Vital Ingredients for Building Your Work from Home Oasis

Working from home can be a real blessing if you’re a disciplined, dedicated worker. You don’t have to deal with the distractions that come with office work and can save up to $12,000 per year that would’ve been spent on your commute.

However, if you want to make the most of remote work, you’ll need to make some adjustments to your current setup. Strategic tweaks to your setup can turn your home office into a productivity oasis that supports your career aspiration and enhances your efficiency.

The best WFH setups can boost your well-being, too. This is crucial, as you deserve to feel your best when working from the comfort of your own home and should be able to take full advantage of small luxuries like yoga breaks, healthier snacks, and self-care tools.

Relocating

Before you start building your perfect home office, it’s important to ask yourself a more fundamental question: can your home support remote work? If the answer to this question is “no,” you may need to consider relocating to work from home. When choosing a place to work remotely, consider factors like:

• Core Responsibilities: Will you need to live in a particular time zone? Do you need to visit the office once a month? Do you have access to the resources that you need?

• Tools and Tech: Can your current home provide reliable, high-speed wifi? Will you need to move to an area with improved coverage or increased access to coworking spaces?

• Family and Friends: Remote work gives you the freedom to live near the people you love. Being near supportive relationships can make a world of difference to your mental health and help you feel grounded in the community.

• Taxes and Laws: Do state laws allow you to live the way you want? Do you need to move states to enjoy lower tax rates? Will you be liable for tax in two states, even if you’re working remotely?

• Cost of Living: Can you afford to live in your prime location? Would a move to somewhere with a lower cost of living help you reach your financial goals sooner?

Answering these questions can help you decide if a move is right for you. Relocation can be a financially savvy switch, too, as some states offer lower tax rates while others have a far cheaper cost of living. This can help you hit key financial goals when planning to buy your next home, save for retirement, or invest in your family's future.

Making the move out of a busy city or town can do wonders for your health, too. You won’t be breathing in car emissions all day long and will benefit from cleaner air when living and working in a more remote area.

Air Quality

It’s easy to overlook the importance of air quality when working from home. After all, you aren’t breathing in smog-like air when working from your home office and can escape air quality warnings associated with living in big cities. However, that doesn’t mean that you can overlook air quality altogether.

Instead, build your WFH oasis by focusing on plants and air purifiers that clean your air. Tech like HEPA air purifiers reduce dust and pollen in the air and can help you combat hay fever and irritation. Similarly, plants can improve air quality by sucking up carbon and toxic gasses. They also remove dampness and thrive in places like offices where condensation is likely to build up.

You can further improve your air quality by embracing biophilic design and improving ventilation. Depending on your budget, this may mean that you install ceiling fans and whole-house fans. Alternatively, you can get air moving on a budget by opening the windows in the morning to allow cool air into your home. Just be sure to test the air quality of your house for VOCs to see which steps have made the biggest impact.

Wellness Tips as you work from home

Remote work can improve your overall wellness and help you achieve your fitness goals. You have far more free time when you don’t need to commute to the office and may benefit from better lunch breaks when you aren’t trying to navigate canteen queues when working in an office. Get the ball rolling by introducing work-from-home wellness habits to your routine like:

• Comfort: Make your setup more comfortable by investing in accessories like blue-light-blocking glasses and desks that are suited to office work. This ensures you’re able to work in comfort and will prevent strain injuries associated with poor posture.

• Routines: A good routine keeps you grounded and gives your life a rhythm. Make sure you set aside time for hobbies and exercise as part of your daily routine, too.

• Breaks: Sitting for extended periods is bad for your health and may lead to serious fatigue. Get up and move your body once an hour to refresh physically and mentally.

• Exercise: A brisk walk or run before your workday starts is a great way to get in the mood for work. You can even use your lunch breaks for yoga and pilates, as this will help you hit the mental “reset” button.

• Hydrate: Water is crucial for your mental health and cognition. Aim to drink 6 - 8 glasses per day and adjust accordingly if you notice that you need a little more water than usual.

These self-care steps help you stay mentally fresh and will boost your mood. This can be transformative if you’re used to working from a kitchen table and rarely take the breaks that you need. Consider embracing some other self-care hobbies, like reading books or journaling, to make the most of your newfound free time when working remotely.

Conclusion

Building a work from home oasis is all about taking proactive steps to improve your health and well-being. Even simple changes, like reorganizing your desktop, can improve your posture and support your productivity. Working remotely may give you the chance to relocate, too, which can be a real boon if you want to spend more time with your family and friends.