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November 2 2011

Creating a Productive Home Office

by Emily Callaghan

Feeling under the weather (which may be linked to this past weekend’s record-breaking October snow on the East Coast), I worked from my apartment today. I first snuggled up on the couch with my notes and my laptop, but immediately felt far too cozy to be sufficiently productive.

So I sat at my desk, the assumed productivity hub of my studio. But it did not, as a fellow WetFeet editor spoke on last week, mirror the desk at my office. At home, my desk also serves as my vanity—and a T.V. stand. Away went the make-up. Out came my interview transcriptions and notebook. 

But sitting down to do formal work didn’t feel normal at first: this desktop is where I now read articles, watch movies, and make playlists for my iPod. It’s no longer my right-hand-man, like it was in college when I was constantly stationed there, writing papers for class. I had to get it up to work speed. Here’s what I did, and here’s how you can bring your post-college desk into work mode. 

  1. Remove the extra stuff: the cell phone charger (although that does mirror my office workspace), the plate from lunch (or last night’s dinner), and your makeup. 
  1. As my coworker said, get Post-its, notepads, pens and whatever else you’re used to having easily accessible atop your desk.
  1. Listen to music you’d listen to at work. If you listen to tunes through ear buds in the office, do the same at home. And as much as you’re tempted, don’t turn on the T.V.—even listening to it in the background can disrupt your attention span.
  1. If you’ve got a cold, don’t leave tissues on your work surface. Keep it tidy. And wash your hands, so you can eventually be well enough to return to work.

What are your tips for updating your home office? What else do you think I should be doing?

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