If you started a business by yourself, choosing to conduct operations from a shared workspace can seem like a potentially risky decision. You might experience greater comfort completing tasks at home due to the familiarity and lower costs. However, the advantages of running a business from a co-working space or shared office can be precisely what you need in order to bring your business more attention and, therefore, more growth. Here’s how you can grow your small business while working from a shared space.
Benefits of Running Your Business From a Shared Workspace
First of all, it is worth outlining some of the biggest advantages that new entrepreneurs can expect to enjoy when working from a shared office space. Many entrepreneurs prefer to work in a shared office space at the beginning of their careers so they can save money for more crucial aspects of their company rather than spending it on expensive premises. Co-working spaces are much more flexible and can grow along with the business, again keeping costs to a minimum since space isn’t wasted or paid for unnecessarily. Unlike working from home, businesses that operate in a shared workspace appear more professional to clients, in turn promoting a more polished image that will lead to greater opportunities.
Network with Others in Your Workspace
You may be taken aback by the possible collaborators sharing your co-working space. Teaming up with the right people is a great way to grow a business, so don’t be afraid to start conversations and build connections.
Figure Out a Sustainable Routine
The flexibility of working in a shared office can in fact become a challenge for a business owner when it comes to sticking to their routine. Unless your day is constantly packed with scheduled meetings and events, you may find that doing the everyday minutiae for nurturing your business falls to the wayside. Use time blocking to carve out sections of your day to be more productive. Maintaining a consistent routine for baseline tasks will make it easier to use the co-working space as it was designed to be used.
Outsource Important Tasks
If you are eager to use your time as sensibly as possible in a shared workspace, you will need to consider which tasks can and cannot be performed there. For example, trying to conduct an amazing internet marketing campaign might be too much of a challenge to attempt in your current setup. Outsourcing to experts such as Click Intelligence will give your company an edge, especially if you work in a co-working environment. While some tasks may demand your attention as the business owner, there will be others that make more sense to outsource. Just make sure to identify the best people for the job so it’s completed to your standards.
Find the Best Ways to Focus
If you struggle to concentrate in busy environments, there are ways to overcome this. Most co-working spaces have multiple areas for different types of work, so use a quieter part of the space if necessary. You can also invest in some noise-cancelling headphones for whenever you have to utterly focus and get in the zone. This way, it doesn’t matter where you find yourself, you can still concentrate.
The reason that shared workspaces have become so prevalent in the past few years is due to their high level of efficiency for everyone involved. Of course, there may be some initial challenges for anyone more accustomed to traditional work environments, but these will be overtaken by all the benefits that become more apparent, including how effectively you can build a strong business when working in such a dynamic space.
Photo credits: Coworking London