Now that you find yourself working at home, you may find yourself uncomfortable or notice your computer equipment is great, but not enough to process your many programs at the desired speed. When working in an office you automatically have everything needed for a content work environment which is quite the opposite when you work from home. Typically, you are held responsible for finding the right location to work, have the required internet, and have quality computer equipment. No worries though, I’ll help point you in the right direction for maximum comfort and productivity.
Let’s start with your ideal work at home location. Keep in mind your top needs; electrical outlet, hard wired internet, and quietness. Your space doesn’t need to be large, just enough space for your desk, chair, and a little space to stretch and move around between calls or tasks. If you don’t have a dedicated office room in your house, here are a couple good locations you could put your desk: quiet bedroom (master, guest, etc.), formal living/dining room, hidden closet. For your mini office, keep it simple. Don’t feel like you need to go all out. Find yourself a desk to fit all your equipment needs (this might vary based on what you do). If you notice your back or neck aching, try a stand up desk converter. This will convert any desk you have an adjustable height, alleviating sitting in the same position for hours at a time. Find yourself a comfortable office chair that will provide you all the necessary support.
Now we’re going to move on to having the right computer equipment for your work at home position. Work At-Home Workforce has a sister company, Work At-Home Equipment Solutions. You guessed it, the one-stop computer shop for all work at home needs. Luckily, this means I can help direct you in what types of computer to avoid buying (since we are an at home call center, I will be using our computer requirements as they are going to give you a great working experience even if you’re doing different kinds of tasks) and suggest a few quality computers that will power your work at home career. WAHES understands that getting the right setup can feel like a huge investment, that’s why they offer 4 different finance options so keep that in mind while we go through this section.
First off: avoid big box store computers. Sure the price can look great but typically you will find a low quality processor, small hard drive, and not much RAM. I know computer talk can sound like a whole language itself, but bear with me. These pieces control the speed of your computer and how much it can hold/process. Having a low functioning computer will 100% limit your work at home capabilities.
When shopping for computers, your ideal processor is going to be i5 or i7. Anything below that will not give you the ideal work environment. You will experience tons of lagging, especially if you’re using voip. 4gb of Ram is typically the minimum but always search for more; most work at home platforms recommend your computer have 8gb of Ram. I also recommend dual monitors for almost any work style, I promise you’ll thank me later! Let me give you a few of my work at home equipment recommendations.
Dell Optiplex 790 – Dual Monitor Bundle
- I5, 500 GB hard drive, 4gb of Ram
- Dual Monitors
- Keyboard/Mouse
- $299.99
Lenovo ThinkCenter M93P – Dual Monitor Bundle
- I5, 320 GB hard drive, 8gb of Ram
- Dual Monitors
- Keyboard/Mouse
- $419.99
- I7 , 1 TB hard drive , 8gb of Ram
- Dual Monitors
- Keyboard/Mouse
- $499.99
Hopefully you have a better idea, or maybe just purchased, the computer equipment you need to efficiently work at home. Obviously, we just hit the surface as I could make a big long list of everything I think you should have if you work at home. Maybe one day, we’ll cover that. For now, take some time to determine if your work at home set up is working for you or working against you. Remember, you are your own boss here and having everything you need is all up to you.