Like pretty much everyone in my profession, I’ve been working remotely since March of this year due to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic.
Initially it was thought that this was only going to be for two weeks, although it soon became apparent that it was going to last much longer.
As this was thought to be a temporary measure I initially didn’t put much thought into my workstation. We had an old desk tucked away which I started to use. I placed a large cardboard box on top of it to support my laptop and used it as a standing desk. You can see in the image below that this was a far from elegant solution.
I spent the first four months rotating between this setup, the dining table and the sofa. As it became apparent that remote working was likely to go on for the rest of the year, if not longer, I decided that I needed to seriously invest in my working environment.
The first thing I did was get a new desk. This, along with a trip to the office to pick up my monitor and other peripherals made all the difference.
The next thing I did was buy a decent office chair. Initially I’d bought a fairly cheap one, but I soon realised that this was not a good idea. After a month or so of using this I was convinced that I needed something better.
After some research I decided to purchase a Herman Miller Mirra 2. This was a big investment, but if I was going to be spending 40 hours a week at my desk for the foreseeable future, it would be worth it.
Eventually my workspace became similar to what you can see in the image below. It has evolved since I took this photograph but you get the general idea.
I may or may not be returning to the office at some point next year, but either way I’m very happy with my setup and feel it was worth the effort (and the expense) to get it to where it is now.
My preference would be to continue working remotely, partly because of the investment I’ve made, but also because I feel like I have performed much better as a result of this. The feedback I’ve received this year supports that.
The biggest lesson for me from all of this is that if you’re serious about the work you do, it really is worth the investment in making your working space as good as it can be.