December 2019 - The Collection

There are 582 million entrepreneurs in the world; some of them work alongside others, some of them work independently. But one thing is consistent: the need for office space for entrepreneurs. Are co-working spaces the answer?

Coworking spaces exist for one major reason: there is a significant number of businesses and individuals who find that it is too expensive and often unreasonable to rent or own office space in some of the world’s largest and most central metropoles.

These individuals create room for a unique demand: space that they can rent on much shorter terms, with far less setup and overhead required. As we continue to forge ahead into a future that emphasizes a fast paced approach to everything, many startups and new entrepreneurs desperately need a space they can call their own within minutes.

The Benefits of Shared Office Space for Entrepreneurs

The traditional office isn’t dead, its era hasn’t passed – but it seems there’s room for more than just one type of space, and co-working office space for entrepreneurs is evidently here to stay.

Should you pay it any mind? If you hope to be successful, the answer is yes. Here are the 4 main reasons to consider co-working or flexible space as an entrepreneur.

1. Having Your Own Space Can Be Expensive

More and more businesses are cropping up globally today than ever, but fewer people are starting them (especially in the US). This tells us two things:

- - First, it’s easier today than ever to start a business.
  - Second, it’s easier than ever to have a business crash and burn.

Becoming an entrepreneur and launching a startup business carries with it a considerable amount of risk and requires a serious amount of committed capital. It’s important to know when and where to cut costs, and where to invest.

For startups, one of the biggest initial investments is in space. Startups need space to flourish – they need a place to grow, a place where people can come to work and deliver to their market. Co-working office spaces for entrepreneurs exists to fulfill a critical demand in a time of economic instability, especially among young entrepreneurs, who are much more likely to struggle with student debt and financial stability.

These shared, flexible spaces provide room for potential startups to flourish and innovate, rather than die much earlier on. But the fact that we are seeing more startups despite seeing fewer entrepreneurs also leads us back to that crucial second point: it’s easier than ever to crash and burn.

This means that entrepreneurs today cannot afford to make serious long-term decisions without a backup plan, and a way out. Coworking office spaces for entrepreneurs provide a little less stress of a security deposit and the mandatory long-term lease – instead, startups today can rent space on a monthly basis, and cancel their membership whenever necessary.

A lower initial cost, and far less risk: these are things that are highly attractive to individuals who know that 9 out of 10 startups fail, and most successful entrepreneurs are the serial kind.

2. Why Not Work from Home?

Entrepreneurs are not just self-employed, but they’re monetizing an idea. They’re commanding a business, and in many cases, work with teams to get their idea off the ground and into the realm of reality – and onto the market. When organizing and running a business, it helps to have a team to physically interact with and oversee. A coworking space lends itself as the perfect initial spot for small startups to work without investing massively into office space.

However, not every startup needs an office. There are plenty of businesses that can operate just fine virtually, and many business models can survive and thrive with each individual member of the team telecommuting and working from home. That being said, there are substantial benefits to being an entrepreneur (or even a freelancer) at a coworking space, rather than restricting yourself to your own four walls.

For one, the co-working space can help you thrive. For many, it’s better to work with others than to be stuck at home alone. It can make you: more productive, help stave off the feeling that things aren’t moving in the direction you want them to and can even help you avoid loneliness.

Not everyone feels this way. There are plenty of freelancers who do much better simply working from home, where they can prioritize their work, manage their time more efficiently, avoid unnecessary costs and commute, and spend more time doing the things they want to do after hours, like exploring the city or grabbing a drink with friends. Which type are you?

3. Networking is Critical

Coworking spaces provide a spot for more productivity, more innovation, and better chances at thriving. Why? Partially because it is a communal experience. Members of a shared workspace do not feel disconnected or disjointed but feel as though they are part of something greater, despite not being connected to a single company.

There is no hierarchy, no single boss or upper management for the whole office, and no one’s tasks are dictated by any one individual or committee. Instead, small groups and industrious individuals can coexist and work on separate projects, while sharing a space together, becoming colleagues and coworkers, and even exchanging information.

Networks are created organically, projects begin and come to fruition, and all this happens without a sense of internal politics or the friction of direct competition. Joining a coworking space specifically to seek out clients and business prospects is a no-no. But these networking connections can happen, and they’re a definite plus.

