6 Smart Ways to Make Your Small Home Office Work for You

6 Smart Ways to Make Your Small Home Office Work for You
Bring the hustle home. (Carol Yepes/Tribune News Service)
9/13/2023
Updated:
9/13/2023

Looking for some beautiful small home office ideas? Get in line. As more people opt to work remotely (or ditch their traditional corporate jobs to become their own bosses), it’s becoming possible to work from anywhere with a solid Wi-Fi connection. If you don’t want to drop a lot of money on a fancy co-working space—or several cups of coffee at a local cafe—a home office is the best place to set up shop, even if it’s a small home office. Hence, the need to decorate!

But this need brings a lot of questions. How do you create a space that’s designed with your professional goals in mind? How do you find the right home office organization set-up that works as hard as you do? How is it possible to stay focused when you’re working from a home that’s filled with distractions? And is it even possible to create a home office that doesn’t cramp your whole space’s interior design style? The plot thickens when you don’t have a spare room to dedicate to your home office: Is it possible to be truly productive in a closet-turned-office?

Don’t panic! We’re here to help. Whether you’re burning the midnight oil after hours or starting a new business from your humble abode, here are six small home office ideas you can bring to every space. (Yes, even yours.) Climbing the corporate ladder from home never looked so good.

Limit the Screen Time

While there are plenty of perks to working from home—no commute or sad desk lunches, for starters—be careful of other time-sucking distractions like your television. Place your desk by a breezy, sun-drenched window. Not only is it a great spot that won’t cut into your room’s overall layout, but it will also keep you far away from the TV. Let the gorgeous view (and not the latest political pundits) inspire your work.

Create an Organized Oasis

There’s more to your small office decor than a great desk. It’s just as important to invest in some home office organization pieces to stash important papers, pens and pencils, and those piles of USB drives.

Play Up Patterns

Whoever said small office design ideas have to be boring. To transform the small space, office paint colors are everything: A playful print keeps the room feeling creative and inspiring, not cramped and dark.

Color Yourself Happy

Not sure which room to place your small home office in? Think about which paint colors will be most beneficial for the tasks at hand, especially if you’re not able to repaint.

Embrace Every Nook and Cranny

You don’t need a sprawling surface to feel like a complete boss. Instead of buying a large, traditional desk, fit a smaller style in an alcove, or install several sturdy floating shelves, and skip the desk-buying process altogether.

Learn How to Fold

We love some great small office design ideas as much as the next person, but fitting a workspace into your home can be a bit of a downer, no matter how stylish it is. After all, you don’t want to feel guilty you’re not working every time you see your desk in your living room or bedroom. Try a fold-up desk. At the end of a long day, you can close your laptop, fold up your desk, and treat yourself to a night of rest and relaxation, no lingering guilt allowed.
Real Simple magazine provides smart, realistic solutions to everyday challenges. Online at www.realsimple.com. Copyright 2023 Dotdash Meredith. All rights reserved. Used with permission. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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