Electric sit-stand desks: improve productivity when you work from home!

They say that people who work from home are more productive compared to office-based workers. But is this true?

Some argue yes – others say no, claiming that working from home causes distraction and hurts productivity.

Really, there’s little consensus on the topic, and it depends heavily on the type of work… as well as the individual!

One thing that everyone does agree on however is the power of electric standing desks to improve not just health, but also performance, productivity and attention span.

Worried about distractions when working from home? Or simply looking for ways to take your telecommuting setup even further?

Either way (and regardless of which side of the telecommuting debate you’re on), including a standing desk in your home office setup can have tangible benefits!

The perks (and challenges) of working from home

With work-life balance increasingly on everyone’s lips, it’s no wonder solutions such as telecommuting are rapidly climbing in popularity!

Firstly, people with long commutes won’t have to spend hours (sometimes literally) going to and from their place of employment.

Secondly, working from home gives family-oriented workers the freedom to take care of their loved ones whenever the need arises.

Finally, some people just work better independently, and may not feel all that comfortable in an office environment – maybe they need more isolation to do their best work.

Of course, working from home has some disadvantages of its own:

• You may find yourself being left out of the loop more often
• It blurs the line between work and home
• Communication can be more difficult
• You may not have access to all the resources you need

Most importantly, working from home can also mean more distractions. You may find your attention wandering more, or your focus shifting throughout the day.

Luckily, that’s something standing desks can help with!

How electric standing turns you into a better worker

Did you know?

Boosting your workplace performance could be as simple as getting up on your feet!

In addition to the myriad health benefits of using an electric sit-stand desk, working on your feet can also improve job performance in a number of different ways…

Fight off fatigue

Ever felt your eyelids getting heavy while sitting down at work?

Notice how the vast majority of those feelings vanish the moment you get up and head to the train station or car park?

It’s not because the workday’s over and you’re heading home (or, not entirely, anyway, though that might play a role!)

Rather, it’s because you’re on your feet again!

Most people are energised by movement. With a standing desk, you’ll be able to move, shift and fidget throughout the day, pumping fresh oxygen throughout your body and fighting off feelings of fatigue. 

The link between job performance and standing

According to some research, standing directly improves alertness levels.

The reasoning is that standing up is a subconscious signal to your brain that you’ll be using your body soon.

In response to this, your brain automatically increases the amount of brain power it has on tap.

While the effects are small (the study in question notes that the difference is measured in milliseconds), just think of how much thinking you do in a typical workday.

After a while, this small difference can add up!

Fit your home office out with an electric standing desk, and you may find yourself feeling more alert, focused and attentive (and more importantly, perform a better job!)

How to: work standing into your home office

Set yourself up at a bench or raised table

If you have a high kitchen bench or bar table at home, this might be the perfect place to set up!

Ideally, you should be able to:

• Rest your forearms on the table
• Comfortably keep your elbows at a 90-degree angle
• Work with your feet flat on the floor
• Adjust your screen to align with eye level (phone books are great for this)

Of course, this type of set up has a couple of issues.

For starters, it’s kind of basic. While it can work if you do most of your work on a single laptop, if you use a more complex setup with more office equipment or paperwork, this may not be suitable.

Secondly, it isn’t adjustable. Research suggests the best results are obtained by switching between sitting and standing throughout the day – something you can’t do with a kitchen bench or tall bar table.

Sure, you can get around this by relocating between tables. This is a major pain, however – not to mention, it won’t work if you have to relocate a lot of heavy equipment to do so!

The fallout? It will become too cumbersome and annoying to keep moving – and before you know it, you won’t even bother doing it anymore. 

Use an electric sit-stand desk

If you ask us, this is the best way to get the most out of your telecommuting setup!

With an electric sit-stand desk, you’ll be able to freely alternate your desk between sitting and standing modes with the flick of a button, allowing you to enjoy the greatest health benefits.

Electric sit-stand desks are a great solution – in our experience, they’re especially suited for people who are planning on spending a lot of time working from home in the future:

• Remote workers
• Employees with special working arrangements
• Home businesses
• Freelancers
• Workers with certain health conditions
• Self-employed workers

Each of our electric sit-stand desks can be further customised to suit your needs, with a range of additional features including:

• A wide range of sizes
• Monitor arms
• CPU holders
• Inbuilt electrical outlets
• Cable trays

Standing desk platforms

So you’re going to be spending a lot of time working from home – however, it isn’t going to be a permanent thing.

For example, you may work remotely in order to…

• Recover from an injury
• Keep an eye on the kids during school holidays
• Continue working through an office renovation

Ergomotion’s Workfit standing desk platform is essentially a portable mini standing desk that sits directly on top of your existing desk or table – no installation or mounting required.

It’s a lightweight option that allows you to turn just about any surface into a standing desk.

Better yet, when your telecommuting arrangement comes to an end, you’ll be able to take your standing desk platform and bring it into the office, allowing you to stay on your feet.

Stand up for your health with Ergomotion’s electric sit-stand desks

Bringing your work home doesn’t mean you should bring the problems associated with desk work along with it!

Join the elite club of remote workers who are enjoying improved health and productivity.

If you want to become a more productive worker and prove to your boss that working from home is a viable option, get in touch with Ergomotion today on (03) 9579 1454 or click here to talk about how our electric sit-stand desks can help you.