Let’s face it. When you start a home based franchise, it’s tempting to set up shop and work from your kitchen table - especially in the beginning. You have an instant desk that’s in the center of your house where you can continue to keep a pulse on what’s happening with your family while still running a business. Seems like a win-win, until you get settled.
When you work from home, you need a space you can call your own. It should feel productive, inspiring, and help you be more efficient. It should also have a door so you can isolate yourself when you need to take client calls, and you should establish focused working hours.
But now onto more fun things: decorating your office! To help you decorate your first home office for productivity, here are a few tips.
Choose Your Artwork Strategically
What made you start your franchise? Do you have dreams of providing for your family? Being able to take a trip somewhere exotic? Buying a new house?
Put together a vision board and hang it in your office. Or find a piece of art that symbolizes why you started your business. On days when you’re not feeling inspired to work, that image will remind you of why you’re doing what you’re doing. It’ll instantly refocus your energy and help you get back to work.
Add Greenery
Having greenery in a home office brings life into an ordinarily drab space. Live plants breathe in carbon monoxide and exhale oxygen, making your home office a literal breath of fresh air. If you don’t have a green thumb, try adding fake plants. Although you won’t get the extra oxygen and clean air, you’ll still get a nice, fresh look that will make your space more inviting. The more you want to enter your home office, the more likely you will be to get cozy and work while you’re there instead of clock watching.
Keep Several Notebooks Handy
Every business owner needs to dump ideas out of her head and get them out into the open. Without doing a regular brain dump, those thoughts could clutter your mind, making it harder to work.
Notebooks are a good place to jot down ideas when creativity strikes. Have a notebook for each aspect of your business. For example, if you run a home based senior services franchise, you might want to keep a notebook for client care and another notebook for strategic business partnerships.
Use a Whiteboard to Stay Focused
Whiteboards are wall hangings that serve a purpose. They’re ideal for letting you see the big picture in your business.
Have one handy so you can organize your thoughts and keep important action items front and center. Write down your 1-month or 3-month strategies so you stay focused on moving ahead in your business.
Have a Large Wall Calendar
As a business owner, you’re constantly setting meetings and scheduling work. You’re also scheduling time away from work.
Having a large wall calendar that lets you see the year at a glance will help you picture where you are in your business, where you want to go, and what you can realistically do. Seeing deadlines will help keep you on task when you enter an inevitable slump.
Takeaways
Your home office should be decorated in a way that fuels your productivity. By adding in functional items that also look nice, you set yourself up for success in your home based franchise.
Susan Payton is the President of Egg Marketing & Communications, a marketing firm specializing in content writing and social media management. She’s written three business books, including How to Get More Customers With Press Releases, and frequently blogs about small business and marketing on sites including Forbes, AllBusiness, The Marketing Eggspert Blog, and Tweak Your Biz. Follow her on Twitter @eggmarketing.