HOE, HOE, HOE

The bright side of Home Office Envy

The last edition of My HOH introduced a very real mental health category, HOE or home office envy. For yours truly, this was experienced after subscribing to a great newsletter, Workspaces, which showcases the work-from-home workspaces of a wide range of people.

After some deep breathing, meditation, reflection and bloodletting, the envy/jealousy morphed into desire. Seeing other people’s workspaces provides ideas and inspiration for what you want.

At least that’s what I thought. Then some friends started sending me their workspaces.

Like this one from Dave Gilman of Cognito Creative.

Thanks, Dave. Can’t ever say my workspace will be that neat. Still, I had my view of the pond. HOE in check, right?

Not until Gadget Guru Scott Tharler, he of the Family CTO podcast fame, shared his view from the Big Island.

Or my other friend who recently transplanted to the west coast.

While some chose to add to my HOE, others were more supportive. That included the following comments from a LinkedIn post:

“My thing is to change up the art in my HO. Constantly moving things around, so my view is different and stimulating. (I also have a window with a bird feeder on it, and that is a great way to cultivate new office buddies).”

“I did not even know there was HOE… I am sure I have it. I finally purchased a height adjusting desk this past week after so many ads. Love it!”

“Hahaha I love this Joseph D'Eramo. I love my little Home Office, but I will admit that I definitely do have HOE. Doors would be a nice addition to my office...”

I took quite a bit of solace from these comments. Yet perhaps this one summarized my feelings the most:

“As I look around my home office at the stacks of books and presents to wrap, I'm definitely suffering some envy! My goal is to make this a peaceful and productive space in the new year!’

And that’s really all you can do. It’s kind of the purpose of this newsletter: to make the home office work experience as good as it can be from all angles. Even providing the occasional laugh or two.

Sow when the latest issue of Workspaces arrived, I simply admired artwork in Caroline Clark’s home office. Seeing how the focal point is a painting by her grandfather—something I can’t duplicate in my office—I will not waste time on envy. I’ll just be thankful for the inspiration.

And with that, My Home Office Hacks heads into a new year! Before we go, don’t forget to sign up to receive this in your in box every single week.

And, as always, don’t forget to share.