Freelancing is now becoming popular as a source of income for many people. There are a lot of reasons on why many are attracted on this kind of work. One reason that I find very attractive is I can work anywhere I want! The way you work affects the quality of  your output, and your workplace affects how you work. Therefore, you should choose a good place to work on. You need to find a place that will give you comfort while working and won’t easily get distracted. In this article, I will be giving you list of places where you can work comfortably. Have fun reading!

At an Office

A great place where you can focus solely on your work is at an office. The ambiance makes you move to work, and you can really focus yourself in doing your tasks. Having an office to rent only applies for freelancers who are regularly earning and also have co-workers with. Since you need to pay for the rent, the electric and internet bills. If you want to work in an office, you may ask your friends who also work as a freelancer to share with you and divide the expenses between you. Having someone when working gives you also a chance to socialize with others.

Advantages:

• Office is a great place where your focus will only be on your work.
• There are fewer distractions and more productive hours for you.
• Working in an office teaches you to be disciplined to get up early, fix yourself and go at work.

Disadvantages:

• You are required to spend for the bills like the rent and utilities.
• You need to buy things for your office set-up such as cabinets, tables and chairs.
• You need to travel from your home going to the office.

Image by: Geneva Sound

At Home

Many freelancers work at home. One thing I like about working at home is that I feel at home. There are a lot of locations in a house where you can do your work.

Bedroom

I do work in my own bedroom. What I like about working in my own room is that I can do everything I want without disturbing my family. I can lock myself in the room so I won’t get disturbed also. And every time that I need time to think for a certain task, I can just walk around my room while thinking. This is also recommended for wives out there who work as a freelancer. But be sure that you balance your time as a mother and as a freelancer.

Advantages:

• You can focus yourself on what you do. In my case, I lock the door so no one won’t disturb.
• You feel free to work since you are in your own comfort zone.
• Every tool you need such as your printer, storage devices, notebooks and pens, etc. are in there.
• There’s no need for you to travel.
• When you want to eat, you can just go to your kitchen. Unlike in an office, you still need to go to a fast food chain or in a canteen.

Disadvantages:

• Sometimes, seeing a bed makes you want to lie down and you know what will happen next.
• If there’s a TV in your room, it can be one distraction. There will be times when you will be tempted to watch your favorite TV show.

Image by: Rebekah Pavlovic

Living Room

When I feel that my room feels hot and I lack oxygen, I work in our living room. So, what are the advantages and downsides of working in a living room?

Advantages:

• When you feel bored, your family members can make you feel alive and work again.
• When you see your family, you get inspired and are motivated to do well at work.
• Sitting on a couch with your feet straightened, and then you put your laptop on your lap feels comfortable.
• If you want to pee, it’s just a few steps away. Unless, if your house is as big as a castle.

Disadvantages:

• Your family may be one distraction to you when working. There are times that they feel chatting with you or are asking for your help on something.
• TV and other entertainments can be a distraction. But this depends if you are a person who likes working with the TV or sounds turned on or so.

Image by: Neil Goodman

Dining Room

Are you the person who eats while working? You may just work on your dining room then. Sometimes I do that. When I feel my body craves for food, I just use a laptop and place it on our dining table.

Advantages:

• It’s easy for you to set up your workspace there. You just need to put your laptop on the table, switch on your laptop and that’s it! You can start working.
• Eating while working is good, but do not eat too much. It will let you feel sleepy at times.
• Seldom that family members stay on the table, so there will be fewer distractions from them.

Disadvantages:

• If you tend to be careless, you can spill your food or drink all over your computer.
• When you are in a dining room, you tend to eat a lot. And when your body feels heavy, you will also feel sleepy.
• There can be distractions such as smell from the kitchen or other external factors.

Image by: Bookishly Fab

Library

When we were in college, we used to stay in our school’s library. The surrounding is good and silence is all over the place.

Advantages:

• The surrounding is peaceful and silent. You can work on your tasks properly.
• If you cannot find a reference on the web, there are a lot of books that you can use there.
• You do not need to pay to get inside and use their facilities.

