Working from home

Steps to getting set up right:

The fundamentals

• Designate a room or quiet area in your home for your office. This will allow you to give yourself work-life balance – you don’t want your kitchen bench being the office as you’ll just think work when you should be thinking about your family next time you’re at it. Access to sunlight and some fresh air will also help you keep going.
• Ensure you have a sturdy desk which is sizable enough to allow you to type, write, place your cup of coffee, and your phone.
• Invest in an ergonomic chair – your back and neck will thank you for it.

The specifics

• You might be at home but you’re still working, so you will still need much of the same equipment as you would have if you where in the actual office.
• A computer – if you prefer to use a laptop as it gives you the flexibility to be mobile, do consider hooking it up to a monitor that sits stationary at your desk, along with an ergonomic keyboard and mouse.
• Wireless Modem/Router – it will allow you to share your internet connection with multiple devices and allow you to continue working out on the patio if the sunshine is too hard to resist.
• Phone – if you’re lucky enough to have a phone supplied by work, great. If not, consider using  VoIP, Skype or instant messaging via the internet.
• MFC (multi function centre) – an all-in-one device that allows you to print items, scan and fax (for those of us that still use it).
• A good phone/internet plan – you’ll be using your own home plan, so do make sure that it will be plentiful so you don’t incur any ridiculous overcharges.
• Back up & storage – If your work has remote desktop (allows you to virtually work as though you were in the office with all the same software and services), then all your files will be backed up and stored for you. You’ll use your computer for your personal stuff (photos, family movies) outside of remote desktop, so you should have a back up solution in place regardless. A good solution is a NAS, which will allow you to share your information in a central location, recover the info should disaster strike as well as access this data from wherever you need it.
• Surge protector – you’ve invested in your own equipment, so protect it from electrical surges which aren’t often picked up from your home electrical switchboard.
• Finally, ensure you follow what ever process and protocols your IT department gives you. We’re pretty sure one of the fundamentals will be that you have reputable anti-virus & malware software installed on your computer (again, you should have this in place regardless). If you’re your own boss, consider a cloud solution. Check with your ISP or Microsoft for the offerings available.

OH&S

• We’ve covered the items that will help you with good ergonomics, but there are a couple more OH&S guidelines your work may request of you, such as ensuring your have a fire extinguisher on hand as well as a First Aid Kit. You should have these in your home regardless of whether you work from home or not. They are readily available (many supermarkets stock these) and it’s just good to be always be prepared.

And of course, setting it all up so that it all works together

• If you’re a little overwhelmed with having to set this all up, let a gizmotech help you with this. We can help you with more than just computer support.

Have more questions or need help? Contact Gizmo on 1300 275 449 or help@gizmo.com.au