Tips for setting up a workspace at home

Employers are encouraged by government to allow employees work from home, in order to help breaking the chain of virus infection in the middle of current CoVid19 situation. However, while traditional office environments are set up specifically to facilitate work, the average home has usually been designed with comfort in mind.

This isn’t necessarily an issue if you’re working from home over the course of a few days, but it can have more serious implications over a longer period. It is important that your workspace at home is set up to help protect your physical and mental health.

We’ve put together the following tips to help you to better understand how to set up a workspace at home.

• Choose the right chair

Your chair is the most important piece of furniture in your day, due to the amount of time you’re going to spend sitting in it. While the comfort of your sofa or bed looks very inviting right now, long term use of inappropriate furniture can have serious health implications. If you can, try to use an ergonomic chair that can be adjusted to the right seat height, back height and tilt to preserve good posture even while working from home. The better your chair is, the more likely you’ll be able to remain productive.

• Get your setup right

Another major part of working from home is making sure that your work surface and the surrounding area are suitable for long term use. When considering a surface to work from, it’s important that you choose one that allows you to remain comfortable throughout the day. When choosing your work surface, consider the following:

1. Is the desk/surface at the correct height for you to work?
2. Is there enough space under the desk/surface to allow free movement?
3. Do you sit with a good posture or are you hunched over the desk?

Making sure that your work surface is suitable for long term work may take a little bit of time to get right, but it will pay off in the long run and help to maintain your health and wellbeing.

• Health and wellbeing

It’s very easy to think of working from home as a practical solution to helping your organisation remain effective. However, it’s also important to factor in your physical health during any period working from home. This can include considerations such as:

1. Do you take adequate breaks from computer work?
2. Do you carry out regular stretches at your desk to avoid stiff or sore muscles?

While physical health is a considerable factor in working from home, people often underestimate the effects that it can have on mental health.

Travelling to a single place of work forms a daily routine, allows for socialising, and serves as a clear divide between work and home. Working from home can erode your daily routine, make you feel isolated and prevent you from being able to relax in your home when you’ve finished working for the day.

We recommend that you separate your work area from areas of relaxation. This will help to create a division between the two areas and help you relax when you’re not working.

• Get plenty of fresh air

Going outside during breaks can be a great way to clear your head and get some exercise at the same time. Remember to open a window now and again to get some fresh air into your workspace and consider a plant or two to help clean the air.

Working from home can be a great opportunity to stabilise your work/life balance, but it can also affect your physical and mental health over a longer period. The best piece of advice that we can give is to try to treat working at home exactly as you would working in the office:

1. Use suitable office furniture
2. Make sure the space is well-lit and ventilated
3. Look after your physical and mental health

If you can implement all of the above, then working from home can be a positive experience that allows you to achieve a great work/life balance, while also helping your company remain effective and successful.

This article is prepared by Crown Workspace Malaysia