4 Tips for Moving Your Home Office

4 Tips for Moving Your Home Office

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For those of you who work at a home office, moving your home also means that you move your office. While most people have a few files and a computer to pack up, those who work from home have to take special care of their files, computers, and furniture. Here are a few tips to help your home office move go smoothly.

1. Take Inventory & Reorganize Your Files.

There are plenty of things to do during a move, but it gives you an excellent opportunity to take inventory and do some reorganization of your files. Before you just dump them all into a cardboard box and forget them, look through your files, and see which ones you really need. Very important documents (like mortgages, passports, licenses, etc., along with any others you absolutely cannot afford to lose) should be put in your briefcase, or a special file, that comes with you on the day of the move.

For the rest of your files, ask yourself if you really need them; many of the files you have may just be copies of documents you have on your computer, or files you no longer need. Take this opportunity to get rid of them. Shred any documents that may have sensitive personal information. You can use the shredded paper to help cushion other boxes you are packing during your move. The documents that you decide to keep, should be filed and stored in a “Banker’s Box.” Banker’s boxes are specially made for files and will keep your documents organized and safe during the move.

2. What Books Do You Need?

If you keep a collection of reference books or journals, you may want to reconsider bringing them along. Books are heavy, bulky, and in most cases unnecessary. Reference encyclopedias, dictionaries, journals, et cetera, are now often available for free online and offer a much quicker and more efficient method of finding the information you need. You can donate any books you no longer need from your bookshelf, and save yourself time and resources during your move, as well as space later on.

3. Take Care of Your Computer.

If you are working from home, then chances are you rely heavily on your computer. While it is unlikely that your computer will suffer any damage if properly packed, unlikely does not mean impossible. Backing up your files to a CD, DVD, or USB drive is cheap and easy. If you don’t have a recording drive, you can get a 1 gig USB drive for less than $25 at most electronics stores.

When backing up your files, look for spreadsheets, text documents, and e-mail, and presentations. This is also a good opportunity to get rid of any files you no longer need, however, because backing files up is relatively inexpensive, you might want to keep all of your data.

4. Take a Good Look at the Furniture.

Finally, look around your office and determine if your furniture is worth moving. Some desks and chairs can be easily taken apart, and take very little room in a moving truck. Between your desk, cabinets, chair, bookshelves, and other office furniture, you might be taking up quite a bit of room, and it may simply not be worth taking along for long-distance moves.

Check to see if some of these items can be easily replaced at your destination, or if it is time to invest in a new set of furniture. Consider looking through craigslist or other local papers to see if it might be better to replace the furniture at your destination, rather than bringing it with you.

Do you have any more tips for moving your home office? Share with us in the comments below!

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