Working from home? Here's how to give your space a wellness boost

Home office space with colourful paint effect wall

(Image credit: Dulux)

published 16 March 2020

If you are currently working from home, you will know it has its perks (staying in your pjs, not having to make rounds of tea every ten minutes, etc. etc.), but there are so many more opportunities for distraction, so making sure you have a designated work space is key.

So, we have come up with some easy tips to turn your home office (or corner of your living room) into the most productive, inspiring space it can be. Oh, and there is plenty more where these came from over on our home office ideas hub page.

1. Get the lighting right

Home office in the eves of a loft conversion

When working from home, it’s vital to allow in as much natural light as possible. Particularly during the winter and spring months. A lack of natural light available during the day can adversely affect moods, focus and your body clock, making you feel tired and damage your concentration levels. The typical home workspace offers less than half the amount of natural light recommended to keep your mood elevated.

Negative effects can be reduced by using a SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) lamp. The main benefit of these special lights is that they are designed to simulate natural daylight, and can help to trick your body into thinking you’re working outdoors, even when the weather doesn’t allow you to do so.

2. Add some greenery

Using house plants as decorative items is an excellent way to spruce up a home office: they can greatly affect how to feeling working from home in a positive and productive way, helping you into an improved state of mind. It is thought that adding plants to an office space can help to reduce stress, anxiety and tension by up to 37 per cent, as well as increasing productivity and concentration by 15 per cent. Common houseplants remove carbon dioxide from the air, allowing you to benefit from a cleaner and healthier environment, too.

While pot plants and flowers can help to brighten up the room by creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere, if you are not great at taking care of plants they could become a distraction. Modern artificial plants can be very high-quality, almost indistinguishable from the real thing – and they last all year round. As a result, their permanent and vibrant colours can help to brighten up any home office atmosphere and bring a hint of low-maintenance ‘nature’ into your environment.

For loads of tips on how to display house plants head over to our feature.

3. Make the most of windows

Depending on how your office is set up this may be a challenge, but always try to make the most of as much natural light as you can – even if that means moving your furniture around.

The amount of daylight that people are exposed to can directly affect their concentration, mood and sleep quality, making it especially vital to your wellbeing if you are working from home on a regular basis. If the weather is not particularly inspiring due to the seasons or location, it is still worth positioning yourself in sight of a window so that you aren’t solely reliant on SAD lamps to keep your mind awake.

4. Choose natural scents

When feeling tired at work, many people reach for coffee or sugary foods in order to boost their energy to get to the end of the day. However, it almost goes without saying that this is not a healthy long-term strategy. A less intrusive technique is to use scented candles or natural essential oils. Lighting an array of scented candles may not be too popular in a busy office, but when you are working from home, it’s a subtle form of aromatherapy that could be the perfect remedy to brain fog as the day goes on. It may seem strange, but smell is a powerful sense and is a great way to help set a mood, reduce stress and get you into the right mindset for working.

Top tip: When choosing scents, do a bit of research into their properties. For example: cinnamon can stimulate the senses and improve concentration; citrus can help with alertness, and jasmine and rosemary can help with relaxation.

5. Take breaks and leave your desk

When it is time for a break, many people are likely to switch from their laptop to a mobile device to catch up on social media. However, moving from screen to screen is not a healthy way to maintain concentration.

Refresh yourself by turning off home working screens and taking a short walk, or if that isn't an option for you, just leave your desk, sit on the sofa with a cup of tea. Open your windows so you still get plenty of fresh air. You could even do a quick at home workout. The combination of movement and fresh air can help to reduce stress, and keep you both mentally and physically healthy.

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Hebe joined the Real Homes team in early 2018 as Staff Writer before moving to the Livingetc team in 2021 where she took on a role as Digital Editor. She loves boho and 70's style and is a big fan of Instagram as a source of interiors inspiration. When she isn't writing about interiors, she is renovating her own spaces – be it wallpapering a hallway, painting kitchen cupboards or converting a van.