I have always dreamed of becoming a freelancer, and after working full-time, this thought comes to me every month like menstruation.

Work where you want every day, with full control over your own time and pace.

But before doing this, I imagined countless times what a home combined with work would look like.

The homes of SOHO workers are definitely a little different from those of ordinary people, because for them, home is both a place to live and a place to work.

Need a black (white) board wall

Working from home actually brings many problems.

First of all, never overestimate your self-control and underestimate human laziness.

Write your to-do list somewhere prominent in your home.

For example, if you want to paint a blackboard wall or a whiteboard wall, now both blackboard paint and whiteboard paint are water-based paints, which are safe and pollution-free.

You can write your schedule on it to remind yourself at all times, and also record some fleeting inspirations. After all, most freelancers need to rely on creativity to make a living.

For more detailed information about the blackboard wall, please click here.

▲ Image source: hobbyman.se

▲ Image source: pinterest

More ceremonial than ordinary workspaces

▏Workspace as the core▕

If work becomes the most common thing done at home, then the workspace deserves special treatment.

You can consider setting up the core area of ​​your home as a work area, such as the center of the living room.

A home with a table as its centerpiece looks more unique!

▲ Image source: pinterest

▏The desk should be big!! ▕

The table needs to be big!

A large table is placed in front of the window. The sun is shining brightly, and the mood is good. I feel refreshed at work. This is a state of mind that a small table can never give me.

Moreover, people who work at home have more work supplies, so it is best to put frequently used books or office supplies on the table where they can be reached by hand.

You can also place a storage cabinet next to the table, or install shelves on the wall to store office supplies that are not used frequently.

Otherwise, you have to get up frequently and go somewhere else to get things, which is troublesome enough just thinking about it.

▲ Image source: pinterest

▏Desktop Storage▕​

No matter how big the desk is, it’s useless if it’s a mess.

How to organize desktop?

Compared to large fixed items such as computers and desk lamps, the things that actually waste the most desk space and affect the neatness of the desk are the small items scattered on the desk.

Storing small items is actually not that difficult.

MUJI's transparent acrylic boxes are very convenient. They come in large and small sizes, and you can see what's inside, making it very easy to take out.

▲ Image source: taobao.com

If you need to put a lot of books on your desk, a book stand is essential.

This way you don't have to mess up a pile of books just to find one, which improves work efficiency.

▲ Image source: taobao.com

Another issue that cannot be ignored is the storage of power cords and power strips. Mobile phone chargers, computer chargers, power strips, headphone cables, all kinds of cables can easily become a tangled mess when placed on the desk.

So here I would like to recommend a magic tool. If you search the keyword "socket storage box" on Taobao, you will find good things.

▲ Image source: taobao.com

▲ Image source: taobao.com

If every electronic device on the table takes up a socket to charge, then the power strip won’t be able to hold up.

If you have a lot of electronic devices, you may need a multi-port charger . A 5-port or 6-port desktop charger is most suitable, but you must pay attention to the output parameters. It is best if each port can withstand an output of more than 1A at the same time.

Now there is a multi-port charger with built-in storage function, which is good news for people with obsessive-compulsive disorder!

▲ Image source: taobao.com

▲ Image source: taobao.com

In order to avoid suspicion of advertising, I will not post the link above. If you are interested, you can use Taobao's image search method.

Be sure to choose a professional office chair

For people who sit for long periods of time while working, chairs are much more important than tables, and they have a huge impact on your health and posture.

After all, you have to sit for at least 6 hours a day or even longer. If you sit in a chair for more than ten hours a day, within two or three years, you will experience varying degrees of pain in your back and cervical spine, and herniated disc is even more common.

Many people buy some exquisite and beautifully shaped chairs for the sake of appearance. Those chairs are not for work! It is okay to have afternoon tea, but if you have to sit for 6 hours a day, you must go to the hospital to check your lumbar spine as soon as possible!

Therefore, you must choose a proper ergonomic chair to minimize the harm to your body caused by sitting for a long time.

▏How to judge the quality of office chairs? ▕

However, there are too many low-quality office chairs on the market that claim to be ergonomic chairs, which are simply the number one killer in the office.

How to judge the quality of an office chair?

First, look at the price

There is basically no good chair that guarantees health within 1,000 yuan.

Second, look at the lumbar support

The most important factor affecting the comfort of a chair is the lumbar support.
Many office chairs seem to have lumbar support, but when you sit on them, your waist feels empty and you can't feel any support at all.

▲ Image source: www.waufen.com.br

A good chair has a backrest that can completely wrap and support the back.

▲ Image source: Design Within Reach

Third, look at the tilt strength of the chair back

Different people have different weights, so the amount of chair back tilt they need is different.

