Do you find that working from home isn’t all that you dreamed it would be?
Back in the early days of my career, working from home was not an option. Entry level auditors with Big 8 accounting firms in the late 1980s were expected to be visible in client offices when billing hours, and we didn’t have laptops or mobile phones. As better technology came into our world in the 1990s, it became technically possible to work from home but it wasn’t socially acceptable if you wanted to continue to advance in your career. Prestige in the firm was often based on the size of your office, and the number of staff waiting in line outside your door.
Fast forward fifteen years, and the laptop lifestyle became my new normal. With team members in five countries and customers throughout the world, my “office” was usually a guest desk in one of our company offices or a lounge chair in an airline club. Even though my office was rarely the same, I was constantly surrounded by coworkers and other people. The energy was high, and the team was supportive and encouraging. The mobile office worked for my globe-trotting lifestyle. Books and office decorations were packed away, and I learned to work in a nearly paperless environment.
When I launched my own entrepreneurial venture, a great sense of calm came from my beautifully decorated and perfectly equipped home office. As a former technology company executive, gadgets made me happy. The technology in my perfect home office setup included:
- Business class internet
- Laptop, tablet and mobile phone
- Printer with a multi-page scanner
- Second monitor
- Whiteboard
- Bookshelves
- Closet full of office supplies
According to Small Business Trends, 72 percent of women who own startups operate the startups out of their home, compared to only 61 percent of men who own startups. While I wasn’t “alone” as a female entrepreneur according to the data, I was most definitely alone in my office. Even my dreams of working with my dog by my side didn’t come true. It is hard for a 14-year-old greyhound to climb the stairs to a second floor office.
Following the practical advice for working from home which served for my husband for more than 20 years, I got dressed each morning, kept clear office hours, and did my best to separate business and family time and activities. Something was missing, and I learned I was not alone in feeling alone.
“Working from home entails some degree of isolation. If you live by yourself, you may go an entire day without seeing or talking to anybody. If you live with other people, you might customarily shut yourself away in a separate office.”
– as reported by NBC News
Spending a few hours a day working from a local coffee shop helped, so I boldly left the house toting my office in a bag. I was able to work from nearly anywhere with WiFi as long as my bag was stocked with the basics:
- Laptop with power cord
- Phone charger
- Folder with printed marketing materials and product samples
- Headphones or earbuds
- Business cards
- Paper and pens
Coffee shops are a great place to be around other people and form new relationships, but it wasn’t often easy to form meaningful connections. I always felt obligated to have a drink or snack on my table, and the never-ending lattes and sweets were one step closer to the dreaded start-up fifteen pounds and a cycle of sugar highs and lows.
The experiments continued, until I found the perfect blend of working from my home office while mixing in one to two days a week at tekMountain, a nearby co-working space. Approximately 14.6 million American office workers are utilizing co-working spaces, according to a recent Staples Workplace Survey. Benefits include a high-energy environment with other entrepreneurs, comfortable and creative office environments, high-speed Internet, top quality color printers, mentorship, food, beverages and opportunities for free training. Co-working spaces often have reciprocal membership relationships to work at a sister facility for free when you travel, or just want to get a change of scenery.
For a monthly membership fee of $100, I get all of the advantages of an office without the headache and overhead of finding and leasing space. Membership in a co-working space is usually a short-term, flexible agreement, with a cost of a few hundred dollars per month for one person. Basic low-cost memberships allow you to work at available space in common areas, while higher-cost memberships usually provide a permanent desk or multi-person office.
Connections with other members is one of the greatest benefits of co-working. These connections led to service relationships for accounting and tax prep, marketing services, product usability testing and brainstorming for my business. Building a business requires access to a strong ecosystem of other entrepreneurs and service providers. These are the exact type of people who are drawn to the collaborative environment of co-working spaces. While you find other people who can help you, be prepared to discover that you can help other members as well. Looking to increase your visibility as a speaker? Co-working spaces often have members provide training sessions for each other and serve as speaker resources for community events.
Co-working space provides the flexibility we crave while balancing the loneliness we may experience as home-based entrepreneurs. According to Psychology Today, the number of interactions people had did predict day-to-day differences in sense of belonging and happiness. Make an effort to get out from behind your computer or phone, embrace opportunities to connect with people in the “real world” and form relationships with other entrepreneurs. You never know who you may be able to help and will often find that you are able to serve others in ways you never imagined.
