Creating a Home Workspace That Supports Productivity and Healthy Sleep

Struggling to cope with your new work-from-home environment? This may be a unique situation for you, one that proves difficult to adjust to if you're used to going to the office every day. And since everybody else is working at home as well, it can prove frustrating to find a space that gives you peace and allows you to focus on the task at hand. Failing to adapt to this new norm can have a debilitating impact on your sleeping habits as well. Thankfully, a few simple changes can help you create a home workspace that's conducive to both productivity and healthy sleep.

1) Avoid working in your bedroom

It's tempting to work while lying in bed all day. At first, you might find that this works wonders. But what you're doing is blurring the lines between your work and personal life. You need to set a clear boundary that separates work and sleep.

Unfortunately, it's not always possible to work away from your bed. This applies in particular to those with limited space in their home. If you find yourself with no other choice, what you can do is to zone your bedroom and create space specifically for your work. A designated work area helps maintain the status of your bedroom as a place for refuge and rest.

Don't see an end in sight for your work-from-home setting? If so, be extra cautious about your posture. As you know, sitting in front of your computer all day can lead to muscle soreness. Kate Barrington discusses hip pain and how it's exacerbated by extended hours of sitting with bad posture. You may want to invest in an ergonomic office chair and a comfortable mattress to help avoid chronic pain.

2) Soak some morning sunlight

One of the best things about working from home is that you have more freedom in your hands. You can use this newfound freedom to get some morning sunlight. Even 15 minutes of sun exposure early in the morning can benefit your productivity and sleep.

Sufficient sun exposure helps your body produce Vitamin D, which plays a critical role in regulating sleep. Not to mention, it can also serve as a natural energy booster. You might find that a few minutes under the sun is all you need to energize your body instead of always pouring yourself a cup of coffee.

3) Determine the best time to do your work

You might still have to follow a strict schedule, even when working from home. But you may be able to make a few adjustments to your routine that would benefit you in the long term. For instance, you might notice that you struggle to focus on analytical tasks early in the morning. In such a case, you can try doing some light work such as replying to emails in the morning and then rescheduling more difficult tasks for when you reach peak concentration.

This entails trial and error and conscious awareness of your productivity levels throughout the day. It takes a while to build a new routine and get used to it, but it's an excellent way to ensure that you're not compromising the quality of your work while getting enough rest at the end of each day.