COWORKING VS. WORKING FROM HOME
It's the ultimate dilemma, to work from home or indulge in a coworking space – ultimately it comes down to personal preference, but here are some of the reasons I decided that coworking was for me.
When we relocated to the Northern Rivers over a year ago, I thought that working from home would be the dream, and for the most part it was. I turned our spare room into our home office and set-up the perfect morning routine, including coffee at a cafe or a dawn surf before returning home to start work. I had the ultimate flexibility – I could wear whatever I felt like, listen to loud music if I felt the need, and create the work environment I desired.
But soon the working from home dream began to crumble... the neighbours started renovating their house, we got a new housemate so my home office shifted to a corner of the living room, and the real clincher – I started to get lonely. So when a studio space popped up, we jumped at the opportunity to create a new workspace not just for me, but for other people craving the opportunity to escape their living room offices. Three months on, this is what I've realised is great about coworking:
There is a distinct line drawn between 'home' and 'work' – When I was working from home I would often work late into the night, only stopping to eat dinner – there was no clear 'home time' because I was home all day. Now I get up, exercise, grab a coffee and head into work. And at the end of the day when I leave the studio and head home, my work is done for the day (well, most nights). I've found that the work-life balance is much easier to maintain when there is a clear division between my workspace and my home.
You have all the answers at your fingertips – Everyday the studio is filled with people from different industries, with an incredibly diverse range of skills and expertise. If a challenge or question arised when I was working at home, I would have to google the issue to death or phone a friend – in the studio, I can simply turn around and ask whoever is working near me. For example, when creating a photography brief for an architecture project, I could quickly ask our resident photographer Holly (Siy Studio) what the best way to structure the brief was. And I couldn't tell you how many times I've drawn on Annalyse's (I AM Annalyse Mcleod) PR and branding expertise.
Collaborations emerge over cups of tea – When you're working at home, you might have the most amazing ideas for a collab, but then have to reach out to a prospective partner and eagerly (impatiently) await a response. In the studio, casual chats over cups of tea will soon result in mind-blowing collaboration ideas! Our Drop-in Life Drawing classes emerged when Holly invited Kat Bak to check out the studio – after a quick chat we'd decided to start weekly life drawing classes! You can check them out on the What's On page.
There's nothing like being surrounded by other hustlers to motivate you – Working at home it was easy to be distracted, suddenly dishes needed to be done or dry washing folded. At the studio, surrounded by the energy of everyone else ticking off their work goals, you suddenly don't want to be the one procrastinating. And when you do need to get some creative juices flowing, there's plenty of studio pals to bounce ideas off.
If you're working from home and considering making the switch to a coworking space, drop by to check out our studio or book a desk online here.
Nat is our Studio Manager and can be found at the desks most days working her marketing magic for Clean Coast Collective and The Sociable Weaver.