Having a coworking experience is a different feeling altogether. Whether you work for yourself or someone else, the coworking wave is taking over and there’s no stopping it. Instead of fighting it, grab your oversized noise-canceling headphones, find an extra phone charger, and make sure you sneak peek the wifi password. While there are people who struggle to ‘fit’ in the coworking environment. There are a few who just get with the vibe of it. Here’s how to survive any coworking space:-
Eat Your Own Lunch
While there can be anger management issues when you plan your workday in a coworking. Bring lunch to grab a quick bit is an easy thing to do. Because when a craving hits you, only your food would save you! (at least, it saves me :P)
When you bring in your own lunch, you seem quite responsible for other coworkers as well. This means that you are responsible enough to take care of yourself, and further signifies that if required, you can take care of those around you.
Bring Food to Share
Admit it. Who doesn’t like free food? Whether you’re fond of doughnuts, delicious rajma, cookies, chicken or any other food dish, there is no quicker way to win over your coworker’s hearts. Just ensure you bring enough to take care of your belly as well. It’ll showcase the generosity & caring side of you to the community.
Don’t Be Afraid to Make New Friends
Coworking simply means community. Of what use is a community if it doesn’t introduce you to new people who carry a similar mindset to yours. Come to think of it, it’s more like high school. And you’re the new kid. Make your life a little easier and try saying “Hi!” once in a while to your coworkers. There’s nothing to afraid of imposter syndrome, people might think of you like this as well. So, break the ice and build friendships
Barter with Other Members.
Wait! Did I just mention bartering? Yes, I absolutely did. Barter can help you strengthen your bond with a coworker. Too, it would help you become a little more flexible with your coworking ‘formula’ approach. Does someone need clients? Help them get a few for free and then ask something as a favour in return. There are a number of reasons to the fact why a barter economy or being able to barter is beneficial in any space. In a nutshell, bartering allows individuals to get what they need with what they already own
Grab the damn coffee.
You might think it’s beneath you, but taking your turn to grab a cup of coffee can prove you’re a team player. Sure, it might be one of those fancy contraptions from Italy, but it does help you show off your social side, right? Either way, coffee is the lifeblood of any coworking centre and, by sacrificing a few minutes on it, you can become a defibrillator. Try it, you’ll realize its importance now
Start a Writer’s Group
Searching for a little help with that first book you’ve always wanted to start? Why not round up all of the other aspiring writers and support each other in order to become more accountable citizens? Not only will you be able to make some new friends, but you’ll also get some real feedback about why your first draft isn’t working. As it is said, better brains you put in the basket, better is the quality of thoughts you could extract from it.
Learn How to Escape the Noise Chamber
Remember those noise-cancelling headphones we talked about earlier in this post? You’re going to need them, especially if you work out in an open space. Its coworking, everyone around you is hustling their own way. And you cannot do anything if their hustle disturbs you! 😛
But here’s a catch, managing this for your own betterment is how you could excel as a perfect part of the community.
Don’t Drink Too Much
Imagine, you sitting at your work desk where every day is Casual Friday. While you’re at it, now picture a fancy mini-fridge filled with endless amounts of locally crafted beer. Just because it exists in front of your eyes doesn’t mean it’s OK for you to go Booz at 11 AM. You need to be responsible for yourself. No worries, that overwhelming sense of shame brought on by the rest of the community should wear off just in time when that hangover to kick in. I pray for you that this image never becomes real for anyone, but as always, you need to ensure for yourself as well.
Give a Lunch and Learn
When you share over hunger, you get a gift in return, called learning. Embrace this by teaching other members about you and what you actually do, if they don’t bother to share your snack in the last case. You’ll get a little public speaking practice, plus, hey! you just got a connect in community. And they’ll get to learn something new. Remember, the only thing better than free advice is a free lunch.
