While I love working away from the comfort of my own home, there’s one thing that tends to put a damper on the experience of remote work: an uninspiring (or worse, uncomfortable) home office set-up.
Simple solutions to your home office issues:
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 36% of Australian employees now work from home on a regular basis; to put that in perspective, that’s more than one in three workers. But if you ask me, most of us have yet to perfect our home offices; I know I definitely haven’t.
From uncomfortable office chairs to unruly cables, there’s a fair few things to avoid when curating your dream workspace, and if you’re working with a particularly small space (like me), locking in a great layout becomes even trickier. But luckily, I’ve found a range of simple fixes for common WFH woes. From versatile standing desk designs to ergonomic seating, these are my must-haves for the perfect home office.
How to make your home office more practical
A lack of practicality is one of the most common home office issues facing remote workers. The solution, however, is remarkably simple: opting for a setup that not only looks good, but works hard too.
Checklist for a practical home office:
☐ Standing desk
☐ Ergonomic chair
☐ Cable & power organiser
☐ Walking pad
There are three key elements to consider when curating a workspace centred on practicality: organisation, comfort, and versatility. In essence, the perfect setup should move with you and make it easy to stay tidy and organised. A classic standing desk and walking pad combo is a great starting point, with handy accessories like monitor stands, storage, and clever cable management solutions being brilliant add-ons for those with budget left over. Of course, you’ll want to invest in an ergonomic chair too.
One particular home office bundle really stands out for functionality-focused decorators: Desky’s Dual Hardwood Sit Stand Desk, complete with the Integrated Cable & Power Channel, Minimal Monitor Stand, and Under Desk Drawer. The setup includes everything you need to stay organised (and inspired), and lends an elevated aesthetic to your WFH space. I’m personally very fond of the Walnut Hardwood and Wheat colourway combo, but there are plenty of options to suit any and all preferences.
Desky Dual Hardwood Sit Stand Desk
from $1,149 at Desky
Ergo Lounge
$395 at Recess
Minimal Monitor Stand
from $129 at Desky
LSG Steps A1 Walking Pad
$355 at Myer
How to make a tiny home office work
Since moving to my tiny apartment, I’ve been hunting down a selection of clever, space-saving home office furniture. For me, my options are to find the smallest desks and chairs on the market or spend my WFH days working-from-couch. As one might expect, this has become somewhat of an area of expertise for me.
Checklist for small home offices:
☐ Wall-mounted desk
☐ Adjustable chair
☐ Wall-mounted shelving
☐ Cord management box
As strange as it might sound, the one small office space hack I’m most fond of is simply choosing a wall-mounted desk, like the Thermis Desk from Cozey (which, conveniently, can be configured with additional mounted cabinets for floating storage)! Add in a handy cable management box and an adjustable chair that doesn’t take up too much room, and you’ll have yourself a full home office setup that barely takes up a mere square metre of floor space.
Themis Wall Mounted Desk
$270 at Cozey
Desky Arco Office Chair
$648.90 at Desky
Themis Wall Mounted Cabinets
$570 at Cozey
Cable Management Box
$36.99 at Amazon
How to decorate your workspace
The final fix for uninspiring home offices is arguably the most fun: decorating your space.
Checklist for a well-designed home office:
☐ 2027 planner
☐ Carafe & glass
☐ Lamp with warm lightbulb
☐ Home fragrance
To me, great decorating takes aesthetics, practicality, and the senses into account, introducing all the small objects that inspire a sense of ritual. In the context of a home office, this means soft lighting (because nobody should be suffering under the big light when working from home), something stylish to drink from, a planner you’ll want to keep on display, and an inspiring choice of fragrance.
Think of these four things as the core; the bits that make the most difference to your workday. And while you can stop there if you like a minimalistic desk, of course, you can add as many additional decorative pieces as your heart desires. Perhaps a throw blanket for colder days, or a stylish fan for days when temperatures spike.
Colourful Check 2027 Diary
$46.75 (was $55) at Papier
J’ai Soif Carafe & Glass
$99 at Maison Balzac
Hoist Lamp Faded Denim
$223.20 (was 279) at Dennis Did It
Acqua Di Parma Gelsomino Diffuser
$227 at David Jones
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