Working from home seems like an ideal situation...for someone who’s never tried it before. Sure it might seem nice to just roll out of bed and get to work without having to worry about what to wear or getting rid of your bedhead. However, with working from home, the cons much outweigh the pros. In this new age of startups and small businesses, the invention of coworking spaces has filled a gap in the office space industry. It provides the perfect middle ground between a huge, costly office space and working from your bed with your laptop and phone. There used to be almost no other options out there for someone who’s company wasn’t big enough to warrant an office suite, yet. Here are some of the ways coworking has solved the issues small business owners used to be forced to deal with while working from home.

Noise/Distractions

It can be very difficult to work on a big project with the distractions of home around. If you have small children or pets in your home, you probably concur with this sentiment. They’re constantly needing or wanting your attention, which can be delightful at times, but in the middle of a project or decision you need to make, it can make things much more difficult than they should be. Even if you’re completely alone in your home, there is always the distraction of the bed and television. Taking a nap in the middle of the work day, or catching your favorite daytime shows while they’re live can be a temptation some succumb to when they work from home. I know i’ve been guilty of it. It might not seem like a big deal to watch a couple episodes during your lunch, but it can make getting back into the “groove” of working so much more difficult. Coworking is a great asset to anyone serious about their business because it’s a quiet place that you can hunker down and get a ton of work done without having the distractions or temptations of home.

Lack of Motivation

When you’re your own boss, one of the biggest struggles can be getting organized and finding motivation on a day to day basis. A lot of people think being your own boss is appealing because you make the rules, which means you’re allowed to take a day off whenever you’d like. This can be especially difficult when your office is your home. Waking up everyday, you’re already “at the office”, so you don’t have any specific time to get up or get going on a project. Having a designated place of work can be a huge help for this issue. Making a schedule and planning on being at your coworking space by a certain time every day can help keep you on track and get more work done.

Isolation

While working alone is often the best way to get a lot of work done, it can have it’s pitfalls too. When you’re working on making a decision that you might not have the most knowledge about, you might want to reach out to someone who has a bit more expertise on the subject. Coworking provides a great opportunity to meet people of all walks of life, from all different industries. The more people you know, the more diverse your contacts list is, and the more likely you are to know just the right person to ask advice from.