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Separating a home office

by Tash Hughes

Not everyone who works from home has the luxury of having a separate room to dedicate to their business. Yet, the more you can separate work and home, the easier it is to feel professional and work effectively.

The following ideas won't suit every situation, may they may give you some inspiration on how you can run a business and still have a house that feels like a home.

  • Set up your desk and materials in a cupboard of some description so that it can be closed away at the end of business. You may be able to open up a built in wardrobe, enclose the space under the stairs or buy a desk unit that has cupboard fronts.
  • Use a decorative screen – it could be timber, cloth, a photo rack, a plant stand or lattice work. Behind the screen is your business and in front is your home.
  • Add in a temporary wall. Being at least shoulder height will be more effective as it will cover your desk and computer, but a lower one will still make boundaries. The front of the wall could be painted or be a new place to hang photos or drawings, or add shelves. On the business side, the wall could hold a white board or noticeboard for messages or be a set of shelves to store materials and references.
  • If you are working on the kitchen or dining table, get a nice cupboard or dresser to store business items nearby. Otherwise, set up a system of coloured boxes to store different items (eg stationary in a blue box, client paperwork in the yellow box and business magazines and article in the red box.)
  • Keep one side of your desk for business and the other side for family and personal things so they don't get confused.
  • If you have to move your business things around because you work in different places or use your work space for other purposes, a set of drawers on wheels may the solution. There are many styles available now, but the open mesh baskets make it easy to see what is in each drawer. Then just wheel your business to your work area when you're ready to start.
  • Make use of tablecloths and runners if you are storing your business things in main living areas. They brighten the room up and help differentiate between home and business.
  • Make things reversible so that they are functional for business and attractive for your home. For instance, put a nice poster on one side of a notice board to hang in your lounge room; when it becomes your work space, turn it around to see your work notices and messages. A low filing cabinet can double as a coffee or side table out of business hours, as can covered storage boxes.
  • Set up a garden shed as office or storage space. Alternatively, is there room in the roof for a small workspace or perhaps the veranda could be enclosed? If you can find an extra room, remember that it might suit another purpose better and your work space can be in an original room. Perhaps the shed could become a cubby so the space near the kitchen can be an office instead of a play area, or the attic space becomes a new bedroom and you work in the old one.

    Separation doesn't have to be complete; it is more to highlight the boundaries between home and business. So you could hang some sheer curtains across the room to make a work space that is visible to the rest of the room. Sheer curtains look deliberate and attractive compared to just hanging up a sheet or old curtains as a visual boundary. --------
    Tash Hughes is a Mum of two and a writer in Melbourne. She is also the owner of Word Constructions and assists businesses in preparing all written documentation and web site content, including newsletter articles. Page not found | Party Plan Australia ↓

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