Do you have a dedicated space to work?

Interview with Erin, a virtual assistant with a successful approach to freelancing

Since we travel so much, I do not have a dedicated work space. Having said that, I try to ensure that our AirBnB rentals at least have a kitchen table that I can work from. I avoid working from my bed since I try to mentally keep that space reserved for rest and relaxation.

Erin has found freelancing success as a virtual assistant—see her organizational tips & insights into how she picks clients that suit her business.

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Interview with Chanell, a freelance writer and social media manager

I do not have a dedicated space at the moment. So much of my work is done on my laptop, and I do not need any extra equipment such as papers, large monitors, printers, or additional hardware. Therefore, I do not have a need for a significant amount of space.

I usually work on the coffee desk in my living room or basement. It is funny because I created a desk space in my bedroom for this exact thing. Ironically, I am more comfortable elsewhere.

I have worked at coffee shops here in Metro Atlanta, and each experience has been pretty good. I have a friend who also works from home, and we have set up co-working days where we meet up to work at a coffee shop at least once a month.

We use this as an opportunity to try new local coffee spots and catch up while we work.

When I first turned to remote work, I felt a bit isolated and overwhelmed. I did not think I would feel this way, but visiting coffee shops in the beginning really helped. It was comforting to see a lot of other remote workers doing the same thing I was. It helped to settle me down so I could get into my current rhythm.

Now, I do not attend coffee shops as much for two reasons. The first is because the closest coffee shop that is large enough to house remote workers is a bit further than I am willing to drive (I live in the suburbs), and the ones I prefer fill up pretty quickly.

However, I think visiting coffee shops to work are a great alternative, and something I am going to continue to do with my friend.

The second reason is that traffic is not the greatest here (one of the main reasons I left my job) so traveling to a lot of different areas to work defeats one of my original purposes for doing this. As I develop my business further, I do see the value in going to places where other professionals are so I can network.

Chanell is a freelance writer working from Atlanta that writes about business management tips and video game entertainment threads.

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Interview with Maggie, a senior product manager at HubSpot

Yes, my desk is set up in my bedroom. My husband works remotely too, and he’s in the spare bedroom.

Remote work allows Maggie to live in a small town and excel in her career. Hear about how she stays professionally connected, and her essential career advice for remote workers.

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Interview with Ben, a web developer who freelances from home

My workspace for the last half a decade has been a desk my father made for me. For a while, this was in it's own room in the apartment I lived in. When I started renting a house with a few friends, I got the master bedroom, and so 1/3 of that became my workspace, and when they moved out, I moved my desk down to the living room, where it's been for the last 3 years.

I've tried a co-working space (didn't like it, too expensive for what it was), working in a coffee shop (do-able with headphones), and even rented a private office space for a year (wasn't worth it, who wants to drive to an office 10 minutes away when you have a computer in your living room? :) ).

Eventually I might take one of the other bedrooms and use it as an office, but the living room works well because my work computer is also my gaming computer.

That all being said, I run a dedicated virtual machine on my computer where I do all my client work. It's a good way to separate all the files I need and makes it a bit easier to secure it all (I deal with sensitive data for some of my clients).

Learn the tips and tricks Ben uses to stay productive while working remotely on a hybrid team

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Interview with Jake, a customer success manager for Atlassian

Yes, this is a must-have for me. I have a dedicated office, and that's all I ever use it for. I need to be able to shut off work, and I find that's a really effective way of doing it.

Prior to being a full-time remote worker, I would work from home occasionally, but my days were never really that productive. I was easily distracted.

But now that I have a dedicated workspace for doing work, and all of the tools and things in place to be productive, it's been a really easy transition for me.

Jake was burned out on the San Francisco lifestyle—see how he transitioned from working in-office to working remotely for a remote-friendly company.

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Interview with Jenna, a freelance writer who works remotely to help manage her health

I work almost exclusively from my couch. I know it’s probably terrible for my body, but I end up in so much pain from sitting at a desk. When I worked in an office, we had these ergonomic, high-end chairs that were adjustable in a dozen different ways, but no matter how I sat, I dealt with a lot of pain and repetitive stress injuries.

I have my couch set up so that my back is supported, and I’m not dealing with constant back pain anymore so that’s great. I might have an easier time focusing if I had a dedicated office space, but then I'd end up in pain, so it's worth it for me.

As much as I love the idea of writing in a coffee shop or even a park, I find it way too distracting! I need silence to concentrate, and I'll end up people-watching instead of working.

I used to work in an open office environment that was always noisy and it was incredibly difficult to get things done.

I'm amazed at how much more productive I am when things are quiet and interruption-free.

Jenna started working remotely after realizing her office job was causing health problems—now she works as a freelance writer and writes about self-improvement

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Interview with Lily, an entrepreneur building VR conferencing for remote teams

I recently gave my office a makeover to make it more work friendly. I moved around the space to make more room for stand-up VR (so I can walk around without running into my desk).

I added some decorations, like a bamboo plant, because I think they help inspire creativity. Besides that, it’s a standard office setup with my laptop being the main focus.

Lily has almost a decade of remote work experience, now she's building the team collaboration tool of the future with Virtual Reality

Read full interview from Interview with Lily, an entrepreneur building VR conferencing for remote teams.

Interview with Laurel about helping companies transition to remote work

I work from my home, which is a log cabin buried in the rural woods of Connecticut, USA.

My primary workspace is my sunroom-turned-office that overlooks the trees (and the wildlife living in them), but I often will migrate to other spots throughout the house (such as the dining room, the sofa, or my treadmill desk) depending on my mood and type of work.

Laurel is an advocate for remote work and helps companies learn how to work remotely through her consulting and writing.

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Interview with Dani and Luca, digital nomads who have mastered work and travel

We always choose our accommodations based on good connectivity and a place with common areas with electrical outlets and at least a table with some chairs.

We found out that it's not really that fundamental to have the best WiFi because we can always hotspot with our local SIM. What we really can't work without is electricity, and it happened that we had serious issues with blackouts in places like Cambodia and Myanmar.

In cases like those, it is important to look for places that are equipped with generators. In Yangon, we found a hostel designed for people like us that had coworking inside it, but it's not so common, especially in Asia.

Dani and Luca have mastered the art of traveling while working—see their hacks & tips for thriving as digital nomads.

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Interview with Laura, a communications specialist and travel writer by night

I like to roam around for work. I usually work off my dining room table, often using a stand atop the table so I can stand while I work. Sometimes I meander off to the living room and chill on the sofa with my laptop on my lap.

When the weather is nice, I will work poolside. And if I need to get out of my place and change the scenery, there is a restaurant nearby where I can hang out and work. My family lives in Texas, so I travel there to visit and work wherever I can find some peace and quiet.

Laura Coronado discusses her method for juggling her career as a communications specialist by day and her side hustle as a freelance travel writer by night.

Read full interview from Interview with Laura, a communications specialist and travel writer by night.