Dedicating Space in Your Home for Your Business

Author

Danish Modern San Diego is happy to welcome guest blogger Lisa Walker.
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Lisa Walker is a proud stay-at-home mom. When she's not spending time with her boys or on a new home improvement project, she and her husband, Jake, enjoy trail hiking and beach-coming.

​Blog article formatted by Dawn Torres-Reyes.

Image via Pixabay

If you need some furniture and decor to help dress up your new office space, Danish Modern San Diego may have what you're looking for! Stop by our website to browse our selection of desks, chairs, and bookcases!

Running your business from home saves both time and money, but it also has its drawbacks. Conducting business in a space designed for sleeping, eating, and relaxing is less than ideal. In fact, according to Stanford News, working from home can be a "productivity disaster," with family members or roommates making noise during conference calls and online meetings, or interrupting when you need to focus. The need for a customized space with a door becomes obvious.

Assess Your Needs

The type of business you have dictates the space you need. Perhaps you have a back bedroom that would make a great home office. It is quiet and has a door to keep well-meaning family members out. However, if you meet with customers and clients, you may not want to lead them through the living room and down a hallway past other bedrooms. A room with easy access to an outside door may be important.

If your meetings will be virtual, then that guest bedroom may be the right location. Before you move in, look at the electrical outlets. Is there enough to power all your electronics? Are they in the right locations? Especially in older houses, the outlets and wiring may need the attention of an electrician. The decor is important, too. For your walls, look for a light shade of whatever color makes you feel good. A desk, chair, shelving, and cabinets in a style you like can make you feel more productive as well.

Renovate Your Space

Without a bedroom that fits your criteria, you may have to get creative. Some mudrooms and entryways can be conducive to a home-based business, particularly if you need outside access for your customers. A dining room may just need a wall or a door to set it apart from the rest of the house.

If you have a basement or attic, evaluate its potential. These types of spaces often need more than new paint on the walls, so you may not want to do it yourself. If the space is already finished and the job is as simple as building a wall or installing an outside door, then get quotes from local contractors and interior design services and choose the best bid. Conversions or additions are more complicated.

Convert or Add to Your House

Converting an attic often requires work on the insulation, walls, flooring, electrical outlets, heating, and air ducts, and windows. A garage conversion typically calls for all of this, plus replacing the garage door with walls and siding. Either can cost about half as much as building a new addition onto the house.

If your conversion is extensive or you decide you want a whole new addition, consider having an architect draw up a plan for you before you look for bids from contractors. Architectural firms often stick with commercial projects, but freelance architects are frequently willing to do a residential job and at a much lower price. You can find freelancers by searching online job platforms, which also typically have reviews. As with contractors and electricians, talk to three or four to learn pricing and a time frame for your project before choosing one.

Once your home-based business has its own space, you are likely to have an easier time setting work/home boundaries with the people who live with you. "Going to work" can become more pleasant when you have a dedicated space designed for it.