A home office is vital to get work completed.
However, there are still many people who do not worry about getting one.
I think they are missing out and being a lot less productive.
The pros of having a home office heavily outweigh the cons.
It is simply a no-brainer to get one for your house so you can get ahead of the game and properly work from home and enjoy every moment of it.
Neighbors, kids, family, and friends can make it very hard for you to get work completed when you work on your kitchen table or in your sitting room.
The benefits I have outlined below will help you open your eyes to the advantages of a home office.
1) Fewer Distractions
When you have a home office, you don’t have the kids shouting in the background since you’ll most likely be on the other end of the house, where it’s much quieter.
There is no TV to keep you distracted, a big mistake (placing a TV in your office) that I see a lot of home office owners still doing.
In saying that, you also need to realize that your office is there for work only. Facebook is off the table, as well as other Social Media platforms.
You will also have to discipline yourself to stop surfing the web when you should be doing work.
2) Help With Work Production
Home offices have proven to help with your work production.
Mostly because natural lighting will boost your mood and help you get more work finished.
That’s why it’s essential to use a room with a lot of light from the outside world.
A plant has also been proven to enhance your mood and help with workflow.
Place one of these bad boys against your window if the sun seems too bright.
3) Decorate It As YOU Like
It is your office and yours only, so you can decorate this as much as you like and with whatever you want. Inspiration is a must-have to help with workflow.
A picture of your family will help remind you of your WHY and why you’re doing all this hard work in the first place.
Your favorite action figures or paintings will also spice it up.
The world is your oyster.
4) You Look A Lot More Professional
One of my favorite perks.
Don’t just think of it as a place to get work done.
You can invite potential customers over for an interview. When customers or friends come over, you look like you have everything together.
And if your office looks perfect, they will look up to you.
This means the word of mouth will spread, resulting in more customers and more money in your pocket.
5) You Can Shut Off When You Like
A disadvantage of working (on your laptop or paperwork/documents) in your sitting room, you have maximum distractions.
Sometimes in the sitting room, you can’t shut off because your work is still right in front of you, making you work like it’s never-ending.
I find that having an office in my home means I can shut off work production whenever I feel like it, and then I am done for the day.
6) Less Stress
Having to work in my office rather than in the dining room or sitting area makes it less stressful for me.
Being in an organized and specified area, the office makes me happier.
Having things organized is important in a home office, and oftentimes your kitchen table can get too cluttered and cramped, resulting in you complaining and stressing about it all the time.
Read more here on how to design your home office for better functionality!
7) Flexibility
You can choose when you want to work.
Do a burst of work as soon as you wake up and are done for the day.
Or, if you aren’t a morning person – Get up later during the day, go to the gym and run errands around, and do some valuable work when you come home to wind down.
You can set your own hours, so you choose when you want to work!
8) Better Health
Since there’s better lighting than in the dining room or sitting room (where often the lighting can be dim or even dark), it will be better for your eyes.
There will be less eye strain and fewer headaches.
If you’ve set up your office correctly, virtually none of this will happen.
Your health is important to you and should not be taken lightly.
9) Increases Self-Discipline And Self-Control
Since there’s no boss telling you what to do and no coworkers trying to make you do their work for them, you will learn how to discipline yourself.
Of course, it’s not easy at the start, but over time, it will become second nature to you.
This is a huge skill to have, especially in a world where self-discipline is at an all-time low and self-control is pretty much nonexistent. This is a valuable skill to have and something you will get better at over time.
10) Save Money On Fuel Costs
Last but not least, and another perk of working in your own home office, there’s no commuting, so you can literally wake up, make a coffee and walk to your day job – all in the same building 🙂
This would benefit you more if you live in a big city, where traffic can get hectic and driving to your workplace can take up to an hour.
Driving to your job and back can literally cost as much money as you would get for working a whole day. Another great reason why working in your own home office is better than any job.
Conclusion
I love working in an office, it’s a lot easier than being distracted all the time or trying to work in other areas of your house where the lighting is off, and there’s no organization in place.
Because organization is another important aspect when you create a home office.
Without this, you’ll essentially be all over the place, and it will be harder for you to get any work done.
Want more office tips?
Click here to see how you can be more productive working from home.
So what other benefits do you know of that come with having a home office?
I work from home, but I don’t have a home office and never felt I needed one till I read your list. Boy, am I missing out! I endure most of these problems at home, and I thought they were part of the gig. A home office definitely sounds necessary now. It would help me be way more productive. Thanks for the heads-up John!
Do you have a post or any advice on how to start one up? I’d love to hear some tips!
Thanks Mohammad and yes, having an office will definitely help. You can see more tips here on how you can setup a home office!
I love this article! I admit I’ve never been that keen on home offices, they always seemed so boring to me (as a child) and my grandad’s one was always a mess with boring papers everywhere! But you’ve convinced me how beneficial they can be! And of course mine doesn’t have to be boring because it’s my own space and I can decorate it how I like 🙂
I’ll have to wait till I leave home, then I can build myself a beautiful (non-boring) office! I’ll bookmark your blog until then and perhaps you could do a couple of posts on color co-ordination and decorations! I’d love to know what the most calming, soothing and inspiration inspiring color combinations are for doing up my office. Something that inspires you when you walk in the door 🙂
Thanks Emma and I will actually be working on a post about different color combinations to help you find that inspiration to get more done. I’m actually glad you asked because I can get that done sooner now!
nice work. I have got to admit although I have always wanted to work from home, getting out is nice too!! All these points mentioned are valid especially about the commute time…I hate rush hour!! Thank you for sharing!!
Yes, working from home has its benefits and a few cons. I love my job and this is why I have time to tell people how to create a home office (lol).
If I didn’t live alone, I would want a home office. The pros of having one seem to outweigh any cons involved. The need for separate space for work and living is clearly defined.
Yes it is Michelle!
I totally agree with you!
I work from home and I have a home office separate from the rest of the house.
Not only does having a home office keep the distractions down to a minimum but it also provides a way to separate work from home life as in mentally.
It is not always easy to keep things separate but I do this by knowing when I walk into my office I am at work and when I come out of my office into my home I am moving from work to being mom, to being a wife and at home.
Great post, thanks for sharing these really important benefits of having a home office.
Glad you agree Lynne! I think I’ve tried having a home “office” in almost every room in all the places I’ve stayed in and nothing beats having an actual place to get your work done. It’s my favorite room in the house now! lol
John; I have a home office. Well let me rephrase that. We have a home office. I am having a hard time convincing my wife that it is just mine and as you may have figured out,not being to successful.Thanks to your post I have realized how important an office is. We have a spare bedroom that would work quite well, so thanks John, this is very helpful!