Where Do I Work on My Startup?

I officially started Wondrous LLC five months ago and spend every day working on it from home. I’ve recently switched the focus of the company in a major way, moving from a hardware-based product to a pure software product. This means I can work from anywhere.

Up until recently, I’ve done a reasonable job of focusing on my work while I’m at home, but lately I’ve been experiencing difficulties. My primary challenges are:

• Household chores and tasks
• Family distractions
• No private, designated workspace

As anyone who works from home can attest, household chores and tasks can weigh on you. It is great to catch up on a load of laundry or the dishes when you need a mental break, but sometimes when chores are neglected, it’s hard to avoid thinking about all the things that need to be done around the house when you’re trying to work. With three children and two dogs, I fall into this trap more often than I’d like to lately.

During weekends, I get up early and work. Most times, my kids wake up shortly after me. I also like to work some evenings after my wife gets home. In either situation, there is a lot of background noise and distractions: video games, barking, fighting, screaming, playing… it can be a bit chaotic.

What I’ve realized over the past few days is that I simply don’t have a private, designated workspace. We converted our dining room to a home office, but we have a very open floor plan. While I’m working I can hear everything. There are no doors to the office (or any room on the main floor for that matter), so outside of using headphones, there is very little I can do block the noise.

Because of this, I’ve been thinking about some options I have for working outside of the home for a change of scenery or to have a more private setting during certain hours of the day.

Local Cafés

We have Starbucks and Panera Bread nearby, but that’s about it. As of now, Starbucks is my place of choice for working when I need to be out of the house. Panera Bread is farther away, but I don’t enjoy the atmosphere there as much as I do at Starbucks (although it is nice to change it up sometimes).

If I simply want to get out of the house a café works well! But honestly, I don’t always want the vibe of a café. If I’m going to one, it’s most likely because I need some peace and quite, not more distractions.

Co-Working Spaces

I really like the idea of co-working spaces. Unfortunately, the nearest ones are at least a 30-minute drive under the best traffic conditions. However, the aspect of meeting other like-minded individuals and bouncing around ideas with them is very appealing. It’s one of things I miss most about the normal office environment.

I’ve debated getting a pass to a co-working space even with the inconvenient location so I can use it when needed, but most co-working spaces with weekend or evening access require the 24/7 pass, which is considerably more expensive than a daily pass. It’s hard to justify hundreds of dollars a month for something that I may not use that often.

Home Office

As I mentioned, we converted the dining room in our house to an office, but it’s not private. I’m debating two different options for making a private space for myself to work:

1. Converting one of the children’s bedrooms to an office
2. Adding a desk to the sitting area in our bedroom

We have three children, but right now two of them are sleeping in the same bedroom (by choice). I’m considering converting the now-unused bedroom into an office— even if it’s temporary. My major concern is that my children will suddenly change their minds and want their own bedrooms back hours after we move everything around.

The second option is much less disruptive. We have a sitting area in our bedroom that, quite frankly, is wasted space. The comfy chair that is in there is typically used as a clothing rack instead of a place to sit and read a book. I am considering replacing the chair with a desk and using it as an additional office space when I need more privacy at home.