WORK
Is Your House Suitable to Work From Home?
Five steps to build a working space at home
In 2020 employees were thrown into a mysterious world of work, at home, with zero guidance.
The transition has been a bumpy ride for many.
To tackle this dilemma, not only do we need to learn how to “work from home”, but we also have to create a “home-working” environment.
This is an article about one such venture.
Aspiring Architect
Having previously written about my aspirations to become an Architect, I’ve accepted the fact that I failed.
In my youth, my world was fixated on shapes —symmetrical, non-symmetrical, linear, non-linear, right-angles, triangles, rectangles, squares … my geometrical fixation could be classified as a personality disorder.
I loved the built environment. I drank it in, consuming every angle, texture and colour that the world could throw at me.
I never had the opportunity to qualify as an Architect. Rather an Engineer, the worst kind, a Mechanical engineer. Apologies to my fellow MEng’s, but in fairness, the maths is easier than other disciplines.
That said, I didn't allow being an Engineering cling-on get in my way.
Nope. I read building regulations.
Yep, slurped it up.
Unexciting for most, but at the time it was my guilty pleasure.
I taught myself CAD, to further condemn formal education, I mean to expand my repertoire of skillsets.
Anyway, last month I undertook one such project; to help a friend to work from home, in peace, for a fraction of the cost.
1) Plan
Ben Franklin said that “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!”
That my friends is our WFH mantra. The WFH options are simple:
- Build up
- Out, or
- Under
Let's look at each in reverse order:
№3 — Under: Unless you have a basement already, number three is a non-runner. The cost to underpin a building and tank a basement is not viable.
№2— Out: In Ireland, you can extend a dwelling — single-story to the rear by 40 square meters — without planning. But it’s expensive. At €130–140 per square foot, you’re talking fifty grand … ouch.
№1 — Up: That leaves the attic. An existing space that's underutilized. The cost of which is a fraction of options 1 and 2 in Ireland.
- €7k with direct labor, or
- €12–18k using a contractor
A no-brainer … Bingo!
2) Live
We all need living space. The vast majority of dwellings in Ireland are 3-bed homes, which is the case in this example.
Planning authorities seek existing plans alongside proposed plans before approving any development, for the following reasons:
- Compliance with regulations
- To control the impact on amenities
- To protect and enhance community and social continuity
That said, planning authorities are biased. In Ireland, we have a history of brown envelope exchange.
So build for you … here and now … with an eye on the future.
3) Expand
As mentioned above, homeowners have three options:
- Up
- Out, or
- Under
Below is an example of the most cost-effective solution (Up).
4) Impact
Consider the environment and your neighbors.
Be respectful, keep an open mind, and share your ideas early.
5) Design
With a blank canvas, we can envision absolutely anything.
Unshackle your creative mind.
Merge creativity with practical and functional necessities to deliver a perfect product, a rule that applies in all walks of life.
Final Thoughts
While working from home is our new reality, finding or creating a suitable working space remains a challenge. An obstacle that businesses have ignored thus far.
To conclude, here are five takeaways to finance your home-office:
- Claim tax-relief — €1k per annum (in Ireland)
- Seek a grant — up to €7k
- Ask your employer— €1k to €10k
- Crowd-fund — Endless potential
- Social-enterprise — Support & help each other
If Illumination writers or indeed any other social-enterprise initiative asked Sinem, George, Bill, Matt, Dr Mehmet, Bill, Joe, P.G., Tony, R Tsambounieri, Amy, Desiree, Aurora, Lanu, Terry, Rasheed, Lori, Chris and myself to invest a Euro, I’m 100% confident that collectively we’d finance a work-space anywhere in the world.
The fact is that Dr Mehmet grew Illumination from zero to 25 thousand members in 4 months, so a €100k project equates to a €4 contribution from each member.
Fast-forward 6 months, €100k becomes €250k.
Ireland is a high-cost economy, but a group of random like-minded writers could finance a library in a third-world economy.
Over to you — let’s create a future — Make it happen!
