Work from home is becoming more popular, and a lot of the credit goes to the ever-evolving technology. A large number of employees are saying goodbye to the onerous commute to the office, which involves long waiting times in traffic queues, facing harsh weather conditions, exposure to pollution, and much more.
With texting and mailing programs, applications like Skype, Slack, Asana, Google Hangout, Zoom, and FaceTime are giving employers as well as employees the option to stay in touch while working remotely. You can handle most if not all important tasks smoothly and efficiently without needing to be in the office full-time.
How to Work Effectively From Home?
Whether you are a part-time remote worker or shifting to work from home full time, you must set up to be productive. You must have a designated workspace with all the required technology and gadget in place to handle everyday tasks with great efficiency. You must know how to deal with kids or potential disruptions without affecting your work routine.
Not everyone can have a designated workspace or home office. Whether or not you can arrange the best corner for your home office, make sure to have a quiet space where you can place your desk. Also, your work desk must be away from the personal area, such as the living room where kids or family members used to stay the entire day.
Let’s now discuss what technology and gadgets you will need to handle your work tasks from home.
What Devices, Gadgets & Technology Do You Need?
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Computer System
First things first, you must have a smooth running computer to work efficiently from your home. You do not necessarily need a high-end device. However, you must ensure that your computer integrates all important specifications to handle your work tasks without lags.
External Storage
Since you are dealing with a lot of files daily, your hard drive will be saturated soon. To prevent encountering a hard drive full message and associated performance issues, you must get an external hard drive. If not, you must learn more about the alternate tips to clean storage regularly.
Keyboard & Mouse
Having responsive peripherals will ensure you carry out your day-to-day work tasks smoothly. If you are a designer or a programmer, you might need to invest in an ergonomic mouse and keyboard with an excellent design that is easy on your fingers.
There is no need to spend a lot of money on an expensive mouse or keyboard. Simple ones will do the job so long as they are sturdy and comfortable to use.
Internet Connection
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When working from home or in a remote location, having reliable internet connectivity is a must. You cannot perform your everyday work tasks such as emailing, messaging, video conferencing, video editing, or chatting with colleagues without connecting to the internet.
In case you run into internet troubles, get in touch with your ISP as they can offer more insight due to available information. Switching to a more powerful router is also a good approach. And if you are someone who relies on Wi-Fi, consider getting an ethernet cable instead.
External Screen
Adding a screen to your computer will help deliver an outstanding user experience. An external bigger screen with a high-resolution display will ensure you have the best output while preventing your eyes from straining.
Some people go for a double monitor setup because it is more convenient to move your mouse across to another screen rather than switch tabs on a single monitor. Sure, the extra costs and maintenance are on the negative side, but if an upgrade like this helps with your overall work productivity, spending money is usually worth it.
Dedicated Webcam
Your computer or laptop may already have a webcam built-in, but they may not be as good as the standalone ones When it comes to clarity. If you need to attend a lot of management or client meetings, you must invest in a dedicated standalone webcam for good-quality videos.
USB Dock
If you are planning to work on a laptop, specifically MacBooks, you might not get many options when it comes to connectivity ports. Therefore, having a USB dock with all essential ports, including HDMI or Thunderbolt USB 3, will enable you to connect all required devices and peripherals.
Cooling Pad
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When you are working on your laptop all day long in a stretch, you must be using a lot of apps which results in heating the device. Installing a cooling pad beneath the laptop ensures proper ventilation and prevents the device from overheating.
One thing to note, though, is that you should still prioritize cleaning the dust inside a laptop because a cooling pad is not the complete solution to the overheating problem. It is something you should treat as an extra, but even a cooling pad will not cut it if there is too much dust inside the computer.
Laptop Stand
More often than not, you are handling most of the tasks from your computer desk. Although it is comfortable, installing a laptop stand will give an optimal height to the laptop screen, and you won’t have to slouch to type on the keyboard.
Ergonomics Chair
Investing in an ergonomics chair is a long-term investment that not only makes you productive but prevents you from several health issues. Maintaining a posture is important to avoid backaches, neck aches, eye strains, and similar issues.
These days, proper ergonomic chairs are not that expensive, and if we are talking about health, there is no real price that you should set for it, right?
Should or Should You Not Work From Home?
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Working from home brings along many benefits, and flexible schedules are one among them. Some remote jobs want their employees to work 9 to 5, while some give the flexibility to work as per convenience.
You need to meet the target under both situations, though. Since you get a perfect work and life balance and the ability to look after your kids, one must opt for a work-from-home schedule if possible.
