Creating a home office is a great way to take advantage of work-from-home and hybrid working schedules. If your employer allows you to work from home for a day or a few each week, it's a good idea to start planning out your home office. This can be a dedicated room or space where a desk and chair can be situated. After working from home for 14 years, I have some tips to help you create the home office of your dreams without spending too much money.

1 Invest in a good chair

Your back is incredibly important and so too is the way you sit. If you're going to spend hours sitting at a desk in your home office, it's vital to invest in a high-quality chair. But if you already own seating and don't wish to spend hundreds on a fancy new office chair, a back pillow would help provide additional support and improve lumbar support. As always, I recommend taking small breaks every now and then to not only stretch your legs but provide much-needed rest for your eyes.

2 Tidy up your cabling

Keeping your home clean and tidy creates a welcoming environment that improves your mental health and wellbeing. The same goes for a home office. The first call of action is to ensure all cabling is either hidden from view or carefully routed with necessary cable ties. Whether it's power or data cabling, I recommend bunching them together with cable ties to create a cleaner look for improved productivity. A quick wipe of your desk, PC, and keyboard each week should stop too much dust from accumulating.

3 Add some light

I'm not talking about RGB lighting specifically, but the installation of bright lighting for daily work hours can help reduce eye strain. Smart home lighting ecosystems such as Philips Hue can be controlled through your phone and can even be set to automatically adjust light levels throughout the day. A monitor light can also be a worthwhile addition to your desk, especially if you work into the later hours when natural light begins to fade.

4 Bring nature indoors

Plants are a fantastic addition to any indoor environment. You don't have to purchase specific breeds but if you have a personal favorite, placing one or two in your office can transform the ambience. If you're after some recommendations, I'd suggest looking at a small palm or devil's ivy, the latter of which can even help filter out the air. If you have a room dedicated to your home office, remember to factor in the heat generated from equipment, including networking gear, PC hardware, and your presence.

5 Upgrade your home internet

Standard internet plans are great for general usage, including streaming but it may not be enough for work and play. Depending on what you do for work, you may find your standard ISP plans offering slow speeds that can impact productivity, be it video calls or transferring data. I'd suggest testing your current connection for a couple of weeks and monitoring how many times you max out your connection. If it's frequent and noticeable (with longer download times) it may be worth it to contact your provider.

6 Type faster with a new keyboard

When typing thousands of words each day, a mechanical keyboard designed for hitting keys is a good way to improve productivity. If you're using a standard OEM keyboard with a mushy feeling it may be time to invest in a new keyboard. I've used countless keyboards and it's possible to pick up a quality mechanical keyboard for less than $100. Should you reside nearby a PC store with some demo units on display, head out and spend some time to see just how much of an upgrade this could be.