many people have to make do with “pop-up” home-offices, which are there when they need them and hidden when they don’t.

The good news is, even these tiny offices can be fully functional. Tara Neil shares their tips on how you can make this happen and how to stay productive.

The Foundation Of Any Home Office Is A Desk And Chair

For many people, it’s the desk that’s the challenge. If you’re working in a small space, you may need to “deconstruct” the traditional desk and innovate.

For example, a folding table will give you a work-surface when you need it but be out of the way when you don’t. Depending on your work, you may be able to keep your office equipment in a bag. A light trolley with wheels is another good option for portable storage.

You’ll reduce the amount of storage space you need if you reduce the amount of stuff you have to store. In particular, do whatever you can to get rid of paper. These days, HMRC only requires a very few documents to be kept in paper form.  It will happily take electronic copies of ordinary receipts.

Similarly, if you’re in the habit of keeping documents in paper form, try scanning them and reading them off a screen even if it means buying a tablet.

Chairs and other functional items (e.g. lights) can be borrowed from other areas of the home.  Dining chairs, for example, often work very well for home offices.

Laptop Accessories Can Make All The Difference

If you’re working in a small space, the chances are that you’re using a laptop. The most comfortable way to use a laptop is to put it on a riser so that the screen functions like a regular monitor and then use an external keyboard and mouse.

If space is really tight, use a riser without storage, so you can slide the keyboard back into it slightly. This works best for people who can touch-type, but is feasible for anyone as it will usually only cover up the function keys which most people barely need to use anyway.

Organization Is Key

Are you walking into your home office and suddenly feeling deflated from the amount of paperwork? Well, clearing up your office can help to clear your mind, help you to become more structured and organised for the rest of the day.

Solve this issue by introducing smart storage. If you’re in a small space, especially a tight one, pegboards can be invaluable here, since they use up vertical, wall-space but don’t need any floor space or protrude into the room to any great extent.

They can also be customized to suit your needs. For anything else, you may be able to re-purpose items you already have in your home, such as by putting items into individual boxes or bags, preferably with labels.

Sometimes, however, it is worth investing in specialist storage solutions, for example in bags which are specifically designed to hold spare cords and other tech accessories.

Choose The Right Colours To Keep You Motivated

Surprisingly, the colour you paint a room can make a huge difference to your overall mood and productivity. If possible, make your home office a space that receives plenty of natural light, especially if you fancy a darker paint, this will help preventing the room becoming too dark.

So, what colours are best? Blues appear to be a favourite as it has calming factors without putting you to sleep and will keep your mind productive. Other primary colours and shades such as Reds, Yellow and Greens were also a good choice for home offices, as each one offers something a little different.

You could even choose to have pops of colour in every corner to prevent you from becoming bored from one colour.

Cover Your Walls With Inspiration

You’ve picked your paint (or wallpaper) why not decorate those walls with pockets of inspiration in the form of posters and graphics. Hanging up your favourite motivational quote could help to keep you pushing through those Monday mornings.

Interestingly, affirming to yourself that you can achieve something will help you to actually believe it. So when looking for the right messages, choose something you can really connect with or a image that can help to inspire you.

Leave Work Behind At The End Of The Day

To make your office feel more like a workspace, close the door at the end of the working day and don’t enter again until the next day. It can be difficult to separate home life and work life, especially if you work from home but it’s important you give yourself that separation, so you don’t always feel as though you’re at work.

If this isn’t always possible, try working outside of your home a few times a week, perhaps at your local café where you can treat your space as an office but enjoy going home at the end of the day.

Author Bio

Patrick McGinty is the Director of Tara Neil who are specialists in beautiful British furniture.  They have a dedicated showroom in Reading, where you can find bespoke kitchens, bedrooms, home offices and more.