Coworking spaces are becoming increasingly popular, and one of the reasons for this is because of how the majority of people find that their productivity seems to soar when they work in a shared environment.
If you would like to capitalize on this to really make the most of your time, here are Circle Hub’s top strategies for maximizing productivity when coworking.
Choose the Right Coworking Space
While there’s no denying the fact that coworking can help with maximizing productivity, this largely depends on the coworking space that you choose.
For starters, the location of your coworking space will have a big influence on how productive you’re able to be. After all, you won’t be in the right mind frame to get lots of work done after battling through traffic during a two-hour commute.
However, that’s one of the advantages that comes from the explosion in popularity that coworking has experienced. Thanks to this surge, there are now coworking spaces popping up just about everywhere, making it easier than ever to find one that’s nearby. Take Circle Hub, for example. We have two locations in Ventura and Northbridge, with both being extremely convenient to access, even if you don’t live in the immediate area.
Of course, you’ll also need to ensure that your chosen coworking space offers all of the facilities and amenities that you need. Look for somewhere with bright, natural light, comfortable chairs and desks, and all of the standard office amenities, such as high-speed WiFi. It’s difficult to be productive when you’re lacking these things, so prioritize them in your search for a coworking space.
Eliminate Distractions
If you want to focus on maximizing productivity, then you’ll need to learn how to ignore and eliminate distractions. There can often be plenty of these around when coworking. This is purely because of the many different people that you’ll be surrounded by. If you allow your workflow to be interrupted each time a new person enters the coworking space, you won’t end up getting much work done.
Are you someone who finds themselves easily distracted?
Start by choosing a quiet corner of your coworking space to set yourself up in for the day. If your favorite areas are usually occupied by the time you arrive, consider booking a Designated Desk. Unlike a Hot Spot, where you simply turn up and grab an available desk, Designated Desks are reserved for specific time slots of your choosing. This means that your favorite quiet corner will always be available and waiting for you when you turn up to work.
If you have a particularly demanding day ahead of you, then you may even want to book a private office suite. At Circle Hub, our private offices range in size. Whether it’s just you or a team consisting of a few people, our offices will provide the utmost privacy, therefore minimizing distractions even further.
Many people that work at coworking spaces also find it useful to use noise-canceling headphones. These filter out background noise, which makes maximizing productivity so much easier.
Take Regular Breaks
Taking several breaks during your workday may seem a bit counterintuitive at first. After all, shouldn’t you be spending all of those extra precious minutes working instead of relaxing if your focus is on maximizing productivity?
Turns out, all of those breaks can actually be extremely beneficial. Multiple studies have been carried out on this subject and they all come to the same conclusion; a longer lunch break combined with regular micro-breaks throughout the day gives a person an energy boost while also increasing their chances of achieving their work goals.
Even better, each break that you take will help to reset your mood and reduce stress. This will leave you feeling far happier at the end of each workday!
So, how often should you be taking a break?
Ideally, every 60-90 minutes. After this point, fatigue will start to set in, meaning that productivity will decline. Taking even just a few minutes out to grab yourself a coffee or go for a quick stroll around the building will help to disconnect you from the work that you’re doing, therefore giving your brain the chance to relax.
Spending your break time socializing can be even more beneficial. Research has found a strong correlation between social breaks and mental well-being. Spending a few minutes chatting with your peers will have you feeling so much more positive and motivated once you get back to work.
At Circle Hub, this is easy. Head on over to our kitchen area to socialize with others, or spend a few minutes soaking up the buzz at our common areas. If you have a little longer to spare, you could kick back for a while at our gaming room, or even squeeze in a workout at our onsite gym.
Create a Plan for the Day
A little advanced planning is essential when working on maximizing productivity while coworking. Setting yourself some solid goals for the day will help to keep you focused. It will give your day a clear direction, helping to keep you on track. Sure, you may end up spending 10 minutes or so at the start of each day actually creating this plan, but your efforts will more than pay off by the end of the day.
Time blocking is a great way to set a daily plan. This time management strategy involves creating a schedule for every minute of your workday. For example, you may want to dedicate half an hour at the start of your day to answering emails and phone calls. After this, you’ll probably want to schedule an hour or so to work on your main projects, followed by a 10-minute break.
Visually scheduling these time blocks onto a calendar will help you to adhere to them. This way, you’ll be able to effectively focus your mind on the task at hand, rather than switching back and forth between different jobs. This can really help with maximizing productivity, and you’ll likely find that it also helps to save you some time!
Get Into a Routine
Did you know that having a routine to follow each day can boost cognitive function? As you can imagine, this can help your productivity to soar.
Following the time blocking tips that we’ve shared above can help you to establish a healthy routine. From waking up at the same time each day to grabbing yourself a coffee when you arrive at your coworking space to always taking your lunch break at noon, developing a routine can be extremely beneficial.
With a routine to follow, both your mental and physical health will benefit. You’ll know exactly what you need to do to start the day with a positive mindset and minimal stress, all of which will do wonders for your productivity.
Take Advantage of Technology
One of the benefits of coworking is that it gives you access to technology and amenities that you may not have otherwise been able to use had you been working from home. Taking full advantage of all of this can help to give your productivity a boost.
Take the printing facilities that you’ll find at Circle Hub as an example. You’ll be able to use our state-of-the-art printers whenever you need to, saving you from having to invest in a similar setup yourself.
Our high-speed WiFi is also loved by our members. You won’t have to waste time waiting for your Zoom call to buffer or for large files to download. Once again, this will save you time and money while improving your productivity.
Make the Most of Collaboration Opportunities
Another reason why people love working at a coworking space is because of all of the available collaboration opportunities. You’ll be surrounded by people from a huge variety of industries. Each person will have their own skillset and you never know when that could work for your benefit.
Say, for example, you’re struggling with creating marketing ideas for your business. Instead of spending hours brainstorming on your own and coming up with stale concepts, chatting with some of the marketing experts at your coworking space for a few minutes during a break may give you all of the inspiration that you need to take your marketing strategy to the next level.
Of course, you may even find a new team member at your coworking space. If you’ve been trying to teach yourself how to build a website for your business but haven’t been having much success, a little networking while coworking could land you an amazing new web designer. Not only will the end result be much more professional, but you’ll also be able to save yourself some time that you can then put to good use on tasks that you personally excel at.
Stay Organized
Organization and productivity go together hand-in-hand. Staying organized will save you so much time during your day while also enhancing your workflow.
Fortunately, it’s much easier to stay organized when coworking, compared to when you work from home. At the end of the day, you’ll need to leave your workspace exactly as you found it. This means clearing away any clutter that may have built up over the course of the day, ensuring that you, as well as everyone else that works in that space, will always have a tidy desk to work from.
Of course, not allowing that clutter to build up in the first place will also help. Not only can clutter be a distraction, but it can also cause you to waste time whenever you need to search for a particular item that you need. Whether this means digitizing your notes, categorizing all of the items that you use each day for work, or anything else, adopting a few organizational strategies will go a long way in maximizing productivity.
Maximizing Productivity at Circle Hub
At Circle Hub, we completely understand how important it is to remain as productive as possible. This is why our entire coworking space is geared toward encouraging this. With a variety of different workspaces to choose from, along with top-of-the-line amenities and facilities, you’ll quickly find that your productivity goes through the roof once you become a Circle Hub member!