From finding investors to pitching clients and coming up with new ideas, entrepreneurs and freelancers have to do everything on their own. They must always be self-motivated and looking for ways to be more productive. And to really flourish, it’s crucial for these individuals to have a space in which they feel comfortable working.
We spoke to several business owners about where they go when they need to be productive. Here’s what they had to say about working in coffee shops, co-working spaces, and at home.
Home office
The owner of independent comedy label Stand Up! Records Dan Schlissel mainly works at home, where he does audio editing of his recordings. He says that he feels most at ease there, where he has an office with “a mess of papers and piles of CD-Rs that cocoons me into my desk.”
According to Schlissel, the biggest advantages of conducting business at home are not having to dress a certain way to go to work, as well as being close to his family and possessions.
“The downside is that the family, while awake, can be quite distracting,” he says. “I have altered my hours to be when everyone’s asleep, so no one bugs me while I actually work. I go to bed later than most folks and wake up later as a result.”
Amber Johns, a photographer in upstate New York, says she also deals with distractions at home.
“If you’re home, there are always things that can be done. For me, I could clean, be a mom or a wife, or find something to attend to. Sometimes it’s a matter of shutting my office door, and letting family and friends know not to come by because I’m working.”
Coffee shop
When Johns needs to leave her house, or meet with clients, she’ll go to a local coffee shop in Albany.
“I like the neutral location and being able to order clients food and drinks,” she says. “The coffee shop is super cozy, and fun, and a really friendly atmosphere. It works well when trying to garner a client’s interest.”
Diane Najm, CEO and co-founder at PhotoPad, is based in Seattle. In true Seattle fashion, she’ll work in Starbucks or Tully’s if there isn’t too much noise. When the shops are crowded, she finds it difficult to make phone calls because it’s loud.
Najm will also venture to specific coffee shops because of the networking opportunities.
“At Tully’s in Medina, there are always great people there who are high-level,” she says. “You want to run into them and find out what they’re working on.”
Before Adam Brown, president and founder of Sircle Media, had an office space, he frequented 27 different Starbucks locations. He found that when the shops got packed, the internet slowed, so he got a mobile hotspot, which made things easier.
However, the working environment was still not ideal. Brown says he, “often stressed about seating and outlet availability.”
“In NYC, it is a real problem, and some locations in high trafficked neighborhoods actually blocked them completely, making that not even an option,” he says.
Co-working space
Najm, who goes to WeWork in Seattle when she’s not in the coffee shop, networks on her own and attends “Lunch and Learn” sessions there.
“You can run into people and get questions answered,” she says. “WeWork is always a resource for me.”
Since last February, Brown’s been renting space at WeWork in New York City, and says the experience “has been excellent thus far.”
“I have worked in two other co-working spaces and both were mediocre at best,” he says. “Those felt like places to go to work each day, and I did literally no networking or collaborating in the two years.”
During the time that Brown’s been at WeWork, he says he has landed new clients and “had numerous valuable introductions made either through the app or via a community manager.”
Brown has noticed a positive shift in his work habits too.
“I love seeing the rooms packed with people on their hustle each day,” he says. “It makes me want to race back to my desk and out hustle them. I am competitive by nature and if I seem them grinding, I want to go even harder.”