1. The Desk
Bigger is better when it comes to desks. Try to choose one that has lots of room for your computer monitor, keyboard, telephone, and space to spread out paperwork and anything else that you may be working on at the moment. Pick a desk that has adequate drawer space and a file drawer for short-term filing of active projects.
If you choose a desk that has a built-in keyboard support shelf, make sure that the shelf it wide enough to hold your keyboard and still have plenty of room to let you perform natural mouse moment. Some of the new keyboard designs, such as the Microsoft "Natural", are wider than standard keyboards.
2. The Chair
Proper back and neck support is essential when you spend all day sitting down. Buy the best chair that you can afford. Your chair must have solid upper and lower (or lumbar) back support. A flimsy backrest puts stress on your spine while you're seated and causes back pain. Look for a chair where the lower portion of a backrest is slightly curved to follow the natural contour of your spine.
You chair's seat seat should feel comfortable when you initially sit down, and should remain that way after you've been seated for a significant period of time. If the seat becomes uncomfortable then the foam padding may not be a high enough density, or the contouring may not be right for your body.
Make sure you have plenty of room around your hips and thighs. You should have at least one inch of space on either side of your body. It is also important that your chair's seat properly supports your thighs without the edge of the seat coming in contact with the back of your legs while you are sitting.
3. File Cabinets
To keep your home office organized, and avoid clutter, you are going to need filing cabinets. There essentially two different files cabinets that are perfect for a home office. Here is a quick summary:
a) Vertical file cabinets
This is the most common file cabinet. Vertical cabinets are taller than they are wide so that they use a minimum amount of wall space. They have anywhere from two to five drawers and are the right size to hold hold letter and legal-size documents. They come in a variety of colors and gauges of steel. If you can afford to buy one that is fireproof, so much the better.
b) Lateral file cabinets
Lateral cabinets are wider than vertical cabinets, but not as deep, and are designed for high-volume storage capacity. They have anywhere from two to five drawers and can hold letter or legal-size documents. Files are either placed in the cabinet from left to right, facing the side of the drawer, or are arranged from front to back in multiple rows.
Many two-drawer lateral models are designed to fit underneath work surfaces and tables for additional storage and are often paired with a desk to increase horizontal space. Again, if you find one that is fireproof, and you can afford it, snap it up.
4. Bookshelves
Bookshelves should be made of wood or metal. Avoid the fiberboard ones since they are flimsy and do not stand up to repeated usage. Like file cabinets, bookshelves come in vertical and lateral. Avoid vertical ones that stand too tall. There is a chance of them becoming top-heavy and falling over. Pay particular attention to this warning if you live in an earthquake area or if you have small children which may delight in climbing to the top of your bookcase.
5. Work Tables
Worktables are great for spreading out large projects that your desk is not big enough to accommodate. If you have enough home office space for a permanent work table, that's great. Otherwise consider buying a folding table that you can take out when you need it and store away when you do not.
6. Storage
Closets, garages, attics and crawl spaces make great places to store completed projects and home office paperwork if the space is not damp or subject to high humidity. If storage is a real problem then you might need to consider renting an off-premise storage locker.
Think of your office furniture as the foundation of your productivity center. It is likely that you will have to live with your decisions for some time. Choose wisely. Your personal comfort, and ability to remain organized, depend upon it. If you outgrow your furniture later, or simply make enough money that you want to "kick it up a notch", your investment will pay off because you will likely be able to get a great deal of your money back when you sell your old office furniture to make room for the new.
7. Computers
The type of computer that's best for you depends upon the type of work that you do, and whether you spend all of your time in your home office, or go out on the road to meet clients. While there are a seemingly endless choice of makes and models, there are essentially only three basic choices.
For most home office situations, the desktop computer reigns supreme. However, if you are on the road a lot then you can find notebook computers with nearly the same horsepower as the best desktop. If you do choose a notebook, the consider one that has an available docking station. That way, when you are in your home office, you can easily use a standard keyboard, mouse, and monitor.
Even if you have a desktop or notebook, you might have room in your life for a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). PDAs, such as those from Palm Computing, can be a very valuable personal productivity tool especially if you need real-time access to your appointments, to-do lists, and phone numbers. With the growing popularity of wireless Internet access you can even use your PDA to connect to your home office computer no matter where you are.
8. Printers
Your first decision is what type of technology to go with --laser or ink jet. Laser printers use a toner cartridge/drum assembly while ink jets accept ink tank cartridges. Lasers are generally better for high-volume printing and have higher duty cycles--the manufacturer's rating for the unit's recommended monthly workload. Lasers also produce better-quality black text than most ink jets, though some ink-jet models rival low-end lasers.
