It can prove pretty easy to take over a spare room and call it your home office. It is quite another thing altogether to turn that space into a truly great working environment. Turning a room into a functional, and quiet place, is the key to success at home. The goal here is to turn a workable space into a truly great space that will up your productivity and make you actually like being in the room.

Here are just a few tips on how to turn “good-enough” into “great”:

1. Turn down the noise and turn up the privacy. I don’t know about you, but if I’m distracted by a loud TV or even a pet wanting attention, it can really hurt my productivity levels. A good start is having a space that is far from busy and loud spaces like the kitchen or family room. Also, it is handy to have a door to your room that comes complete with a big lock. If you lack either of these options, I suggest investing in some screens. You can prop these up around your work space pretty inexpensively and they will help hide a lot of distracting things like a TV.
2. Good Lighting is Essential. When I first started working at home, I was lacking a desk lamp. At first, I didn’t think this was that big a deal, until about a month in. If your workspace is not lit up properly, your eyes get tired a lot faster. Try staring at a computer screen in a dark room for a while to see what I mean. As soon as I bought a good desk lamp, it was like I was seeing for the first time.
3. Decorate. I can remember how much I loathed my cubicle when I worked in an office. Don’t make your home office resemble a cubicle. Decorate! Your office should be a place you like to be, since you will spend a lot of time in it. It should be a place of inspiration, not complete boredom. Purchase a few interesting pieces of wall art, and by all means paint. Your office does not have to be drab. Make sure to hang a calendar and cork/dry erase board for practicality.
4. Organization is Key. Nothing gets my hair up like seeing a desk covered in papers and other miscellaneous things without a home. I am a firm believer in having “a place for everything and everything in its place”. If you are organized, you will be more productive. Take a trip to Staples or IKEA and buy some desk organizers, and a small filing cabinet. You can now buy these items in virtually any colour scheme or pattern, so there is no need for boring office supplies. It’s amazing how getting your space organized will make you feel more organized in general.
5. Your Home Office is a Place for Work. Now that you have personalized and organized your office, don’t go overboard. You want to love your office as a great place to get work done. You don’t, however, want to end up being in there doing things unrelated to your job. Leave TVs, non-work-related books, and exercise material, anything that could distract you from your tasks, out of the room. You want your time spent in your home office to be productive, efficient, and focused.

 Hopefully these 5 tips prove to be helpful to you in building a great home office space. Good luck, and have fun designing a space that is truly yours.