A Social Distancing Approach to Office Rentals

For the first time, many of us are navigating how to work from home full time. We’re setting up makeshift offices at our dining room tables, in our basements, or even in our bedrooms – and some of us are struggling to make it work. Since the go-to coffee shop is likely closed for indoor dining (which in turn means closed for indoor working), getting away from your home to focus has been more challenging. Luckily, there’s an alternative. Coworking spaces like HeadRoom offer a safe, clean office space where you can take care of your business without the distractions of home. This is especially attractive if, as in the case at HeadRoom, you can use an individual office rather than a “hot desk”!

The Origins of Coworking

Coworking got its roots, and name, in 2005 when the first coworking space was created in San Francisco. Since then, coworking spaces have popped up all over the country, and it’s expected that by 2022 there will be more than 30,000. Much of the work that many people do can be done online, so they aren’t tied to a specific location – which we’ve experienced during the current pandemic. As a result, you can set up shop wherever you can connect to Wi-Fi. However, working alone oftentimes doesn’t foster the most productivity or creativity among much of the workforce. Being together with like-minded professionals but working independently offers a community that can lead to a more productive business day for everyone. That’s where coworking comes in!

Coworking can be defined by many things:

 

• It gives entrepreneurs the ability to share cost and infrastructure when it comes to having a physical office location through shared office space.
• It provides a business community centered around accessibility and sustainability.
• It offers both collaboration and independence as well as the flexibility to meet your specific business needs. 

Utilizing a coworking space doesn’t mean having to sit at a table with six other people with your headphones plugged in and your gaze firmly on your laptop screen. It can be as much of a collaborative experience as you want it to be. 

Coworking During COVID

Companies such as HeadRoom have realized that businesses and start-ups want the availability of flexible, low-cost yet fully provisioned office facilities, but they don’t want to necessarily share body space – especially in today’s current situation. Instead of the concept of the “hot desk” where people share a specific desk during different times of day, places like HeadRoom offer the “hot office.” People can reserve their own office space for however long they want and invite whoever they want into it. 

While many coworking spaces offer private office space for an extra charge or on a limited basis, HeadRoom and other flexible office outfits only offer offices and conference rooms instead of shared desks. This means you can engage in normal business activities like making calls, meeting clients, holding team meetings, or just getting some purposeful work done all from the comfort of your own office space. You reserve the office or conference room for the time and day you need it and it’s yours. You can bring as many people as reasonably and safely fit in the room along with you at no extra cost because you are only being charged for the room usage. When you are finished with the room it becomes free for the next business that needs it.

These types of office rental locations offer Wi-Fi, overhead projection or LED TVs, refreshments, and often include admin and telephone services. Typically, the space is open 24/7 for members but can be booked by non-members during normal working hours. Membership can start at any time and normally membership can be canceled with 30 days’ notice. Even though people are working in their office there is still an opportunity to meet others at the coffee machine or water fountain; it’s just that you get to decide how much you want to collaborate.

Finding a productive and safe space to work is key to productivity. Coworking at a shared office space facility like HeadRoom can help ease the stress of a newfound work-from-home situation or simply give you a place to focus on getting your own business off the ground. Learn more about our offerings and about our philosophy on coworking by contacting us today!