If you work from home you’ve probably heard this a million times: “Wow you work from home? You’re so lucky! You get to work from your bed, in your pajamas!”. You might nod and laugh when someone suggests this, but in reality, you know that working from home isn’t always as easy as it might sound. While you might be able to get away with throwing your hair up in a messy bun, or snacking on postmates while you work, there are some downsides to working from your home. The biggest complaint we hear from remote workers is by far a lack of motivation. When you’re essentially the only one who is keeping track of your time, it can be hard to motivate yourself to keep on task, or even get up on time in the morning.

While it might be nice to work in sweatpants and your old college t-shirt, experienced remote workers know that this can actually make it more difficult to get the work you need to get done finished. For many remote workers, coworking spaces are the perfect solution to this lack of motivation. Actually having a place to drive to and a reason to get dressed in the morning can help get your brain geared up to get some of your best work done, each and every day. When you have a coworking space that you visit on a consistent basis, your brain gets used to getting work done as soon as you enter it. There is actually research that shows that your environment has a huge affect on your ability to accomplish what you want to accomplish. For example, if you reserve your bed for sleeping, and don’t spend time texting, playing video games, watching tv or using the internet there, you’ll have a much easier time falling asleep each night, since your brain associates it with sleeping, and sleeping alone. The same goes for work. If you have a space in which you only work, your brain will have an easier time transitioning into a motivated state when you enter.

Another issue many remote workers have with working from home is loneliness. This might sound silly to someone who works in a normal office, but remote workers can easily go days at a time without running into any people, especially during the week when friends and family are busy with 9 to 5 jobs. For anyone transitioning from a regular office to remote work, you might notice right away how much you miss the daily interactions with your coworkers. This is another issue that’s easily solved by coworking spaces. There are actually specific networking areas, where discussion is encouraged. So if you’re looking for a little more human interaction on a daily basis, coworking is a great solution.

One of the best benefits of coworking spaces is a healthy work-life balance. For any good remote worker, it can be hard to cut yourself at what would typically be the end of a work day. This is especially hard when you’re working on a project you’re passionate about. However, if you have a coworking space and you choose specific hours in which you’ll stay there, it can help you leave work at the door, and destress at the end of the day. This can profoundly improve your relationships, mental and even physical health by reducing stress.