- Welcome to the journey.
Today we're gonna talk about working remotely
on a more permanent basis
and how to get the ideal home office set up.
With COVID-19 still flaring across the globe,
it seems like we're all going to be stuck
at home for some time.
And for me, that's this office right here.
So given this, it's a good idea
to have a comfortable home office setup.
And for some working remotely it might even
become a long-term arrangement.
- So here are five useful tips
on how to make sure that your home office
is set up to keep you productive
and healthy, however long you need it.
- Starting with, create a work environment
that makes you feel good.
That's what this room does for me.
It helps me stay focused.
And the goal of creating a home office set up
is to create a space where you feel you can be productive
but also creative and inspired.
And that will depend on the work you do of course,
but create an organized area
where you will not be distracted
by family, friends, and other household tasks.
And you might wanna choose a space
with some natural light.
I love sitting in front of this window here
and make sure that your monitors are not affected
by any glare.
- Yeah. And consider healthy ergonomics
that best fit your comfort level and physical condition.
What works for others isn't necessarily
what will work for you.
Like for me it was this nice little chair
where it goes all the way up,
I'm pretty comfy over here.
But also a door that you can close
at the end of the day is ideal.
This will help separate your work from your home life.
What works for others
isn't necessarily what will work for you.
And if you're purchasing a new office chair
if you're able to sit in it for several minutes
and adjust it, move it around
just so you know what to expect
before bringing it to your home workspace.
With me I got to basically play around with this chair
and it was the perfect fit.
It's a gaming chair, gamers like to sit
and play X-Box or play on the PC.
I'm basically doing the same thing
with my work sitting all day.
And I had to make sure that it was comfy enough for me
to basically live here all day.
But some people may enjoy working while standing.
So you might wanna consider a desk
that you can adjust as well.
- I wish I would have taken your advice, Nealy.
I got a new office chair during this pandemic
and it's not the most comfortable, but it's stylish.
(laughs) So also get the best type of computer
for your work PC or Mac, desktop or laptop.
If you work remotely for someone else
this decision might be made for you.
If not, here's some food for thought.
Let's start with desktop computers.
Now, desktops, they're a great solution
even though they take up more space
and they're not as portable as laptops,
but you can think of them as your home base or server.
And desktops they have limitless storage
as it's easy to add hard drives.
And if you're doing anything creative
or graphic intensive, desktops are ideal
because of external PCI express video cards
which are much more powerful than any options on a laptop.
- And if you don't need a desktop tower,
but like the other advantages,
then consider getting a smaller sized PC
or even a mini PC.
All in ones where the computer is built into the screen
are also a good option as well.
If you need something that's more practical
than a laptop at home
and have larger screens and more desk space.
- But back to the laptops.
Again, my preference at home,
laptops are the default option for working remotely.
Since you can just pick it up,
leave your workspace, change rooms
and when buying a laptop be sure to look at business class
or enterprise laptops with SSD drives.
or solid state hard drives
as they usually have better warranties
and are built to last much longer
than consumer grade computers.
- The SSD drive is a must upgrade for any laptop
with a regular spindle style SETA hard drive.
Not only will you boot up your computer much faster
but the difference in overall responsiveness
is also incredible,
which really brings us to our next part of this
is really finding the right monitors.
It's a good idea to invest in a bigger monitor
or even two monitors, highly recommended
with high resolution.
If you have the space when working remotely.
If it is within your budget,
consider adding an ultra wide monitor
for improved productivity instead of two monitors
- Also consider outfitting a corner desk.
If your work area is located in a corner
a wide curved screen might work well.
I mean, consider mounting your monitors
on a wall or use a mounting arm.
Like if your desk is not made of glass (laughs)
as it's going to allow you to save valuable work area
and easily adjust your monitors as needed.
I actually have adjustable mounting arm
for my laptop that I just love.
And some people like having one monitor
in landscape orientation
and another in portrait orientation
which is good for reading or editing documents
- Right. And now talking about laptops
since that's what both Emma and I use
Some of the accommodations when it comes to laptops.
And if you have a laptop that you're comfortable using
consider raising it to eye level.
So they're not hunched over hurting your neck and back.
You can also span your laptop workspace
over to another monitor
or even have two additional monitors with a laptop.
You're not limited by just that one screen.
If you have a business laptop that supports a docking station.
That's a plus.
And alternately you can buy a USB 3.0 to HDMI adapter
to expand your work area,
if you don't have the additional video port
or docking station.
- So now I wanna talk about the importance
of choosing the right accessories.
The right accessories can improve productivity
when working remotely and head off physical problems,
your back, neck shoulders, and repetitive stress injuries.
Now, I want to talk about your keyboard and your mouse.
I know for me personally,
I just switched over from just using my laptop track pad
to little mobile track pad over here and it's a game-changer.
So if you type quickly
you should consider a mechanical keyboard.
They're a little more expensive, but are very practical
and easy to use.
And when it comes to computer mice,
get a mouse that fits your hand
and feels comfortable and accurate enough
that you can almost sign your name with it on the screen.
And if you want to eliminate cables, like I did,
look into wireless mice and keyboard options.
I'm telling you game changer you guys.
- Absolute game changer.
And when it comes to a webcam,
it's just a necessity these days,
considering that everyone is using Skype
or Zoom for meetings.
Can use the ones that you have on your laptop
or buy an external webcam, or have a very expensive hobby
and set up your DSLR as your webcam.
But most webcams have built-in microphones.
And if yours don't, consider getting a headset instead.
- And all of this requires some power.
So let's talk about power supply.
If you're working from a desktop computer
and sure that it's plugged into a reliable power bar
surge protector, keep that in mind,
or even better a UPS
which is an uninterruptible power supply.
And these are basically standby batteries
which ensure that constant clean power is being provided
to your workstation.
Anyone who's ever lost work
because of an interruption in power can vouch for these.
- And if you have a laptop,
you don't really need to worry about a UPS
because it already has a battery inside of it.
However, if you still want a reliable search protector
to protect your equipment,
because there might be power spikes
like lightning, things like that, that can cause damage.
And something I haven't done yet
but we want to talk about find the right printer.
Yeah. I still walk up
to the UPS store to print anything that I need
but determine whether you need to print or scan at all,
working remotely often doesn't require
a lot of printed material
since we're communicating primarily through digital means,
laser printers are better option over inkjet
when it comes to like buying fewer plastic products.
Hello, the environment toner is something
you won't have to worry about nearly
as much as ink as toner cartridges lasts much longer
than inkjet cartridges.
- Now that you have the gear
and you set up where you want it
you're ready to get started.
Just remember, you know how you work best.
If bringing your in your espresso machine like Emma
or other small coffee dispensing machine into your workspace
enhances your creativity then do it.
Who cares? Just do it.
Everyone who works remotely does it differently.
So do everything that helps your productivity
and work-life balance
- Well said, Nealey.
And that's a wrap.
You just learn how to get the ideal home office set up
Be sure to comment below what's working for you
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So you get these episodes first, this is The Journey.
We'll see you next time.