While it may seem like the modern day dream job, working from home actually has a number of disadvantages and downsides that few people will tell you about. Here are just a few that we’ve heard from our members…

1. Distractions

No matter where you work, there’s always something to distract you from focused work. But working from home seems to offer more distractions than other place. As one Department Coworking member put it, “The whole house is a distraction.”

Whether it’s the mountain of laundry glaring at you as it piles up, or the dog barking whenever the doorbell rings, or “El” and the Stranger Things gang calling from the other room, there seems to be no end of opportunities to do anything but what you need to focus on in the moment. 

2. Work/Life Balance

There’s an old proverb that  in essence says, “Don’t poop where you eat.” (and now let’s just pretend that that applies here.)

Seriously though—when you work from home, the lines between work and personal are much more easily blurred. Before long, work bleeds into your personal space, or vice versa. At home, it’s certainly harder to transition between work and non-work; harder to turn off the brain at the end of a long day or week and find that much-needed personal headspace. 

What you may need is a work space and a space for everything else.   

3. Loneliness

According to one study, loneliness is one of the top challenges remote workers admitted to experiencing, with collaboration/communication being the other. Makes sense. Humans are social creatures by nature. Sure, some people may thrive in an environment of solitude, and some jobs may require a dark cave to GSD. But for the rest of us day-dwellers, let’s face it: We get lonely working on our own sometimes. 

4. Mental Blocks

The struggle is real: Working from home can be a creativity inhibitor. One thing to help mental blocks is to change your environment. Home isn’t always the most inspiring place to work. You see it all day, ‘er day—and night. And it gets old after a while. 

So whether you work from a coffee shop, a coworking space, or your couch in the other room, the key to getting passed those mental hurdles is simply to mix it up a little. 

5. Inability to Collaborate

They say collaboration leads to invention. (Okay, maybe no one really says that, but it sounds pretty good, right?) There’s just something about working in close proximity to other intelligent, hard-working people. The home office doesn’t really provide that option. 

Sure there’s always the option of a conference call or video hangouts, but let’s be real: it’s difficult to replicate the experience of getting a few people in the same room whiteboarding a new sales funnel or business strategy. What you need is a good meeting space with good lighting and fast WiFi.      

6. No Office Amenities

At home you only have access to the things that you’ve bought from Amazon or Staples for your home office. Sure, you may have Coke (or craft beer?) in the fridge—but you bought that too. These are necessarily “amenities” of your office, since your office is where you live. And it’s certainly not the same as having endless coffee (locally roasted, of course) and ice cold La Croix at the ready, especially when you’re not the one buying and stocking the drinks. Thankfully most coworking space will have you covered. 

And that’s not to mention all of the other important amenities that are included in a coworking office membership. Things like…

• a professional business address (a P.O. box doesn’t count)
• conference rooms with all the tech
• an onsite notary
• color printing
• networking events
• 1GB internet
• someone to clean your office for you

And these are just a few of the reasons we’ve heard members of The Department tell us why they started to look for a private office or coworking space instead of their home office or coffee shop.

Finding the Right Solution For You

So what’s the right solution? Try coworking—with a door. 

That’s right: Say goodbye to loneliness and hello to collaboration and amenities. You can enjoy the benefits of working remotely while being around other growth-minded businesses and individuals in a coworking space. A private office in a coworking space gives you the solitude you love when working from home, but with a collaborative community, and all the amenities of a coworking space.  

Ready to leave home for a private or executive office with a cool vibe? Check out our affordable options here at The Department Coworking.