Are you struggling to carve out space for multiple “work from home”/school from home” settings in your house?

This can be a challenge! And if your spaces already feel full or cluttered then it might seem even harder to make this happen.

Which is why I want to offer a few tips that might ease the process and allow you to create spaces that are ready to support your family’s “work” time.

Assess the needs

Determine the best location for the work space based on whether you (or your child) needs to be quiet and undisturbed OR open and available for support and guidance. You may want to set up a work space in a bedroom where the door can be closed OR the kitchen counter might become the new desk.

Let go of perfection

Your main priority is to create a work space. It probably won’t be perfect or how you would ideally like this space to be, so remind yourself that you are creating a space that will work FOR NOW. Let yourself off the hook and focus on one step at a time.

Clear out the extras

1. Use a quick declutter method that focuses on clearing out the trash, recycling and then use one box or bin to collect things that don’t need to be in the new work space.
2. Take out the trash/recycling and then set aside the box that is holding the items that “don’t belong.”
3. Label the “don’t belong” box or bin with the date and space that it came from so you can sort it later.

Bring in the tools you need

Now that the extras are out of the way, set up the space with the tools that will help you do your work.

You may need – pens or pencils, a charger, sticky notes, a place to set a drink, an extension cord (if you aren’t close to an outlet), paper, headphones…

Remember this is temporary

Create the space in the hopes that you are set up for success, but know that you may very well have to tweak things after a few days. And while I normally would suggest you sort and donate the extras so they don’t get lost or forgotten, that isn’t the priority right now. This is a time when it’s more important to do conserve your energy. If you feel zapped after setting up the space, then let the next steps go for now, and trust you can finish once life feels more normal.

I hope these tips help to lighten the process and support your family through these weeks of distance work and learning.