After quitting that typical 9 to 5 job, and setting yourself up as a freelancer you probably noticed one thing in particular, you have no where to go. You don’t have a designated office in a commercial building anymore, and that can pose some issues for those of you who need a designated space to work. Sometimes the house is just too abuzz for you to really concentrate, or you get distracted by all the chores that you see need to be done, thankfully there are alternatives to sitting in your living room or kitchen. Here are a few places you can hunker down to get your work done.
Coffee Shops
This is tradition, who hasn’t heard of a freelancer sitting down to work on their assignments in a coffee shop? This can be a great place to sit down with your laptop and focus on your work, though you may have to order a coffee first, but really, whose complaining about the added caffeine? The coffee shop is a neutral ground, where there is just enough activity around, and just enough privacy for you to really focus on those deadlines without looking over your shoulder and noticing the stack of laundry staring back at you.
There are a few drawbacks to using a coffee shop as a place of work though. Breakfast hour, lunch hour and maybe even the after-work hour. People are going to rushing in wanting their pick-me-ups and snacks, which means the place will be loud, and crowded which could really mess up that work flow. Also, the business may not appreciate you siphoning their WiFi for work, even if you are purchasing a snack or beverage on occasion.
Libraries
For those of you who can resist the urge to browse, read, and check out every book on the shelf a library may make a wonderful work environment. Naturally, libraries maintain some level of silence, and that makes it easy to concentrate on the deadline at hand. The other added perk is that if you need to research something and you are having a hard time finding it on the internet, there may be a book on it.
The drawbacks to working in a library is that you yourself can’t make too much noise. This means that you can’t really sit around and make skype calls to your clients because you may be shushed too often.
Home or Rented Offices
Another option is to just rent an office space. Many of the co-working spaces that you can rent come with wonderful additions like meeting rooms, or gyms. This may be something you want to consider if you have to meet one on one with clients, rather than dragging them to a coffee shop, library or your own home you can bring them to an actual office space.
The other option is to set up a room in your own home that you can use as an office, this is ideal if you have a spare, unused bedroom, or really large closet that wouldn’t be too hard to transform. This will keep you away from the busy part of your home and available to work on your assignments at hand. Thankfully, you don’t have to fully furnish it right away, a simple table and chair could work until you are ready to fully commit to it.
The drawbacks of a rented office is that it is very costly, so if you’re on a tight budget it may not work. The drawbacks of using a room in your home is that you’re still at home, and you may feel a bit reclusive. Also, family will be able to bang on your office door until you come out.
Finding the right space is all about finding the place you are the most productive, and that works best for you.
