Your choice of home office furniture can transform your experience at work — and your sense of health and well-being, too!
On average, office workers spend almost six hours working at a desk – and seven hours sleeping at night. That much desk work makes maintaining physical and mental health a challenge. Not only is sitting at a desk for prolonged periods every day bad for your physical health, but it can have detrimental effects on your mental well-being as well.
There are ways, however, to prioritize our health and well-being despite the demands of the office workday, especially when working at home. One, in particular – choosing your home office furniture wisely – helps minimize the negative impacts of desk work. At the same time, it provides for your comfort and overall well-being without compromising your productivity. Here’s how:
1. Better ergonomics and comfort
Many of us sit at a desk for hours on end – it should be a place of comfort. While it doesn’t have to cost a lot of extra money to ensure that your home office is ergonomic, any extra you might spend will be well worth it!
Optimum comfort, health, and well-being are paramount to productivity and success, and a workstation composed of quality home office furniture can support you more fully than lesser options. Here are a few ways to enjoy enhanced health and well-being at work:
Adjustable or standing desk: The ability to sit or stand while at work helps relieve the strain that can come from sitting all day long. An adjustable or standing desk allows vital movement throughout the workday, where you can alternate between sitting and standing, as your comfort demands. The freedom to move around during the workday helps prevent the pains, aches, strains, and general discomfort that come from sitting in one position for hours on end.
Ergonomic office chair: Comfort, while seated, is essential for well-being, safety, and productivity throughout the workday. If you’re uncomfortable, you’re more prone to pain, potential injury, and distraction from the task at hand.
An ergonomic office chair offers customized support and adapts to your needs while seated. Arm and seat height should be adjustable as should seat depth and angle. The chair should also have adequate lumbar support. An ergonomic chair should be made of breathable material to avoid trapping heat and moisture. Look for a chair with quality casters to allow ease of movement at your desk and between tasks.
Office furniture layout: The layout of your home office furniture should allow you to access all frequently used items and accessories with ease and within arm’s reach or a quick roll of your chair.
Is your work primarily at a computer — desktop or laptop? Do you work with a lot of documents? Do you like to spread out? Understand your preferences while at work to optimize the layout to work with you rather than against you.
Consider an L-shaped desk or U-shaped desk to promote ease of movement throughout the day. Or any desk and furniture layout can be designed to prioritize the natural movement and activity of your workday.
2. Organization and efficiency
After ergonomics, organization is probably one of the most critical factors when it comes to work satisfaction and well-being.
If stacks, piles, and general clutter surround you, it fosters a sense of chaos, confusion, and distraction rather than order, neatness, and control.
The right combination of good home office furniture – a desk, a hutch, and a file cabinet, for example – and how you’ve arranged it, can help you to move from task to task and find what you need, with everything in its place.
Have ample storage space to ensure things don’t stack up during a workday, and have a convenient place that can be accessed quickly and easily – essential to your efficiency and your peace of mind.
3. Enhanced productivity
If you don’t feel comfortable and content at your desk – distracted by pain and discomfort all day or overwhelmed in an environment of chaos and disorganization – you can probably expect to feel additional strain and stress; even a sense of general malaise.
As a result, you will be less productive, and it will be that much more challenging to feel a sense of overall satisfaction and well-being with your work life.
Additionally, there have been numerous studies to measure productivity gains when workers have more control over their comfort. Most have uncovered that there is a noticeable increase in productivity when workers are comfortable at work.
If you want to be at your most productive, ensure you are as comfortable as possible to maintain your health and wellness.
4. Sense of professionalism
Your professional presentation is fundamental to the success of your work or business. The state of your office and your home office furniture will project your sense of professionalism – or lack thereof – to clients, coworkers, and your superiors.
Choose quality, stylish home office furnishings to make sure that your image and presentation are in line with the great work you do!