The tilting force of ordinary chairs is fixed, which means that light people cannot lean on them, while heavier people will lean to the bottom all of a sudden, and not only will they not feel supported, but they will also easily fall over. . .

With a good chair, everyone can find the strength that suits their weight when sitting on it.

▲ The chair back fits the back curve perfectly. Source: HWZ Forums

Fourth, look at the handrails

The easiest way to tell is to see whether the armrests of the chair are connected to the back of the chair or to the seat cushion.

The armrests of a chair are connected to the backrest. When leaning back, the armrests can maintain the same angle as the person's back, providing comfortable arm support.

▲The armrests of a chair are connected to the backrest. When you lean back, the armrests also tilt. 

Image source: HWZ Forums

The armrests of inferior chairs are connected to the seat cushion, and when you lean back, the armrests remain in the original position, making it impossible to place your arms comfortably.

The structure of the armrests is not very important in terms of comfort, but it is the easiest way to test the quality of a chair, because any detail of high-quality design can stand the test.

▏Brand Recommendation▕​

The following brands are generally the most popular in China.

Generally, the world's top 500 companies or well-known foreign companies will choose Aeron and Embody from Herman Miller as office chairs for their employees.

The price of the standard version of Aeron is around 7,000 to 8,000 yuan, and the price of the standard version of Embody is around 12,000 to 13,000 yuan.

▲ The chair Jim Parsons sat on in The Big Bang Theory was Aeron

Image source: pinterest

▲ Embody office chair Source: Herman Miller

Humanscale's Diffrient World Chair is also very popular because of its extremely high cost-effectiveness. I personally bought it for about 3,500 yuan. Compared with Aeron, it is easier to operate and does not require too many settings.

▲ Diffrient World Chair Source: apresfurniture.co.uk

The first domestic brand recommended is Taiwan's Baoyou.

Baoyou Furniture is a leader in the domestic ergonomic chair market. It is said that Tencent’s employee office chairs are purchased from Baoyou.

The Jinhao series can be said to be the most cost-effective chair of Baoyou. It is a classic work of Baoyou and has received high praise online.

The price is around 3,200 yuan.

▲Jinhao S-HAM Source: taobao.com

Although a good chair is expensive, it is worth it if you think about how often and how long you will use it.

Height of tables and chairs

The height of tables and chairs is also an issue that cannot be ignored.

If the desk is too high and the chair is too low, people will be forced to crouch down, which shortens the visual distance and can easily lead to spinal curvature and myopia over time.

The chair is too high, the table is too low, and the whole body leans forward, which increases the pressure on the lumbar spine. If this continues for a long time, lumbar muscle strain and lumbar disc herniation are inevitable sooner or later.

▲ The chair in the picture is obviously too high. Source: wikipedia.org

Therefore, the heights of tables and chairs must match, and the height difference between tables and chairs should be controlled within the range of   28cm~32cm .

The correct height of the table and chair should enable people to maintain two basic verticals when sitting: first, when both feet are flat on the ground, the thighs and calves can be basically vertical. At this time, the front edge of the seat surface cannot form pressure on the lower plane of the thigh.

Second, when the arm is placed on the table in a natural position, the upper arm and forearm are basically vertical.

Just can make people maintain correct sitting posture and writing posture like this.

▲ Image source: sohu.com

In addition, the space under the desk surface should be no less than 58cm high and no less than 52cm wide to ensure that people have enough room for their legs to move when using it.

Choice of office location

Of course, it would be best to have a separate study room.

For those who don’t have a study room, it is recommended to choose a location in the living room or dining room , because if it is in the bedroom, it is likely that you will lie down on the bed involuntarily when you see it...

If your friends don't come to your house often, the living room will become a living room instead of a living room to you.

Since it is a living room, of course everything should suit your own living habits.

For someone who doesn’t watch TV and basically only goes to the cinema to watch movies, such a large living room is really a waste.

It is better to turn the entire living room into a personal studio, put a large table there, and place a single sofa against the wall (a smaller two-seater or three-seater sofa will also do), so that you can lie down for a while when you are tired.

▲ Source: sfgirlbybay.com

▲ Image source: pinterest

If you think this layout is too personal, the common practice is to combine the dining room and study into one room, making it a dual purpose.

Eat here when it's time to eat, and work here during normal times.

▲ Image source: mulley.us

What is not suitable is a long shelf table. Although it saves space, SOHO workers are lonely to begin with, and facing a wall all day long will make them feel suffocated.

▲ It would be so uncomfortable to work like this for a day. Although the space seems larger, you don’t ride a bicycle at home.

Image source: MoD Design Guru

Only a broad vision can ease your mood.

Life is short. Since you have to spend so much time working, try to be happy at work.

It's easy to make money, but it's not easy to do what you like.

What, you work just to make money?

Making money just to not have to work?

All right.