Coworking benefits span from offering companies and individuals flexible membership options to keeping costs down. Here’s why you should give this real estate trend a whirl.
What is Coworking?
Coworking is a form of shared office space rental where companies and individuals can take out flexible leases from a coworking provider, which operates the space. Members can enjoy the luxury of a serviced office space – often with reception service, a communal pantry, printer maintenance and meeting rooms.
From private offices to dedicated desks and hot desks, coworking is a great place for first-time entrepreneurs to get set up with a professional working environment to meet clients, expand their business network, and improve their productivity.
Larger firms also appreciate the flexibility that coworking offers, allowing them to scale their international team quickly without engaging with the hassle of long-term leases and grant employees the option of hopping between locations and countries, depending on their business needs. Additionally, in the case of an economic recession, firms can quickly downsize to a smaller office if needed, allowing them to cut costs quicker and more effectively.
5 Key Benefits of Coworking
Thinking of trying out coworking? Here are a few coworking benefits summarised to give you a more well-rounded understanding of the advantages of flexible working spaces – and the strong community vibes that will have you feeling right at home from day 1.
Optimise Your Productivity
When you’re home alone all day, your productivity takes a hit – especially when you’re checking work emails on the laptop that you normally use to binge Netflix shows and watch Youtube videos, and the fridge is just a couple of steps away. No one works their best when they’re surrounded by distractions, which is why coworking spaces are a good shout.
Rather than spending your time at home absent-mindedly checking your Facebook notifications every five minutes, get away from the clutter by heading to a coworking space where you’ll have tidy, clean desks to make a fresh start and put a proper dent in your workload. Plus, you’ll be surrounded by other hard-working professionals, which will help boost your productivity. The equity theory of motivation explains how we feel most fulfilled when we are producing an equal amount of work to our peers relative to the compensation we receive – and working in the same space as others gives us helpful reference points to measure our productivity against.
A Professional Environment for Meeting Clients
As anyone who’s ever worked in a customer-facing role can attest to, first impressions are everything – and this extends to ensuring your work environment looks as professional as possible. However, this gets exponentially harder when you’re fielding video calls from potential clients while sat beside your toddler who’s dead set on turning your living room wall into their latest project. One of the biggest coworking benefits is having ready access to highly professional meeting rooms, telephone booths, and dedicated desks for you to meet clients, host video conferences, and land that big contract.
Improved Mental Well-Being
There’s no denying that working from home can get incredibly lonely sometimes, which can increase your stress levels and feelings of anxiety or sadness. In fact, according to leading mental health charity Mind, loneliness can even lead to physical and mental issues such as depression, sleep problems and low self-esteem. Coworking spaces offer a thriving hub of creativity, lots of different perspectives, and perhaps a little company that we all crave when we’ve been at home for days. Plus, it’s always nice to be able to bounce ideas off others when you’ve hit a mental block.
Separation Between Your Work and Personal Life
Working from home might mean you get to skip that much-dreaded commute, but it also means that your work life can begin to creep into your personal life. You might find yourself succumbing to the temptation of replying to that one email at 10 pm, regularly working through your lunch, or lying awake at 3 am brainstorming ideas for that new project despite your best efforts to keep your work and personal life separate. Here’s where a coworking space can come in handy – the change in your physical environment can help you switch into productivity mode once you arrive, without the distractions you might otherwise have at home. Plus, it’ll help add some much-needed structure to your work routine and allow you to fully relax once you get home.
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Gives You the Flexibility to Change Up Your Work Environment
Unlike a cramped apartment or a traditional office, coworking spaces are well-known for having a myriad of spaces to suit different working styles, ranging from spacious outdoor terraces to dedicated desks, standing desks to small-scale banquet booths. So if you need a change of scenery to get those brain cells moving again, just pop over to another area to re-energise your mind. Plus, coworking spaces often offer multiple locations, so you’ll have the flexibility to swap between neighbourhoods if the situation calls for it.
Best Coworking Spaces in Asia Pacific
Ready to take your productivity to the next level? Check out our guides for location-specific recommendations on the best coworking spaces in the Asia Pacific region.
Australia (Melbourne)
Hong Kong
Japan (Tokyo)
Taiwan (Taipei)
Thailand (Bangkok)
Vietnam
The Hive is Asia Pacific’s leading coworking space provider, offering 20 beautiful locations in 7 cities.
We are taking every precaution to ensure the health and safety of our staff and members, including daily hygiene practices, additional cleaning, and temperature checks.
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