Home Office Design For Video

Working from home,

became a reality in almost an instant, with Covid-19 spreading around the globe disrupting vis-à-vis business meetings and conferences. It caught many by surprise. Consequently, many businesses that had dismissed this work-model in the past are now re-thinking of ways to adopt it.

Obviously, our homes don't come with a video conference room. Yet, it is possible to create a home office and better yet, hold video conference and virtual meetings there too.

Let's see together some easy tips to keep on mind when setting up your home office to work remotely andhold better video virtual meetings.

|| Discover more: INTERIOR TRENDS | Interior Design during and after the Corona virus

Home Office Design | Layout

The most common problem related to work is productivity. That is the cornerstone of any argument on this matter. Of course productivity depends greatly on two factors: one's mindset and the actual space itself. If one tackles these two factors then, a much more sustainable working mode is feasible.

A home desk alone stashed in a corner may not promote productivity, or allow you to hold a video conference for i.e. product presentations because of poor lighting and/or audio conditions.

Therefore, it all starts with allocating some space specifically for working at home, with proper comfortable office furniture too. The more isolated this space is, the better for two main reasons. First, it really helps to keep your stamina intact by separating as much as possible your working space from your living space and secondly, because noise level may be controlled more efficiently.

Another key element of a home office is efficient storage. Storage designed to your actual needs can go a really long way. If you convert a spare bedroom into a home office then you probably don't need that built-in closet. So one of the best things though that anyone can do is to open up the closet and maximize the space of a room, while customizing the storage needed.

|| Be inspired: Home Office Design to boost productivity when working from home

Better Video Conferences from the Home Office | the Light

Ideally, this space should have a source of natural lighting. Naturally, you want a pleasant space where you can also look and sound good. I'm sure you don't want to appear on screen as a shadow, therefore place your desk in such a way so that your face is illuminated without going blind from any glare effects. The camera must be at eye level framing your shoulders to head or waist to head.

A desk lamp with a "soft" glow is one of the best ways to illuminate one's face during video conferencing in a domestic setup. Note that stark white or black clothing may not render too well with an ordinary computer camera. Hence, you may appear washed out. In every case though, it is important to keep your background as minimal as possible. Overly decorated walls do not show well during video conferencing.

How to design your home office for better video conferences in smartworking | the Audio

Audio during video conferencing is just as important as proper lighting. Obviously, many homes do not come with a spare room that could turn into a separate working space. A laptop microphone works well in quiet spaces, but when it comes to busy homes then you may need upgrading to a more professional setup – a better microphone and or soundproofing.

Moreover, room dividers are a good option to consider. Firstly, they define your working zone. They come in a range of colors to suit many styles. More importantly though, there are portable acoustic panels and room dividers with sound-proofing properties that can seriously reduce noise levels significantly within a busy home.

Note that audio that sounds hollow is not ideal either. As such, make sure that your space has enough furnishings to absorb the emptiness and "echoes" so that your audio fills in the space better e.g. window treatments, area rug, cushions and books. The good news is that since this is a home office you can enhance that homely experience up to any level you like.

Home Office Design | Measures

Last, here some key measurements to keep in mind while designing your home office

Most desks range from 1m up to 1.80m by 0.60m to 1m. If you have adequate space then 1.60m x 0.80m is great. On the other hand, desk chairs no matter what their dimensions are, have a similar footprint space with a minimum of 0.90m. You must always allow for enough clear space to maneuver your desk chair (anything under 0.90m is considered very tight). The ideal footprint space lies between 1.10 to 1.20m. If you consider adding on some additional seating, then again your chair's footprint is about 1.20m. Therefore, do allow enough room for one to circulate around that chair.

As for shelves, then the standard sizes are 30cm deep and 36 to 41cm high. The rest of the hardware (computers, printers, paper shredders, etc.) vary in sizes. The good news is that many of these equipment are wireless giving you a greater flexibility in terms of placement.

Lastly, I'd like to mention that working from home has many benefits if you are willing to make the commitment. So when you set out to create that space that will house your desk, make sure to keep things flexible in order to adjust to future changes without too much pain.

If there's one thing that will come out of this Corona storm, is that people adapt. Stay safe!

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Velvet Karatzas

Velvet is half Greek half German living in Athens. She studied civil engineering at the University of East London and is now based in Athens, designing interiors and blogging at Te Esse by Velvet.