Working from home can be a challenge and if there is no true distinction between your work and living spaces, it can be easy to become distracted. However, good organization and decorating skills can help define your work space from where you live and play. Taking the time to make this a reality influences a more efficient and effective work day.

Of course, you also want to integrate personal decorative touches to create a work environment that is enjoyable to be in. Take a look at what ideas we’ve gathered below to help inspire your home office plans, and design a place that inspires focus and creative thought.

First, Be Organized

You absolutely want to have your home office cleared out of distracting home tasks and chores. Make sure to designate a space dedicated to work, and include ways to organize and declutter any materials you need. Shelving, filing solutions, and organizers for paperwork and materials are a great way to have things nearby and on hand when you need them, but cleared off flat work spaces.

Second, Have a Comfortable Work Area

Other than designating a specific area to work within, you also need to ensure your work area in a home office itself is comfortable. A flat surface or desk that is large enough to accommodate your needs, plus a comfortable chair that will help keep you from getting sore is a must if you have to spend any amount of time in place.

Third, Design and Decorate

Once you have your work space defined, feel free to add personalized touches to help influence an environment you can enjoy, rather than tolerate. Many studies have shown that when you place yourself in an area that you can enjoy, focus improves and job efficiency increases. Take a look at the design and decor ideas we’ve gathered below to help influence your own home office and create a work area you look forward to spending time in.

Hobby Collection Display

An office space is a great way to display your hobbies or collections. It surrounds you with things you enjoy without being distracting, and creates an environment that is enjoyable to look upon when taking a break or gathering your thoughts. Consider window displays for things like a pistol collection or breakable items, floating shelving for antique books, and gallery shelves or bookcases for photography and small framed art.

Indoor Garden and Greenery

Indoor plants are not just a healthy addition to any indoor space due to their air filtering capabilities, they also brighten up dark corners and influence a more positive mood. Choose hanging potted plants to drape down from tall shelving, hook basket planters near windows and from tall ceilings, and place tall plants besides your desk and in corners and along the wall.

Wall Art

Create your very own wall art gallery. Mix and match your favorite artists and photography with family photos and vacation photos to provide enjoyable visuals. You also surround yourself with positive memories to help calm stressful work experience. Even if you are lacking in a large, empty wall space, you can mimic this idea with various frames that you can hang on walls and place on a flat surface.

Color Scheme Ideas

Color has long been used as a way to introduce therapeutic calming and focus in work space. Green, in particular, can help with balanced concentration, with blue, yellow, and red all having various influences on inspiration and motivation. Consider painting a highlight wall or trim to introduce this effect to your space, or choose furniture that provides the pop of color you crave.

Add a Lounge Chair or Sofa

Nobody ever said a work space has to be pure work. Add a comfortable lounge chair or small sofa as a way to provide a different way to get comfortable when reading over briefs, looking through proposals, or responding to a long day of emails. Taking a quick nap has also been found to boost productivity via its ability to refresh how your brain processes.

Inspirational Quotes

Work, even when enjoyable, can be stressful and frustrating. Tie into your decor some inspirational and motivational quotes that help you refocus on the task at hand. These can be influential to your workday and remind you of what you are working for.

High Shelving Display and Storage

Many people double their home offices as a storage space, but this can quickly lead to clutter and disorganization. If you need to take advantage of your home office as a place to store work or other home items, consider taking advantage of spaces that are often overlooked. High shelving placed at the tops of your walls can help you get things out of the way without producing added visual clutter. It’s an effective way to take advantage of space, plus it adds extra room to use as a display as well.

Pick a Theme

Perhaps you have a theme that is threaded throughout your home, or each room in your house is influenced by something different. No matter how you decorate the rest of your house, pick a theme that inspires focus and calming, and make it happen in your office. For example, if you wish you could be working at the beach, create an airy, light, beachy feel to your space with color and texture. Add photos and take advantage of natural lighting, and include a sound machine to take advantage of a calming lull of the surf.

What’s Stopping You?

Hopefully these ideas have all been inspiring and have you thinking about how to make your office vision a reality. Remember to first plan out and set aside the space you need to work, and consider your comfort before getting into the details. But once you have that all settled, the sky’s the limit. Own that area and make it a place you enjoy getting started in each day to help motivate you to get the job done.

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