¿Telecommuting? Probably, before the arrival of the pandemic, few Spaniards were familiar with this term and even fewer had had the opportunity to put it into practice. In fact, in 2019 only a little more than 900,000 Spaniards did it, of the more than 18.6 million workers in our country. A figure that has multiplied by 3 in the last year, already exceeding the 3 million people who currently telework regularly, that is, 16.2% of the active population. In this way, it seems that teleworking is here to stay, but, even at home, we must continue to pay attention to disinfection and care of our workspace.
Fran Sánchez Becerril
Therefore, it is time that – if you have not done so already – you build a comfortable and suitable space in your home to work and pay special attention to how to keep it sanitized. Kobold gives you the 4 keys to get it ready and always have it perfect.
Choose the right place, quiet and with ventilation
Lets start by the beginning! The first thing we should do is select the place where we are going to establish our “office”. To do this, we must take into account various factors. On the one hand, try to make it an isolated and quiet place in the house, in which we do not have frequent distractions or interruptions, and that has good ventilation. Ideally, next to a window that provides us with fresh air.
Ventilating the space in which we work and spend many hours of the day is essential to avoid a loaded environment and take care of health. The air in the spaces must be renewed so that it continues to be breathable and beneficial to the body. The ideal is air it out every morning for 10-15 minutes and do it several times throughout the working day.
Get hold of a workspace with a window It will also allow us to have natural light, another of the most important aspects when choosing our ideal space. Although it is true that we must avoid working facing the light, so as not to harm our eyesight, as well as with our back to it, to avoid reflections on our computer screen. In this way, we will try to leave it to our left. In addition, sunlight can also help kill bacteria.
Choose the essential elements to avoid back or neck pain
The essential thing when working long hours sitting in front of a computer is get good posture and try to avoid bad habits that cause back or neck pain. To achieve this, we must have a wide table – of medium height and preferably made of wood – in which we feel comfortable and in which the computer, keyboard, mouse, headphones, notebook, pen, water … In fact, it is important to make sure that we have all of this at our fingertips, but never more than is strictly necessary. This way we will avoid, on the one hand, getting up and wasting time looking for objects or documents that we will need and, on the other, getting distracted by irrelevant items that are too many on our table.
Alba Ramos Sanz
Of course, another fundamental key is get an ergonomic chair with wheels, that we can adapt to our body (height, arms, backrest, etc.). This element of our workspace is key to taking care of our back. It is also recommended to rest your feet on the floor, keep your back straight, without tension, and your arms relaxed on the table or the armrests of the chair.
It is also advisable to have auxiliary elements that provide us with light first thing in the morning or late in the afternoon. A flexo can be a great option, since it is possible to regulate it, focus it downwards and place it below the level of our eyes. It will allow us to see better and create a warm and functional environment.
Always maintain order and hygiene
Save the order of all elements of the workspace, clean and sanitizeNot only the environment, but the table, the chair, and the equipment with which we are continuously in contact -such as computers and mobiles-, is key to preserving a healthy environment free of any harmful particles.
In fact, in the keyboard of our computer accumulates 400 times more bacteria than in a toilet. In this way, a keyboard can have up to 33 thousand bacteria and more than 3 thousand fungi per square centimeter, so an average keyboard of 35×15 cm could have up to 17 million bacteria and more than 1.5 million fungi . For this reason, it is vital to clean it frequently with a damp disinfectant cloth and to suck up all the dirt that accumulates between its keys with a handheld vacuum cleaner *.
Vacuuming as a cleaning method has multiple benefits and safer than other hygiene methods. With it, we prevent dust and dirt from rising or accumulating in other areas, and, in addition, it helps us reduce the appearance of allergies and respiratory problems.
Pay special attention to decoration and other elements that provide well-being
Feel good in our workspace is something that directly influences our productivity and efficiency. For this reason, including decorative elements such as plants that renew the air, motivational phrases on the wall or touches of color – such as pictures or small pictures – that fill us with vitality and positivity, can be a good idea.
Others ordecorative objects such as bookshelves or boxes can be really useful to store objects or documents of the work and, generally, they are not a distraction.
The confidential
In this sense, the aromas of candles, mikados, incense … are usually good allies to help us relax and concentrate.Lavender is always a great option! The color of our room will also help us in this process, light tones usually work very well. Therefore, both white, beige or pearl gray can be good choices. In addition, they will fill it with luminosity.
It will be enough to apply these simple tips to easily build an ideal space for teleworking, totally hygienic and always ready to get to work.