Disadvantages:

• If you yell on your monitor when pissed with one task, you cannot work in a library.
• Most libraries forbid people from bringing food inside to maintain the cleanliness of the place. If you love to eat while working, you can just find another place.
• Sometimes you feel bored because of the silence that fills the place.

Image by: Paul Burdick

In many places, there are already public libraries that are Wi-Fi zone. So, all you need to bring is your laptop and other personal belongings. Also, do not forget to bring an ID. Most libraries require people to surrender their IDs for identification purposes.

Coffee Shops

I remember from another freelancing job, my friends and I used to work at least twice a month in a coffee shop. This gives us different ambiance and since we love frappes and lattes, we enjoy working there.

Advantages:

• Coffee shops are alternatives when there is no electricity at your workplace. There was a time that in two consecutive days there’s no electricity in our house. What I did is go to my favorite coffee shop and work there.
• I enjoy working in a coffee shop, because of the energizing ambiance it brings.
• You can socialize with other people and maybe could meet freelancers like you. If you will be working in a coffee shop, ask a friend or someone who can be with you throughout your working day.

Disadvantages:

• The disadvantage of working in coffee shops is you still need to spend money of course, to buy food and coffee.
• Another is that coffees make you want to go to the bathroom often.
• There are times that their connection is down. So, you need to make sure of that first.
• If you are the person who cannot work properly with the noise, then I don’t advice you to work in a coffee shop. Or, you may put a headset on to lessen the noise distraction.

Image by: Iris

Factors To Consider When Choosing a Workplace

In choosing a place to work in, you should consider the following factors:

Setup

• The setup of your workplace should give you motivation to work better and be productive each day.
• Make sure that your choice of workplace has all the tools you need to work, especially the internet connection.
• Cleanliness of the surroundings affects how you move. Be sure to go in a place where it is clean. Or if you are working at home, fix your workplace first before doing your tasks.
• You should feel relaxed on how you sit and where you at. This gives you comfort and won’t easily get distracted once in a while.

Distractions

Say no to distractions. These come in different manner. A distraction can be the weather, a noise, a person or an emotion. There are many suggested ways to avoid distractions, but for me there are only two things that we need to avoid distractions: focus and discipline.

• Think of your goals each day and focus on them.
• Think of your inspiration and be motivated with it.
• Think that you should be better today than yesterday.

Expenses

The expenses should also be considered. Working in a coffee shop or in a restaurant everyday is a big no-no. Be practical. If you are earning well, you can just rent an office and share it with your co-freelancers. If you think you can just work at home, you can just do that. There’s no better place to stay than at your own home. Before I end this article, I have collected pictures of the workplaces of some of the people behind 1stwebdesigner. Take a look below.

My workplace:

This is my workplace which is located inside my room. I have my PC, my notebook and my planner, a glass of water and a juice drink. I did the setup on where I find myself comfortable moving and working.

Rean’s workplace:

This is Rean’s workplace, he is a writer and editor of 1stwebdesigner. You will see on this image his moleskine, his favorite pen, his laptop, a coffee and the BunnyPeople of Intel atop his books. Very clean and everything that he needs is readily on his table. (Rean’s note: pink walls help me concentrate, swear!)

Saad’s workplace:

This is Saad’s workplace, he is our main editor. In his workplace, you will see two monitors, a book, and a router behind the monitor. It’s very clean! One thing you need to make sure is your workplace is clean. Whenever I find my workplace messy, I ended up cleaning it and the rest of my room instead of working. So before doing your tasks, make sure your surrounding is clean and organized. This apply mostly with freelancers who work at home.

Dainis’ workplace:

This is the office of our CEO. You will find here a Mac book, computers, a calendar, moleskine and other stuffs his co-workers and him needs. Your workplace must have a good lighting like this, it gives a comfortable working atmosphere. This kind of office setup where people are near each other is also good. This way, they can communicate well with each other.

How about you? Where do you work most of the time? What made you decide to work there? Share us your insights! You can also show us a picture of your workplace