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Tips to Work Productively and Ergonomically at Home

3 min read

Working from home has its advantages, parents get to spend more time with their children, there’s no traffic on your way to work and video-calling technically doesn’t require you to wear anything below the waist. However, working from home also introduces some new challenges. Kids can be distracting, you might not have a home office with an ergonomic chair, and most importantly, how can you tell the difference between your work and private life, if it’s all taking place in the same building?

Although we can’t help you get rid of your kids, we can help you with some tips on separating work and private life, productivity and even ergonomics. All using smart lighting. Curious how? Then keep reading!

We can help you with some tips on work-life balance, productivity and even ergonomics. All using smart lighting!

Removing “work” from your workspace, leaving just a space

If you’re reading this you probably already know: lighting really can set the mood. An LED candle can make a dinner infinitely more romantic. But try reading an important document using that light and you’ll likely fall asleep in less than a minute. Fine, then stop working during dinner, you might say. But what if the dinner table is the best place for you to work? Situations like these are where smart lighting really shines.

Here comes the (LED) sun

Research has shown that using bright white light helps increase productivity. This closely resembles the sun at its peak during the day (5000-7000 Kelvin), the time when we’re most active. This bright light has a blue-ish tint to it, triggering the production of cortisol; a hormone that increases productivity and improves focus. If that’s getting a little too technical for you, don’t worry! We’ve created scenes for multiple situations, so if you’re in work-mode, all you have to do is select the ‘read’ scene in the app and the light will be set to the perfect ‘bright daylight’ setting. Minimising eye-strain while maximizing productivity and readability.

“American Football teams have known the effects of lighting on productivity for years. By changing the lighting in the locker rooms the players noticed a small difference in their performance during a game. In a world where every small detail can make the difference, this technology is groundbreaking.”
– Beswic.be

Clocking out

Choose a scene or routine for work-mode, for relaxing or simply create your own routines and switch between them with the tap of a button. This can really give you the feeling of clocking out after a long day of work and ‘returning home’ to your lounge state. As a bonus, switching from bright white to a warmer dimmed tint, our body will produce melatonin; a hormone that makes it easier to relax and unwind.

“When the sun is about to set, blue light waves start to defuse and pink red and yellow light waves start getting the upper hand. This ‘warmer’ light doesn’t trigger the production of cortisol, but instead triggers the production of melatonin, making sure you’re better able to relax and sleep.”

Working from home probably is here to stay

With giant corporations like DropBox switching to the ‘working from home’ model permanently, we can see home offices becoming the new default. So there’s no better time to start setting up your own workplace at home than now. We’ve created a list of Innr lights to get you started: