- Image by Matt Brett via Flickr (NB: NOT my workspace)
You know it’s time to do some tidying in your home office when the towers of books and papers are high enough to topple over and possibly smother a small child.
My first stop for a motivation kick in this area is the Lifehacker Coolest Workspace Contest, where readers are invited to submit pictures of specific aspects of their home-integrated workspaces, for example their monitor set-up, walls, how they make best use of space, etc. The winner is by popular vote – in other words, never my favourite – but the quality of entries overall is usually high enough to glean some good ideas.
If you think you can do better, Lifehacker have a show and tell pool of workspaces on Flickr, with over 500 images at the time of posting. And if you think you’d never be able to reduce your working tools to that degree, I can personally attest to the fact that Jed Schmidt’s tips on abstracting away the physical infrastructure of a translator’s office is both realistic and achievable.
Of course, sometimes it’s hard to feel any spark of motivation around the nagging thought that you should be more organised. This is when Jennifer Hofmann’s approach will calm your nerves and soothe your soul…
So who’s prepared to share their image of a professional translator’s home office*?!
* Sorry, “home office” snaps featuring beaches, swimming pools, cocktails or any kind of weather requiring sunglasses don’t count. Why? Because we can all play that game 
About the author
Sarah Dillon is a qualified, accredited and experienced professional translator originally from Co. Clare in Ireland. She specialises in producing English-language texts that don't "sound" like translations, ensuring her clients' message has the desired impact in their overseas market. She is based in Brisbane, Australia and works with corporate clients, small businesses, agencies and nonprofit organisations all over the world. In her spare time, Sarah is also Marketing Director of eCPD Webinars.
Sarah Dillon has written 252 posts for There's Something About Translation.
{ 8 comments }
Hi Sarah, it’s definitely an interesting topic. I have a photo of my office in my blog post on ergonomics.
Jill´s last blog post… TGIF: Scout and Paws
Hi Sarah, it’s definitely an interesting topic. I have a photo of my office in my blog post on ergonomics.
Jill´s last blog post… TGIF: Scout and Paws
Very cool — I am always intrigued by other people’s workspaces! I am working remotely from Vienna now, so my workspace is now temporarly set up in my twin’s large office — 3 people, 4 computers– but I will share one of my real Vegas workspace as soon as I return! Now, Sarah, will you share a pic of your workspace?
BTW, loved the converted shed in “Coolest Work Place”.
Judy Jenner´s last blog post… The Business of Integrity
Very cool — I am always intrigued by other people’s workspaces! I am working remotely from Vienna now, so my workspace is now temporarly set up in my twin’s large office — 3 people, 4 computers– but I will share one of my real Vegas workspace as soon as I return! Now, Sarah, will you share a pic of your workspace?
BTW, loved the converted shed in “Coolest Work Place”.
Judy Jenner´s last blog post… The Business of Integrity
Wow, Sarah – thank you for the praise about my approach to organizing. People have so many “shoulds” about what organizing is – and many of them are restrictive and impossible to maintain. Whew! No wonder so many give up!
I posted these two pictures of my office before and after my monthly Office Spa Day… What a difference an hour makes! http://twitpic.com/photos/inspiredjen#
Thanks again for the mention!
Wow, Sarah – thank you for the praise about my approach to organizing. People have so many “shoulds” about what organizing is – and many of them are restrictive and impossible to maintain. Whew! No wonder so many give up!
I posted these two pictures of my office before and after my monthly Office Spa Day… What a difference an hour makes! http://twitpic.com/photos/inspiredjen#
Thanks again for the mention!
@Jill I loved your office pic. Thanks for sharing, I left a comment over there.
@Judy Hope Vienna’s going well. I have a picture of my desk on Flickr (http://tinyurl.com/badntc) which is the closest I have to a picture of my office (BTW I don’t normally look that fierce – I don’t think
). I’ve since re-arranged things and added my keyboard, tilted docking station, etc. so I keep meaning to take another picture, but I just haven’t had time to tidy the office properly first 
@Jennifer Thanks for dropping by!
@Jill I loved your office pic. Thanks for sharing, I left a comment over there.
@Judy Hope Vienna’s going well. I have a picture of my desk on Flickr (http://tinyurl.com/badntc) which is the closest I have to a picture of my office (BTW I don’t normally look that fierce – I don’t think
). I’ve since re-arranged things and added my keyboard, tilted docking station, etc. so I keep meaning to take another picture, but I just haven’t had time to tidy the office properly first 
@Jennifer Thanks for dropping by!