A space to call your own

To be successful work at home parent, one needs to have a comfortable yet functional space in which to work. It not only provides the privacy you need, it lends credibility to what you do.


Others are more likely to take your job seriously if you have a home office and set work hours. The ideal situation would be to turn a spare bedroom or den into an office.

Unfortunately, many of us lack a spare room. But there may be other options available if you look around and take stock of what space you do have. Erma Bombeck wrote from her utility room. Many people create office space in a corner of their basement, in a converted garage or even a shed. My writing space as a child was the crawl space attic. When my parents weren’t home, I would grab the ladder, and go up to my ‘office." I have no clue where my sister, who was supposed to watching me was. My dream office is in a tree fort, but that’s another story.



Converting a closet into an office works quite well. If it is the kind that runs the length of the room, you only need to paint the walls, put a desk and filing cabinet inside, and place shelves above the desk. You have an instant office. You can remove the doors or keep them on so you can shut them when you are done with work for the day.



If you don’t have a desk, you can easily create one with a sheet of plywood placed on top of two sawhorses. You can also attach the plywood to the wall with a brace or hinges. A long, low dresser can be converted to a desk by removing the drawers and cutting away the runners. An old kitchen table can also make a nice desk.



The important thing is to make sure you have sufficient storage. Utilize wall space by hanging shelves, and don’t forget the space under the desk and on top of the filing cabinets. Be sure to place the filing cabinet near the desk or filing tends to be put off. Make sure you create space for a computer and a printer. You want to be able to do everything from your office, not have to go to another room to perform a task.



It doesn’t matter whether you are in a corner of a room or in a garage, if you give your space a personal touch, you will be half way to a successful career.