With the world in the midst of a global pandemic, and working from home being part of our collective new normal, many organisations are open to a more permanent shift to remote working even after the dangers of COVID-19 fade. For instance, Twitter has given the go-ahead for its employees to work from home “forever” if they wish and Shopify’s CEO said, “office centricity is over”.

There will be an ongoing need for homes in Singapore to be able to accommodate work from home in the near to medium term. With demand for larger homes increasing steadily throughout the pandemic, the option of simply shifting to a larger space to add in a home office is not always a practical solution. We have put together 12 key considerations when planning your home office within your HDB, Condo or Landed Property.

1. Create A Dedicated Workspace.

With space at a premium in Singapore, it can be difficult to have an actual room dedicated as your workspace but it's still essential to have a dedicated space within your home that you work from. With WFH being the norm in 2021 and even as Singapore or other countries across the region reopen, you need to future proof your home.  This cannot mean having your “home office” on your bed or sofa. Firstly this is not productive for you which will cause additional stress, but most importantly mixing work with your personal space will make it more difficult for your brain to adapt to “work mode”. Your couch and your bed are made for relaxation. You need to create a space within your home which you will associate with productive work. 

You may need to get creative with where to place your home office. It could be set up in a spare bedroom. It may mean carving out a dedicated space within your living room from where you will work. You can look at solutions such as glass or partition walls to split a room so you have a space for working. A great solution, if you are using a room as a sleeping space and a workspace, is to look at loft beds or murphy beds. Your key goal is to separate your work and personal life and create a dedicated zone from where you will work. 

2. Don't Sacrifice Form for Function.

One of the biggest benefits of having your own home working space is that you are not limited to a soulless office cubicle. Solutions and options are endless as you can now get storage furniture that will match your theme. A desk doesn't have to be a large office table that looks out of place in your space. You should look to choose furniture which matches your space and most importantly that you like. The furniture in your work from home space should be functional yet work within your theme.  If your home has Scandanavian decor, warm wood and soft, comfy chairs or a loveseat are ideal if you have the space. A contemporary home office can feature artistic pieces or modern metal furniture.

3. Add Proper Storage.

This of course spends on your job and how much paperwork you may need to keep, but most home offices need to have some storage. If your room is being used for multiple functions, having dedicated storage can be used to store your work equipment such as your laptop at the end of the workday.

Your work from home office should have dedicated storage space for all your documents, to keep your supplies such as printer paper (or even the printer itself), out of sight. This shouldn’t mean that you have to spend hours searching for what you need daily. The storage you select needs to be functional and work for what your particular needs are. 

4. Choose A Desk That Suits Your Needs.

Your desk height should be such that when you type on the keyboard, your arms and hands are parallel to the floor. Your feet should be flat on the floor, and your legs should fit comfortably under the desk. Many desks now come with height-adjustable legs. If you already have a table and cannot invest in a new one that supports this posture, get yourself a height-adjustable keyboard tray or a footrest to correct your alignment. If you have a large home office space, you could get a large table with lots of shelving. If you have to fit a table into a nook, consider a corner desk that will fit compactly in a corner under which you can tuck in your chair as well.

Another important factor is the access area to your home office. Can your large table be dismantled to move through the door? Or will it fit through the access passage? What desk you choose will also depend on your working style Do you just need a laptop and a water bottle, or do you need to surround yourself with pin-ups, photos, plants and the like around your laptop? A final consideration is how to hide unsightly cables. Holes or channels for cords are an excellent way to keep those pesky wires hidden. You could even have a hidden storage box mounted just under your table to store the unsightly wires and cables.

5. Consider Adding A Standing Desk.

There is so much buzz around standing desks! There are so many great standing desks available on the market that will suit your personal style. Studies suggest sitting for long periods of time can cause serious health issues and weaken the overall strength and endurance of people who lead sedentary lifestyles.

Working at a standing desk means that you are keeping your back and overall posture at the best levels and actually burning calories while simply standing and working. Experts recommend using a standing desk for at least 3 – 4 hours a day.

6. Invest in a Great Chair.

Investing in a comfortable & ergonomic office chair is also an important design choice for your home office that will affect your productivity. A great desk chair will not only make you feel like you’re sitting on a cloud all day, but it will also provide lumbar support & help avoid back problems in the future.

A good office chair can boost productivity by allowing you to stay comfortable and focused for longer periods of time. The back is usually the first part of the body to suffer from sitting down all day. So look for a chair with back or lumbar support, which usually comes in the form of extra cushioning on the backrest. Not all office chairs come with armrests, but these are good to have as they give you extra support if you need to lean on something.

Also, consider material. Leather tends to be more expensive and feel more luxurious, but unless you’re prepared to sit in air conditioning all day, breathable material like mesh would be more appropriate in Singapore’s climate.

Another thing to look out for is adjustability. The best office chair in the world is pointless if it’s too high or low. Armrests and tilt may also be adjustable.

7. Bring The Outside Inside With Plants.

You should also consider decorating your home office with a few indoor plants. Indoor plants are a breath of fresh air to any space that they occupy, including your home office. Plus, they’re the type of decoration that won’t distract you from your work. They can also help filter out the air inside your home office design, while simultaneously improving your psychological well-being.

If you are not green-fingered, you can always opt for beautiful fake plants which will still add greenery to your home and make you feel like you have brought the outside inside. 

8. Forget “Office Beige”.

One of the biggest advantages of working from your own space is that you have the freedom to paint or wallpaper your walls to your taste. You need a colour that gets your work motor humming. For some people, that's a bright, cheery colour like orange or lime green. Others need a calming shade like botanical green or seafoam blue to perform. 

9. Your View Can Inspire You. 

Position the desk where you can stare at something more interesting than a blank wall (even if you do love the colour) when you glance up from the computer. Feng Shui experts suggest positioning your desk in the power position where you can see the door and your back is to the wall. Make the most of your windows' natural light by positioning your desk where the window is to the side. Investing in blinds or curtains means you can also control the amount of light coming into your room, essential with Singapore’s weather. 

10. Choose Accessories That You Love. 

Unless you're going for a contemporary look, choose extras that enhance the comfortable feeling of your home office. These can be simple such as a mug you love to have your Kopi from in the morning or a quirky pen holder. Hang inspirational prints on the walls, whether that's simply your kids' framed artwork or a classic painting. Remember, you can always have a virtual background for your daily zoom calls, giving you the freedom to accessorise your space.

11. Control the Noise Level.

If you’re the type of person that gets easily distracted by noise, you can invest in items that will help control the noise level that you hear from the outside world. It could be as simple as curtains to minimise the noise coming from your neighbours or a rug on your floors to cushion the sounds of your kids playing in the next room. A simple solution is to invest in some noise-cancelling headphones or a speaker for your desk.  

12. Invest in Suitable Lighting.

If you rely on natural light to brighten your home office, this can affect your productivity in ways that you might not be conscious of before. Since natural light changes as the day continue, you need to be mindful of the changing lighting situation in your home office. You must have noticed this situation in your office building – there are bright lights on throughout the day to add to the natural lighting. This helps employees stay in a fresh state of mind for longer.

Using desk lamps can help you zone out from your surroundings and just focus on the work in front of you. It may seem underrated, but good lighting can enable the best home office experience you need. You don’t want your home office design to be too bright that it makes it hard for you to see the screen and cause eye strain. You also don’t want it to be so dark that you struggle to make out what you’re trying to look at for work.