The bay area has been going through a lot of changes lately. Most of the changes center around the growing startup boom and the tech industry. One of the changes that startups have brought popularity to is a change in how we think about work. “Going to work” traditionally meant getting in your car and driving down to a physical location where you would sit in an office or cubicle and work from 9-5. Now, for many people it means working from home, or working whatever hours it takes to get the job done.

The necessity for an actual building to work out of is dwindling, and for a lot of people, it’s actually a wasteful investment. For contract workers, there’s really no need to rent an entire office if they don’t typically meet with clients much, and are working within a team of one. Renting an entire office suite can be incredibly expensive, so if it’s unnecessary, it’s best to avoid it.

For some people, avoiding paying rent on an office space means working from a combination of home and a local coffee shop. While this might work for one or two days, it’s not usually a long lasting solution. There are several issues with working at home, but the major one we hear is that it can be difficult to get going in the morning, and stay focused throughout the day when you’re sitting in bed, or on your couch where you usually play video games or watch Netflix. The temptation to have a tv show rolling in the background is too strong for a lot of people, and even though you might be working while you have something else going on, you’re likely not working as hard as you would be in an office.

The fact that so many people work out of cafes proves my point about working from home. The reason so many people work from Starbucks or other coffee shops is because they find it’s easier to stay motivated when they get up in the morning and leave the house. However, working from a cafe comes with its own set of issues.

For one, the wifi connection is often being shared by about 10 people, which slows down each connection significantly since cafes don’t always invest in the best wifi speeds. On top of that, all the people going in and out, the coffee grinding, and the milk being foamed makes a ton of noise and can be incredibly distracting.

So what’s the best option? Well, for many startup owners, coworking is the perfect solution. Coworking spaces provide a place for individual workers to go specifically when they need to get work done. Since it’s a shared space, the monthly cost is much lower than renting an entire suite. On top of lower rent costs, these spaces are designed to be a place of business, so they provide fast internet, free coffee and anything you could need to run a business. There are areas that are designated as quiet areas, and open seating areas for networking, making it a perfect solution for out of the box thinkers, like startup owners.