Whether you run a business or work remotely, it’s easy to see that there are certain benefits of working in a coworking space. One of the most overlooked perks of coworking is the idea of creating a better work-life balance for your employees and yourself. If your remote employees are working from home and don’t have a proper work-life balance, it could be affecting your companies overall productivity and profitability.
Why Choose Coworking?
Some small businesses have already adapted to the concept of coworking spaces as a way to create a better work-life balance for their staff. Shared office spaces have opened a new avenue for entrepreneurs to work. Instead of working from home, they can now work alongside other independent professionals and businesses in a coworking company without the distractions of working from home.
Another benefit of working in a shared working environment is that you can interact with others, which eliminates the feeling of isolation. By networking with others, you can meet people with similar objectives and interests as you.
Coworking creates an opportunity for you to network, exchange ideas, business development, and make new friends. People who can benefit the most from a coworking setup are entrepreneurs, freelancers, and creative professionals.
However, even small and medium-sized businesses are taking advantage of working in a shared office environment because it has helped them create a work-life balance. Anyone currently working from home should think about trying a desk or private office at a coworking space, especially if they are struggling to maintain a work-life balance.
4 Ways Coworking Creates a Better Work-life Balance
Here is a list of ways you can create a work-life balance through coworking:
1. Join the Workforce
Even though an independent professional may not like getting out of bed to go to work, sometimes, it is better to surround yourself with fellow professionals. If you are unable to maintain a work-life balance from home, you will have a better chance at creating it by waking up and going to a common desk or shared office at a coworking space.
Once you get into a routine, you will not want to go back to working from home. A new environment will help eliminate distractions and help you complete your work on time. Being more productive without distractions translates to having more time for your family or friends when you come home each day.
You will also have more time for a social life, which working from home may have diminished.
You will also have more time for vacations. In short, you will have more time to be able to focus on yourself while still maintaining flexible working hours. If you are not a morning person, you can go to your coworking office in the afternoon, for instance. It will be up to you because the office space will be reserved for you.
2. Socialize with Others
One problem that most independent professionals run into when they work from home is that it kills their social life. They immerse themselves in their work and have no one to talk to when they are working from home. If they worked for a company alongside employees, they would get to have interactions every day with fellow coworkers.
By working in a coworking space, people are able to mingle with other professionals and even become friends with them. Even though they might be working for themselves, they can still find time for social interaction which is often lacking when someone works from home.
3. Designated Work Station
At a coworking space, you can have your own work station or desk. Your home may not be designed or have room for a personal office, which means possibly sharing your workspace with your sofa, bed or kitchen table. You may also have important files scattered all over the place. Working from home can quickly get messy if you are not organized.
At home you may also have to invest in a work desk, file cabinets, and printer. If you decide to work at an office or desk at a coworking company, you will have a designated work station or desk with cabinets for your files.
Some spaces will have a desktop computer or you can bring your own laptop. If clients come to you, you can reserve the conference room to discuss projects. The best part is that you do not have to bring your work home. If you have to bring work home, maintaining a work-life balance becomes more difficult.
4. More Productivity
Having a place to go each day for work means you are not at home all day in your pajamas as you try to work. When you are getting dressed up and going to work, it will help shift your overall mood. You do not have to wear formal clothes in a shared coworking office but can instead dress in casual clothes, such as jeans and a shirt.
When you are in comfy clothes, you are more likely to get distracted, lose focus on work, and doze off. When you are waking up to go somewhere, you will be more productive because the rest of the people around you are working as well, which will have a positive effect and motivate you to work efficiently and finish projects on time. In return, this will increase your revenue, as the more projects you close, the more you can take on.
Will you give coworking a chance? It doesn’t hurt to try! Go for it and see if it can help you or your employees create a better work-life balance.