Lasers are also faster than ink jets, but ink jets offer a lower cost model if you need to print in color. Color laser printers are still very expensive. Since the prices for laser and ink jets are so low, you could consider buying one of each.
Another important item to consider is resolution. A printer's resolution determines the overall print quality of your documents. Resolution means the number of dots per inch that appear on the page as a horizontal and vertical measurement such as 600 x 600 dots-per-inch or dpi. A 600 x 600 dpi resolution produces adequate quality for most projects.
Your final deciding factor is speed. While printers rarely perform up to the manufacturer's claims, you should still use the printer's posted performance specifications as a guideline. An acceptable speed for personal laser printers is around 6 to 10 pages per minute. An acceptable range for ink jet printers is 4 ppm or above.
There are printers that do double, triple, or even quadruple duty as a fax, copier, and scanner as well. You should consider buying one of these models if you have a need for all of this equipment.
9. Internet access
Today you have a wide choice of Internet access protocols. If you access the Internet only to check your email, and browse the web a bit, then you might be able to get by with an inexpensive dial-up account. This type of access generally runs around $9.95 per month and up.
If constant, high-speed Internet access is a requirement for your home office business, then you need to step up to either Digital subscriber lines (DSL), or a cable modem. Both provide sufficient speed for any type of business that you are likely to run out of a home office.
DSL utilizes unused bandwidth on your existing telephone lines to provide a constant connection, while cable modems use your existing cable television network. DSL may not be available in your area. It depends upon your telephone company's technology and how far you are from a DSL access point.
Cable, on the other hand, is available in all but the most remote markets. Still, if you can't get either, then there is always the possibility of a satellite uplink. While this was considered extravagant only a few years ago, it's affordable and no more trouble than installing a small dish antenna on your home and signing up for the service.
10. Telephones
No matter how high-tech your home office is, the telephone is still the most basic and essential of your business tools. Available features are at an all-time high and prices are at an all time low. Almost any home office phone on the market comes equipped with programmable speed-dial numbers, multiple-line capability, speakerphone operation, conference call capability, and headset jacks. In addition, your local phone company offers a wide array of add-on services such as called id, voice mail, flat-rate long distance and more.
If your work keeps you up and around your home office, or if you like to take business calls while out on your patio or while walking around your home, then a cordless phone is a joy to have. There are so many makes and models to choose from that it almost seems like you need a consultant to help you make the right choice. It's not really that hard. Just keep the following in mind:
a) Choose the right technology
Avoid analog phones at all costs. Analog phones are susceptible to interference from other devices and range is very limited. Also, analog phones permit eavesdropping through baby monitors and other cordless phones.
Digital phones have greater range than analog phones plus they offer better call privacy through the use of random codes that scramble communications between handset and base unit.
Digital Spread Spectrum (DSS) is the best of breed for right now. The Spread Spectrum technology uses multiple channels and frequency hopping to thoroughly scramble communicate between the handset and base unit. You also get increased range due to decreased electrical interference, plus DSS phones are permitted to use more powerful transmitters.
b) Frequency
The range of your cordless phone also depends upon its assigned radio frequency. Most home office phones fall into three frequencies.
900 MHz: This is by far the worst choice. This frequency is crowded with devices such as baby monitors, pagers, and cell phones, and is subject to maximum interference. A 900-MHz phone has a range of around 1,500 feet and prices start at $20.
2.4 GHz: While once the best choice available, the 2.4-GHz spectrum is overrun with wireless networking, microwaves, and other devices. A 2.4-GHz phone has a range of 2,200 feet and pricing starts around $50.
5.8 GHz: This is the latest unlicensed spectrum available for wireless devices. Very few devices operate in this spectrum so there is a marked reduction in interference. A 5.8-GHz phone also boasts a range of around 2,200 feet and start at about $150.
c) Other considerations
Make sure that any phone you select has a headset jack, and then invest in a headset. There is nothing worse than cradling your phone on your shoulder while you consult your files or try to type something on your keyboard. A headset frees both hands while you talk.
Don't forget to take a look at your potential phone's battery life as well. Most cordless phones offer at least four hours of talk time and seven days of standby. Make sure that your phone uses replaceable battery packs, and that the battery packs are widely available.
One last thought. Cordless phones are useless without power, so always keep a regular corded phone handy for blackout emergencies.
In Summary
There is a lot more to equipping an efficient home office than first meets the eye. Hopefully this article gets you going in the right direction. Chances are everything that you buy for your home office is tax deductible. Check with your accountant to be sure.
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Vishal P. Rao is the editor of Home Based Business Opportunities - A web site dedicated to opportunities, ideas and resources to help you start and run a home based business. Visit his site at: http://www.home-based-business-opportunities.com
