As many people are now spending more time than ever at home, even with pandemic restrictions loosening up around the world. The societal acceptance of being at home for longer durations have made the home a larger source of work and entertainment.
With limited space and rising costs of everyday items due to global events, many now have limited options for furnishing their homes. Luckily computer/ office setups can easily be used for multiple purposes beyond working from home.
Today we’ll go over some ideas of how you can use common equipment found at your home office setup that can be used throughout the home beyond just working.
Using Your Monitors for Work, Pleasure, and Other Purposes
When it comes to monitors, many immediately default to standard 20–32-inch monitors that have up to 1080p capabilities. These are usually the more inexpensive monitors that are marketed as great for everyday use.
While they are great if you simply want to do everything at your desk close by due to how small they are, larger screens are a possibility now that most modern screens contain at least an HDMI port.
Consider using larger screens, perhaps ones that are geared toward the living room. Most modern TVs, at least with smart-feature capabilities, can be plugged into via HDMI cable or have project features allowing you to protect your laptop screen without any required cables. You’ll be able to set up your desktop, or laptop, and use a larger screen for everything from working, watching movies, or playing games!
For those with limited space and are content using smaller screens, then consider upgrading and choosing a monitor with better performance. Currently, the best monitors you could use for your setup are HDMI 2.1 monitors. These monitors have been optimized for gaming with superior refresh rates for larger screen sizes, easily up to 4K! You’ll be able to enjoy the fluidity when watching movies and playing your favorite games.
While the improvements will be marginal for working purposes, for everything else, such as watching movies or playing games, you’ll notice a large improvement in quality and performance.
Your Desk Can Be Multi-Purpose
Depending on the desk you have, you’ll be able to easily use them for more than simply working. A desk is heavily dependent on the amount of space you have, the more space the more flexibility you have here.
Consider using a desk that has additional storage space, whether its cubbies, ledges, or storage containers included as part of the desk. You’ll be able to store things beyond “office” stationery such as toys, games, and other knick-knacks.
If you are looking to move your desk around to double as surface space for other purposes, then ensure your desk has wheels. A working desk could easily transform from a workstation to a kitchen island if you move it from one spot to your kitchen. While that may seem odd, it does allow you to save money and space.
While on the topic of portability, an alternative to desks with wheels is foldable desks. Like foldable tables you might use at parties in your backyard, these desks have been designed to have office-like surfaces but are easily movable to anywhere in your home.
Finally, a discussion about desks isn’t complete with standing desks with their rise in popularity in the last decade.
As you’ll be able to control the height of these adjustable/ standing desks, they are extremely useful, doubling as a surface you need to use while standing up. Beyond working while standing up, this could be useful for positioning things such as cameras or even for storing items below it if you were planning to leave it permanently high up.
Using Your Chair Around Your House
Chairs are a given in any home if you care about your back. Beyond having a chair for your working space, you’ll most likely have multiple chairs throughout your home including your dining table, your living room as a couch, and perhaps some in your patio and/or backyard.
Unlike the other items mentioned in the article which you might only have one or two at most, you could own multiple chairs throughout your home.
Chairs are extremely practical around the home. If you are someone working from home, you might be using multiple chairs to work. Perhaps you’ll be sitting at your desk working on your office chair, eating lunch while working at your dinner table, and finally gaming on your couch later in the evening.
With ergonomics in mind, it’s best to find an ergonomically optimized chair that can be easily portable around the home. Office chairs are the best option as these chairs have been ergonomically developed with workers sitting for hours at-end. They have several ergonomic features which you can utilize if you move them from your desk to your kitchen, or even to your living room.
Ensure the chair is comfortable and you’ll find yourself using it all over your home whether working, watching a movie, or having an intense gaming session!
Conclusion
Home office equipment such as monitors and desks can easily be used throughout the home for other purposes, particularly for storing items when it comes to desks and used for movies/gaming monitors. Chairs are the easiest to move around and use around the home as any common household may already own multiple chairs.
While today we’ve only discussed the main items of your home office setup, many other items around the home could easily have multiple uses. Look around and write ideas of how you can reuse some of these items. This will not only reduce your impact on the environment but save additional money in your wallet.
