More and more entrepreneurs are opting to run their businesses from the confines of their homes instead of investing in office space and other costly overheads. There is an increasing number of individuals that are getting drawn to the allure of flexibility that working from home provides.
Men are finding that a home office gives them a better work-life balance such that they can be more involved with their families.
However, for you to successfully run a home office, you will have to find ways to avoid the distractions of home life, and thus you will need to transform the section you have selected to be your office into a peaceful and workable area.
Nevertheless, designing that space could prove to be a costly undertaking. As such, this post is a guide on how to create a home office on a budget.
What You’ll Need for Home Office
1. Workspace
The best thing about doing business from home is that you only need a cordless phone and a laptop because Wi-Fi allows working from anywhere.
While having the choice to chill on your couch while still in your PJs and still work is undoubtedly appealing, remember that a proper home office should have a base for all the essential things.
Work Desk
The size of your office desk will be determined by the amount of space that you have as well as what needs to be kept there.
It is pretty much common knowledge by now that sedentary lifestyles are detrimental to our health. The solution is getting a standing desk.
Often, a standing desk has all the features that come with a traditional desk, such as the monitor stand and keyboard drawer, but at a height where you have to stand while working.
Home Office Desk Ideas
Research has revealed that a standing desk benefits you in the following ways:
- Burns calories and lowers risk of weight gain
- Can lower blood sugar levels
- Lowers risk of heart disease
- Alleviates back pain
- Can improve energy levels and boost mood and productivity
- May add years to your lifespan
Nevertheless, it is understandable that you might not want to stand all day and that is why standing desks are adjustable so that you can also sit down when you get tired. A standup desk would be invaluable to your office.
Ergonomic Chair
When it comes to your office chair, ensure that it is a comfortable one – but not too comfortable that it gets you sleeping on the job. It should allow you to maintain proper posture as you work. Good posture is important for both physiological and psychological reasons.
Home Office Chair Ideas
2. Computer
The typical home office is set up around a personal computer. The desktop usually offers a lot of storage space, as well as typically having a larger screen than the regular laptop.
In the case of the desktop, you will need to also budget for a keyboard, mouse, and monitor. And while laptops offer you the versatility of being able to take it out of the office with ease, desktops will typically offer you more processing power, memory, and data storage at nearly half the price of a laptop.
This is why you have to know your needs. For instance, if you are a graphic designer, you need a powerful computer that has a high-end Graphics Processing Unit (GPU).
If you are a coder, on the other hand, you might get away with a less than the stellar graphics card, however, you will require more memory. If you primarily work online, you probably do not need a hard drive with a large storage space. Also, if you are always on the move, a laptop should suffice.
If technology is not your strong area, have your techie friend assist you in finding the appropriate machine while ensuring that you delete any pre-installed bloatware so the computer functions efficiently.
Home Office Computer & Laptop Ideas
3. All-in-one Printer
The typical tasks performed in an office may include creating and printing documents, photocopying, scanning, and sending out faxes.
Technological advancements have seen to it that we can now use one piece of equipment to do all the tasks above. Traditionally, you would need a different machine for each task. By purchasing an all-inclusive printer, you will not only save time but also space.
Also, remember that you will have to refill the toner periodically. As such, buying from a common brand will make it easy for you to get replacement cartridges.
All-in-One Printer Ideas for Home Office
4. Office Decor
Aesthetics do not seem to matter when creating workspaces as most individuals work in uniform cubicles. However, not enjoying your office could negatively impact your productivity.
Conversely, an overly-decorated office could prove to be problematic as well due to the distractions. Since you’ll be spending a lot of time here, you may as well put your personality into your office décor.
Think about the things you like and incorporate them into your space. Love traveling? Put up a frame or two of the places you have been to. Like music? How about some framed album covers hanging on the wall? You get the idea; be creative!
You can utilize online print shops such as Uprinting and PrintKeg to get cheap, high-resolution poster-sized prints of your favorite things.
Decor Ideas for Home Office
5. Office Supplies
At this day in age, you might not need all the ware that were once considered to be office staples. Items such as pens and pencils, staplers, envelopes, a three-hole punch, binders, stamps, legal pads, tape, and sticky notes were once the bread and butter of every office. Today, however, depending on the kind of job you do, you might not need all of these.
As such, before you rush off shopping, create a list of all the tasks that you do in a typical week. For instance, if you are a visual guy that does a lot of scheduling, a day planner or a desk calendar would do you a lot of good.
Similarly, if the bulk of your work is done via email, you might need to reconsider getting that box of 100 ballpoint pens. Thus, you have to limit yourself to what you need to avoid cluttering your work area.
Home Office Supplies
6. Coffeemaker
When you start operating your business from home, you probably will not miss a lot of hassles that come with having to go to work such as rush-traffic. However, you will miss that breakroom coffee. Instead of looking back at it with nostalgia, include a coffeemaker into your home office budget.
This is really just a gift to yourself that will help set a routine for how you start your day. A single cup brewer will suffice as it will not be costly in addition to having a smoother operation and cleaning process.
Best Coffeemakers for Home
Bonus Tips
Doing smart shopping while utilizing discounts
Look through various companies that sell affordable office furniture while searching for special in-store discounts. You could also sign up for online newsletters from these stores, so you can be updated about their latest offers as well as getting the discount voucher codes that they send out occasionally.
Deciding what is essential
You should design a list of all the things that you will need to run your home office and rank them according to their level of importance (This post will help you with that, fortunately). Nevertheless, you need to be practical about what you need.
You should also consider combining items. For instance, rather than separately purchasing a scanner and a printer, search for a printer that has scanning capabilities. Similarly, search for a desk that has drawer storage as well as a printer shelf. Search for shelving units that have organizers for small office supplies such as pens.
When you finally have enough cash on you, start buying the items you desire based on the order of their importance.
Going for the in-house brand
Avoiding the larger and more popular brands is what you have to do when looking to save money when buying office supplies. A company such as Office Depot offers in-house versions of a wide array of essential items at a fraction of the cost of the larger brands. Additionally, these items are of the same quality as their more popular counterparts.
With that out of the way, let us look at the following men’s home office ideas so you can know how to go setting up a home office on a budget.
Home Office Ideas for Men [Photos for Inspiration]
Images source: Pinterest
Summary
Running a business from home allows you the flexibility of being able to provide for your family while being able to see them. There is also a myriad of other factors that might make you work from home. However, to efficiently work from home, you will need a home office. Even though there is nothing wrong with lounging on the couch as you work, you will be more easily distracted if you have people around the house.
Investing in a home office will let you run the business more formally as well as being more productive. Even though setting up any type of office can prove to be expensive.
Utilize the above home office ideas on a budget and you will be up and running in no time.