Should You *Really* Rent a Coworking Space?
I asked a bunch of my colleagues what they wish they knew. Here’s what I discovered:
As a freelancer, one of the biggest issues that I face deals with isolation. Being a person who has to work alone most of the time makes it hard for me to feel balanced. In fact, being alone for too long can make anyone struggle to focus on work, connect with clients, and even stay creative.
Lately, I’ve been eyeing a coworking space for rent near me. Coworking spaces have been fairly trendy in my area — though they aren’t anywhere as popular as WeWork was back in the day. I try to look before I leap, so I asked a bunch of my colleagues what they wish they knew. Here’s what I discovered:
1. If your industry is very “jagged,” coworking spaces are often dangerous gambits.
Speaking as someone who went from earning $10,000 a month down to about $3,000, I have to cut costs whenever I can. I was shocked to find out that one of my local coworking spaces costs about $1,400 to rent an office. Most will cost a bare minimum of $200 to $300.
One detail I noticed that, in my opinion, is a bit alarming, is that finding coworking space rates online is difficult. This lack of transparency usually means the space owners are going to overcharge and hard-sell you. I’ve heard rumors of upcharges and surprise fees, but at this point, that’s the American way.
2. Coworking spaces can also double as virtual addresses.
For many freelancers and small business owners, working at home is the default. However, you don’t want your home address plastered everywhere. Some coworking spaces now offer virtual mailboxes that you can use as a substitute for your business address.
Personally, I’d check to see if this service is actually offered. This is a great perk, but you can buy a virtual mailing address at a much lower rate elsewhere.
3. The community events at coworking spaces definitely have their allure — but they are hit or miss.
Based on my experience, going to a WeWork event in NYC can be an incredible way to network with others. But, whether the event is in a tiny town in Pennsylvania or a low-end city, most people just want to leave and go back home.
With many coworking spaces, the networking opportunities are only as good as the businesses that rent them. Location matters. You have a much bigger chance of meeting the next Hank Green in New York than you do in Des Moines.
In smaller coworking spaces, you might get no interaction with fellow members at all. Some coworking spaces (such as the one down the street from me) are so small, they’re more or less just offices for rent with a fancy name tag.
So, “community events” in these spaces will likely just be gatherings of under a dozen people who generally keep edging to the door to get home to their families.
4. I’ve seen some freelancers use coworking spaces as a way to advertise.
For every person who tries to network via coworking only to fail, there’s another who managed to get the word out via a sign at their desk. Events are often hard to deal with because people who go to work generally do not want to stay there after hours and chat with others — even if they don’t work for the same company.
However, I’ve seen coworking spaces that were smartly used as advertising methods. From what I’ve seen, the people who rented them didn’t actually work in them everyday. Rather, they utilized windows looking over streets or hallways with a lot of foot traffic and hung up signs so that people could find out about their work.
5. For some people, the mental boost that working near others gives can be reason enough to cowork.
Some people need to have that separation between work and home. They need to be in an office to focus. If you’re like that, coworking might be a smarter choice than something along the lines of working at a Starbucks or your local gym. Coworking spaces are better suited for office work.
If that’s the type of freelancer you are, coworking makes sense — even if it is pricey.
6. Finally, there’s something to be said about using coworking spaces for meetings.
Most freelancers tend to be total loners — graphic artists who work at home, writers who don’t talk to anyone, and web designers who just like to stay at home. However, not all freelancers are going to be lone wolves. Some genuinely need a place to meet others and want that place to be safe.
Coworking spaces are meant to be those types of places. They make a good impression, make it easy for people to meet up, and also provide a fair sense of security. In this case, even if you don’t use the place 24/7, a coworking space could make sense for you.
My verdict: most freelancers don’t need a space, but it definitely can be a good investment for the right person.
Coworking spaces are a lot like freelancer working styles — whether it makes sense for you is really all on you. However, most people generally don’t get as much as they think they will from a coworking space. The people who tend to benefit from them the most are small teams and mobile offices.
If you’re a loner or just have that tendency toward working at home solo, a coworking space will only be a worthwhile investment if you need to be more social. In most other cases, these places are really only good for teamwork.
Wish there was an option to cowork with a diverse group of professionals online, from the comfort of your home and without crazy rental fees? We do, too! Join Oba and help us make that a viable option for freelancers!
