Freelance Switch

5 Ideas for Choosing Your Home Office Equipment Setup

Posted: 20 Apr 2011 04:00 AM PDT

Credit: Jeremy Levine on Flickr

Now that you've made the decision to become a fulltime, stay-at-home freelancer, it's time to start thinking of ways to outfit your home office. There are a few things to consider when choosing home office equipment – form and function being part of it, but personality is important, too. The equipment in your home office needs to fit a set of criteria; such as: be supportive, ergonomic, useful, durable, affordable and yes downright cool. Let’s look at a few ideas to consider as you setup your home office.

Home Office Idea 1: Consider Support and Ergonomics

Tim Ferriss (the 4hr work week guy) did a great post a little while ago about choosing the right chair for your body. He crowdsourced six different seating options, and made his recommendation. Why a guy that only spends 4 hours per week at work needs a good chair is beyond me, but I do like his suggestion that the right chair is an investment in your body. If you've got the right support under you, you will be able to get more work done, enjoy it more, and have energy left to do other things when you’re done. Support comes from more than just the chair under you.

A proper footrest is great for those of us whose feet don't always touch the floor. The support on your feet will help prevent your legs from falling asleep, which also reduces the embarrassment found when you finally push yourself away from your desk, only to have your legs give out from under you. This model from ergoware offers a rocking motion, so when you're grooving out to Taylor Swift the footrest moves with you.

If you've ever had a cheap keyboard tray, you know it only takes about three pounds of pressure for it to snap off its hinges, and after you've done it once, it starts to do it on its own. Nothing breaks a train of thought faster than a keyboard dropped onto a very sensitive part of your anatomy.

A proper chair, footrest, and strong keyboard tray are essential for an ergonomic office set up, but don’t neglect purchasing a desk that can be adjusted to the proper position for you, and anything else needed for you to work the long freelance hours we put in, without developing chronic injuries.

Home Office Idea 2: Consider Usefulness

No matter how many monitors you're using, a monitor stand can put your screen where it needs to be – right in front of your eyes. I'm currently using an unopened copy of my local yellow pages, as it provides the right amount of height, and lets the virtually useless guide be useful one last time.

There's something cathartic about writing on a whiteboard, and it can be a very useful tool for brainstorming, tracking your outstanding invoiced and debts, or just a great tool to doodle on when you can't look at your screen any longer.

Almost as important as seating, the right lighting can help you focus on the task at hand. You're hoping to be under these lights for extended periods, so make sure that you find the right light for you. Unless you're getting a sunburn, you probably don't have enough lighting in your office.

You might not need quite a massive amount of storage, but it's better to have the storage space and not need it, than to need it and not know where the heck anything is. Also, organizing your storage is a great way to procrastinate on those projects you really aren't in to.

Good tunes are an essential part of freelancing, so why limit yourself to the crappy speakers on your laptop? Spend a few bucks and get yourself a decent sound system. Cranking AC/DC while writing your epic blog posts is an essential part of the creative process.

Home Office Idea 3: Consider Durability

It might only be bill collectors calling you right now, but in the not-so-distant future you are going to look forward to your phone ringing. Find yourself one that can handle life in a home office (able to fall off medium sized desks or survive minor waterboarding by coffee.) Apply this kind of durability test to other equipment you plan to purchase.

If you have a corded phone, make it comfortable to use but convenient to hide. When you're on an extended conference call with your client you'll be happy that you spent a bit of time finding a phone with the features you need, and you won't have to worry about your cell phone minutes getting wasted, or your cordless phone dying because the batteries won't hold a charge, or your spouse turned on the microwave. It's the little things that make you stand out as a professional, so make sure your equipment is made to last, and has the functions you need.

Home Office Idea 4: Cheap Economical

First, you need caffeine to freelance. It’s the law. Why would I suggest that an espresso maker is a key component to your office AND an economical choice? Well if you think about how much you will save instead of driving to Buckstars, a decent espresso machine will pay for itself in the first month. For a boatload of tips on keeping to a budget, it’s best to look to this article Getting Equipment on a Freelancer's Budget, which doesn’t even mention espresso makers, I can’t understand why?

Home Office Idea 5: Yes, Consider How Cool It Is

OK, now that you've gone and got a useful keyboard tray, make it cool by ordering this custom job to hold your wireless keyboard and magic pad.

You could get yourself a pen that just writes, but why not grab one that will digitize everything you do or say?

Help yourself deal with the stuff that needs to be done, but it’s too easy to just slide to the corner and hide under old coffee cups. Knockknock.biz has some great tools to help you focus on the less-than-fun parts of freelancing.

We all hope to see a lot of green in our freelancing career, but until those big dollars start rolling in, you should make sure your office has at least one or two cool plants to keep you company. Keeping it alive can be a welcome distraction to take care of, and it adds to a healthy environment in your home office.

While we shouldn’t let the cool factor, or our personal style, dictate all of our home office purchases, it’s important to get at least a few items that really make our home office fun.

The Right Home Office Equipment Setup for You

Now that you've got an idea of some of the amazing items available to help create the right office environment for you, it's time to start booking jobs, calling clients, and cashing checks. Good luck choosing the right equipment and setting up your home office!

Photo credit: Some rights reserved by Jeremy Levine.