Whether you’re working from your kitchen table or a dedicated home office, a few upgrades can help you stay focused, comfortable, and connected.
Boost Your Productivity
When you don’t have coworkers and managers overseeing your work, it can be easy to get distracted and fall out of productivity rhythms. Here are some gadgets to help you stay focused and efficient when working alone:
Scheduling and Task Management Apps
- Apps like Todoist, Asana, Trello, and Notion help you organize tasks and set reminders so you don’t lose track of deadlines and action items.
- You can break projects down into steps, set due dates, assign tasks to others, and gain visibility across what your team is working on.
- These tools provide structure when you don’t have regular team meetings and managers checking on progress.
Digital Assistants
- Smart assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri can help you manage your calendar, set reminders, answer questions, play music, and automate routines.
- Ask your assistant to remind you about meetings, alert you when it’s time to take a break, add to-do items to your task list, and more.
Desktop Notifications
- Browser extensions like Clearify and Facebook Pixel Helper can block distracting notifications from apps and sites so you can stay focused.
- Services like FocusMe let you schedule access to distracting websites like social media so you’re locked out during productive working hours.
Website and App Blockers
- Apps like Freedom and Forest let you block designated apps and websites that tend to distract you during work hours. This lets you lock yourself out of time-wasting sites.
Digital Timers
- Online timers like Timer Tab or apps like Focus Keeper, Time Out, and Forest help you time tasks and breaks so you can maintain focus for set periods.
- Browser extensions like Take a Break! can remind you to get up and move around at custom intervals.
Enhance Collaboration In Australia
When you aren’t able to turn around and ask coworkers for help in person, you’ll need tools to digitally collaborate:
Team Communication Software
- Messaging apps like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom Chat offer ways to have conversations, share files, and collaborate across groups or teams.
- You can create different channels to keep projects organized and make it easy to search message history.
Video Conferencing Tools
- Services like Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and GoToMeeting make it easy to talk face-to-face, screenshare ideas, and run virtual meetings.
- Helpful gear for better video calls includes webcams, ring lights, mics, and headsets.
Cloud-Based Document Sharing
- Platforms like Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, and more facilitate real-time document sharing and editing so multiple people can collaborate.
- Team members can give live feedback on the same doc rather than emailing versions back and forth.
- Tools like Figma, Miro, and Milanote provide virtual whiteboards for brainstorming and design sessions.
Increase Ergonomics For Australians
When you aren’t in a proper office with ergonomic furniture and equipment, it can take a toll over time. Upgrade your home setup with these ergo gadgets:
Standing Desks
- Convertible standing desks like Varidesk let you alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day which reduces aches and pains.
- Some options like Flexispot allow you to mount monitors and accessories to the electric sit-stand frame.
Ergonomic Office Chairs
- Look for adjustable chairs with lumbar support, swivels, and tilt to customize the fit, like the Steelcase Series 1 or Herman Miller Sayl.
- Your feet should rest flat on the floor and your arms should be at a 90-degree angle.
Monitor Risers
- Risers like Rain Design’s mStand lift your laptop screen closer to eye level to prevent sore necks from hunching over.
- Stack your monitor on books or boxes if you don’t want to buy risers. Your eye level should hit just below the top 1/3 of the screen.
Wrist Rests
- Cushioned pads like Gimars Gel Mouse Pad reduce strain on your wrists when using keyboards and mice for extended times.
- Some keyboard trays like Mount-It! come with built-in wrist rests.
Foot Rests
- Foot rests like Mind Reader let you prop your feet up at an angle which improves posture and blood flow.
- If you can’t get your chair and desk heights adjusted properly, a foot rest helps compensate.
Laptop Stands
- Stands like Rain Design’s iLevel lift your laptop up to eye level and provide better air flow and ergonomics compared to using it flat on a desk.
- Some stands like Twelve South’s BookArc double as vertical docks.
Optimize Your Aussie Workspace
A well-designed and organized workspace helps you accomplish more in less time. Look for gadgets to:
Reduce Clutter
- Charging stations like the Satechi USB Type-C Clamp Hub and vertical docks like Twelve South’s BookArc consolidate your devices and cables in one place.
- Under-desk mounts like Eveo Premium Metal Mount clear up table and floor space by hanging peripherals under your desk.
- Cable management wraps guide wires neatly along edges of your desk.
Improve Lighting
- Add an architect lamp like TaoTronics’ Swing Arm Lamp to reduce eye strain from bright overhead lights or glare from windows.
- Smart bulbs from Philips Hue let you change color temperature and brightness to energize or wind down.
Minimize Noise
- Noise-cancelling headphones like Sony WH-1000XM4 and Bose QuietComfort 45 block out ambient sounds around your workspace.
- White noise machines or apps like Noisli generate soothing background noise to mask distracting sounds.
Regulate Temperature
- Smart thermostats like the Nest Learning Thermostat let you control the temp of your workspace remotely so it’s comfortable when you start work.
- Portable space heaters like Lasko’s Ceramic Portable and fans like Lasko’s Cyclone give you zonal temperature control.
Spruce Up Your Space
- Plants like succulents liven up your workspace with natural elements and fresh oxygen.
- Uplifting art prints and photos make your work-from-home area feel more like you.
- Small touches like throws, decorative trays, and framed mementos also add personality.
Boost Health and Wellness
It’s easy to burn out without a separation between work and life at home. Build in breaks and prevent pain with these gadgets:
Exercise Equipment
- Compact equipment like stationary bikes, treadmills, rowers, or Ellipticals give you cardio options when you can’t get to the gym.
- Resistance bands, yoga mats, and foam rollers make it easy to squeeze in strength training, stretches, and recovery.
Blue Light Glasses
- Glasses like SOJOS Anti Blue Light reduce exposure to blue light that can cause eye strain, headaches, and sleep issues.
- Apps like Iris reduce eye-damaging blue light from your screens at night.
Air Purifiers
- HEPA filters like Coway’s Airmega 400 improve air quality and circulation in your workspace, reducing allergens and refreshing stale air.
- Some purifiers like Dyson’s Pure Cool double as cooling fans.
Diffusers
- Essential oil diffusers from InnoGear, Urpower, and Vitruvi disperse calming and uplifting scents like lavender and eucalyptus.
- Scent can impact mood – helpful when you start dragging midday.
Hydration Tools
- Smart water bottles like HidrateSpark 3 track your sips and glow to remind you to drink enough water throughout the day.
- Infusers like Deep Infusion let you add sliced fruit to your water for flavor.
Final Tips
Optimizing for remote work may take some investment up front, but can pay off greatly in your efficiency, focus, health, and comfort over the long haul. Here are a few closing tips:
- Invest in the essentials (ergonomic chair, external monitor, desk) before accessorizing.
- Buy things you can use post-pandemic like monitors rather than short-term solutions like laptop risers.
- Check ergonomics regularly and make adjustments as needed. Discomfort can accumulate before you realize.
- Test different setups using boxes, pillows, makeshift standing desks before buying specialty products.
- See if your employer offers any WFH stipends or subsidies to offset costs.
- Try low-cost solutions first like digital tools, phone apps, browser extensions.
- Decorate in a way that motivates and inspires you – work-from-home burnout is real.
