The Benefits of Your Own Home Office Pod
Remote workers have so many options to choose from when they transition from office life to working from home. One of the best ways to work from home is to have a garden office, which is a specialised wooden structure that serves as your home office.
While it is affordable to set up a garden office, it still represents a significant financial investment on your part. So, what are the advantages of having a garden office?
You avoid the commute
The work commute does not just take a toll on your wallet, it also adds to the stress you experience on your workday. This is especially true if you live in a large city where finding affordable housing close to your workplace is nigh impossible.
The daily commute can take up to an hour, sometimes more, from your day. This means that you have to wake up much earlier to get to work on time. Even worse, if traffic jams and congestion are an issue in your city, then your morning and evening commutes can be stressful.
We haven't factored in the financial cost of commuting. Whether you have your own car or use public transport, your commute will cost you money. All this can be avoided when you work from your garden office. You get to start your day being well-rested and with reduced stress levels.
The long-term financial savings of avoiding the commute can even cover the cost of installing the garden office.
Your day is less stressful
Stress at the workplace doesn't just come from traffic jams during your commute. Research has shown that different people are productive at different times of the day. Some people thrive during morning hours, while night-owls are ready to get going after sunset. When working out of the office, everyone has to work during the set office hours, which can be stressful for those who have low energy during morning hours.
Other issues like office politics and interpersonal conflicts that naturally come when different personalities are crammed in the same space also add to the stress. When you work from home, you get to choose your own schedule. This allows you to work during your peak productivity hours. There is also no stressful office drama when you work from your garden office.
Better work-life balance
It is important for all humans to have an active social life and to take some time to bond with their family and loved ones. The demands of the workday can make it impossible to achieve a healthy balance between one’s professional and personal life. Having a hectic commute means that you have to leave the home very early in the morning, and arrive back late and tired. Not being in charge of your work schedule also means that you have to miss out on important family events.
This is not the case when you work from home. With more flexibility to choose your hours, a work-from-home parent can still maintain productivity while creating time to attend their child’s sports day or catch their big debut at a school play. This flexibility allows one to spend time with their significant other, and find time to connect with their friends. This leads to better mental health for remote workers, and another reason to consider getting that garden office.
You get to enjoy nature
One of the best reasons to get a garden office is that it allows you to work within nature. Especially if you have a garden teeming with trees and flowers. You will notice that almost all garden offices feature large windows, and sometimes all-glass walls. This is to give you a clear view of the nature surrounding you and to let in the natural light.
For decades we have known that being in nature, and exposure to natural lighting, has a positive impact on one’s happiness and overall mental health. This is why you should choose a garden office over converting your spare room into a home office. You can take your love for nature a step further by including potted plants in the interior decor.
Wooden Garden offices are eco-friendly
Ireland, and the EU, have very strong laws to protect natural resources. This means that the timber used to construct your garden office will be sourced from sustainably grown forests that are continually being replenished - not from wild ecosystems.
Even better, insulated home offices are very energy efficient. You won't be using up electricity to warm the office during winter or cool it during hot summer days. Wood is a very energy-efficient building material. Not having a commute also reduces your carbon footprint significantly.
Customised Garden Rooms
Common sense, and academic studies, have shown that people are happier and more productive in spaces that reflect their personalities and who they are. But in your employer’s office space, you have very little (if any) creative control over how your workspace looks. In fact, most workplaces go for the soulless identical cubicle look which does nothing for morale.
This is not the case with a garden office. You have full creative control over its size and design, even before construction. Once it is set up, you get to choose the colour scheme, the furniture, decor, lighting, basically everything. This gives you a workspace that perfectly suits your needs and personality, somewhere where you can truly be creative and productive.
A garden office increases your property value
When you are ready to move, your property can command a much higher market price than similar properties without a garden office. In fact, with more people choosing to work from home, a garden office will immediately make your home more sought-after in the property market.
Check out our wide range of garden rooms and home office pods at Armagh Garden Sheds.
Garden offices are very versatile and can be used as art studios, fitness rooms, and movie theatres with a few furniture and decor changes. You should be able to recoup the cost of building the garden office and even make a bit of a profit, from the price bump your property will enjoy.