In need of some inspiration for your work-from-home space?
Never fear, our mini series Where I Work is here to serve all your interiors needs.
Each weekday throughout lockdown we’re going inside a different person’s home office to take a dive into the ins and outs of working from home, as the coronavirus pandemic makes this the norm.
Today we’re looking at how Justin Coakley, an interior designer living in London, works.
Justin, who’s originally from South Africa, lives in a terraced home in south west London with his partner, Zunaid.
He splits his time between interior design and creating content for his Instagram, doing all this work from the studio in his garden.
Hey, Justin! Tell us about where you work.
I have worked from home for the past year and a half.
We decided to renovate our garden last summer and that’s when I decided that I would love the addition of a Garden Studio from Malvern Garden Buildings – it allows me to have a designated office space that is not inside the house that I can commute to and treat as a separate entity to the house.
I have all the key essentials in my workspace. Desk, comfy desk chair, stationery, printer, pens and notebooks, but in addition to the equipment that I have in my studio I find that it is really important to have a space that reflects my personality and that I’m surrounded by things that give me pleasure.
I have always dreamt of having an office space that is more than just an office and actually feels like an extension of the home and that is what my studio from provides me with.
I have created a reading nook for those moments when I want to switch off or I simply want to alternate workstations to be able to sit on a comfy chair that doesn’t tempt me to want to go and sit inside the house. It is great as I can turn it to give me views of the garden.
I have a set of shelves above my desk that I like to rearrange and swap up and add to to keep the space inspiring and interesting.
I like to surround myself with plants in my workspace so weekly I will swap out plants from inside the house or I’ll bring some fresh cut flowers in a vase too.
I also have a portable speaker that I can stream music through whilst I am sat working.
Have you come up against any challenges with working from home?
I love working from home and it’s a huge added bonus that I don’t need to commute to work every day.
I have also found that I have been a lot more productive as I’m not interrupted by ringing phones and background noises, which really helps me to stay motivated and focused.
One challenge I would say is making sure that I stick to a routine. In the beginning I found this really hard as the commute to work used to prepare me for this.
What’s a working day like for you?
My usual working day would consist of getting up and getting dressed and ready for my working day.
I usually take my breakfast and a first cup of coffee with me to my studio and use this time to respond to my Instagram posts or if I have to post this is when I would do it.
I always allow myself an hour or so to engage with my comments and engage with other people on the gram.
Once I have done this I then set up my desk and laptop ready for my working day. I normally break at around 10:30am for a short break and then set back to work until 1pm for a lunch break.
On a usual day – when we’re not in lockdown – I would always take an hour off. This allows me time to either go to the shop for the night’s dinner or for a coffee shop break. At the moment I am using this hour to fit in my daily exercise and a shorter lunch break.
My usual workday will finish around 6pm.
I also try to vary up my workdays designating time in the mornings for emails and then after 11am is normally when I will shoot content if it is needed for a project I am working on.
The huge benefit of working from home is you can be flexible with your working day and lay out your day that best works for you.
What are your personal rules for working from home? How do you stay focused?
I would say the most important thing for me is to get showered and get dressed as it motivates me. I used to love planning my work outfits and it is still important for me to do so when working from home.
The temptation can be strong to roll out of bed and work on the sofa but it is important to create a designated work space that you can use to focus and it is not in front of a TV!
You need to strict with yourself, I find making sure I stick to a daily routine really helps. I always start my day off by compiling a list of things that I need to do and tick them off as I go along. A large part of helping myself be more productive is ensuring I plan ahead. There is something very empowering about being self-disciplined and getting the task at hand done.
Another thing I find really helpful is disconnecting from my phone and any distractions of social media. I either turn my phone off or leave it in the house so that I can only check it when I go in for short coffee breaks.
I function better in a neat and tidy workspace so I always ensure that any mess I have made throughout the course of the day is tidied up so that my working area is neat and clutter-free for the following day.
What advice do you have for people new to working from home?
Make sure that you are disciplined and stick to a routine as you would do if you were working in an office.
Give yourself time for a lunch break and short breaks in between as this is important to help you regain focus.
A good way to not get tempted by the television and Netflix is to not putting it on in the first place!
One of the things that has really worked for me is the fact that I can be flexible with my working day so if I want to do a two-hour workout or a cycle and then go back to my studio later in the day, I can. If this is the case then I always ensure that I put the hours back in on the same day.
If you don’t have an outside space to work from I would say it important to create a designated space that you can shut yourself off from and close the door from any distractions inside the house.
Do you have a snazzy home-working space you fancy sharing? To get involved in Where I Work email Ellen.Scott@Metro.co.uk.
MORE: Where I Work: Sandra, who works for a startup from her home in Berlin
source https://metro.co.uk/2020/04/10/work-justin-coakley-garden-studio-12536740/?ITO=squid
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