Tips to Build your Home Office on a Budget
So you’ve just started up a new business or you’re one of those lucky people whose work affords them the luxury to work flexibly – setting up a home office could be a great idea for you. However, many people underestimate the costs of setting up a home office and end up exceeding their budget.
To help you keep the costs of setting up your home office as low as possible and complete it on a budget, follow the steps outlined in this guide.
Instructions
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1
Function over style
If a Pentium M computer is sufficient for the kind of work you do then you shouldn’t be spending money on the latest in computer technology. Identify the bare bones of what you really need to function and eliminate the unnecessary items. -
2
Improvise
Make a list of the most critical things that you need to function in your new office space. Once you’ve done this, then you have a pretty good idea of what to look for and chances are you may likely spot them in many different places.
For instance, an old table in your home can be repurposed to be used as your work desk (the same goes for your chair) and a cup could be a pen holder.
You should look around your home for anything that you could use in your home-office and borrow it. -
3
Second Hand Shopping
Look for cheap second hand items at garage sales or Sunday markets. Many people throw out perfectly good stuff for numerous reasons. Their loss, your gain.
Sometimes big businesses will clear out their old furniture or equipment with minor defects. You should look around and let administrators and building managers know that you would be interested in having old fittings and other stuff they would be looking to dispose of. -
4
Talk to Friends
Perhaps you have a friend with a pile of junk in their garage that they don’t really need. You should talk to this person to see if they would let you take what you need or trade it for something. -
5
Recycle
Recycling is a practice many big businesses have taken up to help save recurring expenses. You can do the same thing with certain items such as plastics and paper, depending on the kind of work you do. -
6
Minimize Electricity Usage
You should pay attention to ensure that you use only the most necessary electronics and electrical devices to keep your electricity consumption to the bare minimum.
Also, ensure that you switch off all devices when you are not using them. If you work at night or need to have the lights on while you work, you could consider using energy saving fluorescent lights. -
7
Do it Yourself
There may be some tasks that you could do by yourself such as painting your office and installing some equipment. Tasks like these could be tedious and time consuming but in the end you get to save more money so roll up your sleeves and get to work.
