Where in the House Do I Set Up My Home Office?

You’ll need as much privacy as you can get in your home office to get your work done, especially if you have kids. Background noises and constant interruptions can adversely affect your concentration. You might miss something in the audio or forget to do SpellCheck before sending the transcript on to your client. So you really need to be aware of your lifestyle and home environment when deciding where your home office is going to be.

Fortunately, it was a pretty big apartment so I wasn't cramped at all and it didn't get in the way of the rest of the dining room either.

In my next residence I had to set up my home office in a corner of our bedroom because in that house there was no dining room and the living room was too small.

But that worked out rather well. The room was in the back of the house and no one bothered me when I was in there working.

When my husband and I bought our new house a few years ago, it had an extra room that was specifically used by the former owner as a home office. Now I had a door to put my office sign on!

A couple of my business associates have their offices set up in a main room of their homes; one in the dining room, the other in the living room. This works for them, it may or may not for you.

One complains that her children will not let her work. They’re still small and don’t quite understand that while Mommy is home, she is still at work and needs to get her work done.

The other complains that her kids, although older, don’t understand that this is really work-it's her new career and don’t quite take her seriously enough because she is home most of the time. That will eventually pass and they'll get used to it.

So I'd strongly suggest that if you have an extra room in your house to set up and designate it strictly as Your Home Office, you may avoid these hassles. If not, then try to set up schedules or special hours when you take a break and play with the kids.

If your office must be in a corner of a main room to get you started, try to make sure that the other people in your family realize that what's in that corner is business, not play and they should respect it accordingly.

But the main thing is that wherever you have to set up your office, just make sure it's comfortable for you and that you'll be able to get your work done without a lot of stress from outside or home life interference.

 

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