Coffee Shop or Coworking: Five Questions to Determine Which Workspace Is Best for You

Remote professionals, freelancers and entrepreneurs face a common dilemma: Where to find a workspace ideally suited to fit their needs. Home offices and coffee shops have become popular alternatives, mostly because they’re free, but do they offer a holistic professional environment that enables the remote workforce to accomplish their best work?

For a small monthly fee (just $139/month at Roam), many people facing this problem have found the answer in a shared workspace. Is it time for you to join them and exchange your coffee shop or home office environment for a shared workspace at Roam? Ask yourself these five questions to determine what workspace solution is the best fit for you and your current professional needs.

1|  Am I functioning at my highest level of productivity and accomplishing my best work?

If your answer is yes, this is one indicator that your current workspace may be working just fine.

If your answer is no, try making changes to your daily routine or workstyle. Consider removing known distractions or implementing a time-blocking structure where you dedicate certain times of the day for specific work activities. If these modifications or other productivity hacks don’t provide an improvement, it may be time to consider coworking.

2|  Do my client calls or face-to-face meetings require a certain level of privacy?

If your answer is yes, a coffee shop is not a sustainable setting. It is seemingly impossible to ensure private conversations are not overheard by nearby coffee drinkers. And on most days, the distractions and background noise from other patrons will be unacceptable in the minds of your clients. In this situation, the coffee shop ends up costing you far more in lost business than the small monthly fee of a coworking membership.

If your answer is no, continue working wherever you see fit. Noise level or outside disturbances aren’t an impedance to your privacy or productivity.

3|  Do I need to establish a level of credibility and professionalism with my clients?

If your answer is yes, coworking could be a big difference-maker. The uniquely-designed shared workspaces at Roam can become an impressive extension of your brand. Having a dedicated space for work and meetings conveys stability, credibility and legitimacy to your clients.

If your answer is no, continue with your current home office or coffee shop. In fact, enjoy the ability to work in your pajamas!

4|  Do I require printing, copying and other business services?

If your answer is yes, you should strongly consider a coworking space. Your membership fee includes access to print/copy/fax, mail services, conference phones, Wi-Fi, audio/video equipment and more.

If your answer is no, continue to make regular stops to the office supply store and FedEx when necessary.

5|  Could increased productivity and professionalism produce more revenue than the $139 per month membership at Roam?

If your answer is yes, investing in a coworking membership is a no-brainer! After all, you’re not in business to leave money on the table.

If your answer is no, your business or career may not be ready to invest in a coworking membership just yet, but it’s a great option to keep in mind as your business continues to grow.

With answers to these five questions, you should have all the information needed to determine which workspace solution is best for you and your current workspace needs. If you think it’s time to explore the benefits of coworking, contact us to talk through the details of membership or stop by any of our five Metro Atlanta workplaces for a tour of our designed-enhanced spaces. We hope to partner with you in your search for finding a workspace solution that offers enhanced productivity and equips you to consistently perform at your best!