Creating a productive work space at home

My thoughts on creating a productive work space.

Work space set-up:

Don’t short change the desk setup. A standing was a must have so my research lead me to the large geek desk frame from GeekDesk.com. It’s the only motorized standing desk I found for less than a $1000. Go for the Large Desk as long as you have the room. You'll want the space. The desk lowers to 23” and goes as high as 49”.  Also nice is the 275 lbs of lift capacity. It will bring everything up to standing height. To get a custom look, make your own top. I made mine out of 5/4 Knotty Alder 6’ long and 34” wide. It took around $90 and 3 weeks to build but I love the natural real wood finish.
 

Don’t forget the adjustable monitor mount. I after experimenting with standing stations I found out that I wanted my monitor higher when standing and lower than sitting. Online I found the Ergotron MX Desk mount LCD arm (45-214-026) which moves in any direction hovering over my desk lose any desk space! Best part is that it only take one hand to move it.

Multiple monitors or large monitors are I must have in my book. My monitor wasn’t a company expense but I believe that bigger higher resolution monitors are better when you’re faced with having Test Track, a browser, Outlook,  Heat and Javelin all open at the same time. I found this 27” Shimian Acheiva (Koren special) on eBay for $360 w/shipping. This monitor uses rejected Apple Cinema displays for almost a third the price. Trust me, you won’t be able to tell the difference. There are a couple of off brand 2550 by 1440 resolution monitors at this price point and I think It's worth the search and the extra money. By the way, this monitor will run off of the Dell 4600 and 4800’s  Laptops but with a catch. The quarto pro 2000 graphics cards in the dells are fast enough however the display port output doesn't convert over to a Dual link signal with out a display a Dual Link DIV display port adapter. This item will cost you another $90.00.

Location is the Key to a happy productive work space:

In my opinion there is nothing worse than to work in the basement without natural light or sharing a work space with a Washer or Dryer. Make sure you like and want to be in the space 8 hour a day 5 days a week. An extra bedroom or the Master will work but be sure it has a door especially if you have kids. I would also recommend to place your desk as close the window as possible so you can occasionally refocus outside to avoid eye strain and enjoy some natural light.

Set the Rules! 

1. Keep the same work schedule and make it routine.  Working from home dose not mean your always working. It's easy to do when your sleeping in your work area. The attitude of just one more thing will eventually add hours to your work week without even thinking about it. Know that working extra, or beyond your hour normal work hours won' t buy you any points with your family so don't cheat them of your time. Having done this, I can tell you it brought a lot of stress to my home life.

2. On the filp side be weary about keeping your Hobie stuff, X boxes and TVs in your work area. Don't make it easy to cheat and get side tracked from your work.

3. Don't do house work or chores during your work hours. Don't get in the habit or the mind set that you can do household chores during work hours. My advice, don't even try it even during break. Your break is for resting or stoping not more working. You may think that chore will only take a few minutes but know that those minutes add up and soon you'll find yourself behind or in trouble at work or with your boss or overworked and overly tired.

4. Make sure your everyone in your family knows your schedule. When you’re "at home" and when you’re "at work".  My rule, nobody comes through my the door unless it a emergency or mater of life and death when I'm at work (in my master bedroom). When I started working from home, I didn't set any ground rules and I was constantly having to redirect my children and my wife and found it extremely difficult to get back on track and in turn added to my stress level in the house. Those comments, "I need your help" and  "It will only take a second" never take a second. In my experience, I would say that your family has more adjusting to do than you will. Spouses and kids will know you are home and they'll will find it extremely difficult not to engage your time. My two year old was the most difficult. My wife would have to leave the bed room before I daughter woke just so she won't know Daddy is in the house. Make the rules upfront so you can help with their transition. In my experience they will have the most difficult time and the rules are the only thing that can help set the boundary and minimize the distractions and the stress level working from home.