When you’ve set up on your own, you find yourself carrying out a delicate balancing act between investing in your business and trying to cut costs as much as you can.
For many small business owners this can mean working from home, creating a home office that allows you to get your work done without the hassle of a commute or spending money renting office space, but what if you need a little more room and a little more space to get things done? There is a half-way point you might consider and in this article we take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of shared working spaces.
Co-working: the Advantages
Quite simply it combines the best of both worlds, working from home and in an office. While working out of your living room certainly does save time and money, there is the very real challenge of feeling cut off and isolated from the outside world, especially if you have very little do with customers face to face.
If the buzz of an office is lacking and you’re feeling unmotivated the finding a co-working hub is an excellent way of injecting some energy back into your day.
You’ll also find that the facilities at most hubs match, if not exceed those at home. You’ll have the same fast wifi but also printing and copying facilities, access to tea and coffee, a dedicated phone line and in some cases conference and meeting room facilities.
If you’re looking for a little more space, you should be able to pick a desk that offers you room to spread out your designs or documents, without encroaching on others.
Finally, you may find co-working spaces that cater for your industry. For example if you’re in the creative market, you’ll find hubs geared more towards the creative professionals and the same for other industries, from virtual assistants to construction risk management. Knowing others are in it with you can be a huge encouragement and source of advice.
The Disadvantages
While hiring a co-working space is cheaper than an office, it doesn’t come cheap. You’ll get more than just space for your money but you may find yourself asking if it really is worth the cost, week in, week out. Many people choose to work in the space once or twice a week rather than every day.
That buzz of people working can very quickly escalate to too much noise. The guy with the loud phone voice or the woman who’s constantly interrupting you with questions. Having people around you is great but it can get too much.
At the end of the day, you know best where you can work and which environment suits you and your business. You might thrive in the silence of your own home or draw energy from those around you. Whatever the case, it’s worth exploring your options and maximising your work day potential, whether in the company of others or on your own. Your business, your way.