Should You Go for It?

Ultimately, there are many arguments for co-working office spaces for entrepreneurs – and some against one. It bears mentioning that there can be good reasons not to opt for such a space, including the fact that some businesses need the space to truly function, and for entrepreneurs working purely from home operating a much smaller, more virtual enterprise, it may be a good idea to cut the time and financial costs of showing up to a coworking space and just getting organized within your own four walls.

But for thousands of potential and current startups across the country, and hundreds of thousands of businesses, entrepreneurs, and freelancers around the world, these office spaces represent a godsend in a market that otherwise requires immense capital and serious financial commitment, potentially with unfavorable conditions, no equipment, poor amenities, and no utilities.

Conclusion

Flexible office spaces for entrepreneurs come with their own amenities, a unique work culture, an environment tailored towards productivity and cooperation, and the freedom to move from space to space without being made to settle on a single spot.

The ability to create and utilize emotional intelligence in the workplace is often overlooked in a business, however this skill is necessary for success and not only benefits employees, but the business and the bottom line as a whole.

Business is business, right? There’s nothing personal in it, and who cares if you get hurt? It’s a tough place, and a healthy, competitive environment pits people against one another in terms of pure competency. That’s what a meritocracy is all about, isn’t it?

While some might think so, anyone who has spent any amount of time in the workplace knows that there’s far more to being a good worker, leader, entrepreneur, or employee than simply doing your job, and doing it better than the other guy/gal. All business is ultimately a matter of:

- - Understanding interpersonal relationships
  - Negotiating agreements
  - Coming up with agreeable terms
  - Shaking hands on potentially life-changing (or very mundane) decisions

For workers and leaders alike, understanding one another and being good at communicating in an effective and productive way is critical. The ability to do so isn’t simply a matter of raw intellect, but of emotional intelligence.

What is Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace?

Emotional intelligence in the workplace, often known as EQ (emotional quotient) due to its comparison with IQ (a controversial measure of intelligence), is not measure of how emotional someone is, but how they work with their own emotions and the emotions of others.

Emotional intelligence describes a high level of self-awareness, as well as an awareness of others. It describes empathy, self-control, and level-headed decision making. Someone who can be described as high-EQ is aware of how they feel, how others around them feel, and how individual decisions and various factors influence these feelings – and why they’re relevant.

Emotional intelligence in the workplace can be neatly divided into several aspects. These are:

- - Self-awareness
  - Empathy
  - Self-regulation
  - Motivation
  - People skills

The Connection Between EQ and Mental Health

Another hallmark of emotional intelligence is that it requires a healthy state of mind. In other words, it’s much harder to remain emotionally intelligent in the face of overwhelming stress, both internal and external. For example, it is harder to remain self-aware and impartial when negative thoughts are constantly applying pressure on your own self-esteem. It becomes harder to motivate oneself when depressed or anxious, whether as a result of overwhelming workloads or due to an underlying issue, such as a mental disorder.

This means emotional intelligence cannot be expected of workers who are not receiving enough support to be emotionally and mentally healthy. Equity is critical here – workers who struggle more with negative thoughts and have a harder time with maintaining a high level of emotional intelligence need greater support, whether through altered schedules or therapy. Mental illness can mean that a worker will require a greater number of resources to function well, but when given the proper support, they can be some of your most loyal, efficient, effective, and creative people.

What a Lack of Emotional Intelligence Can Do to the Workplace

We cannot ignore the role that feelings play in life, whether in our personal lives or in business. A high-stress, toxic environment with poor management will lead to burnout, high turnover rates, and poor performance.

Plenty of hot-headed business decisions and failures were the results of making a poor decision made due to being slighted by a rival or making a gut call rather than being calculated. When we aren’t in control of our emotions, or when we let our emotions and our ego run wild, we run the risk of piloting the ship straight into a craggy coastline.

That isn’t to say that the world’s most successful leaders and entrepreneurs are devoid of ego, or possess a perfect understanding of the human mind, let alone their own. However, knowing what makes people tick is a prerequisite for running a great business. You can’t sell to your customers without knowing what they want, especially what they don’t know they want.

You can’t keep workers happy and productive if you ignore their needs or mistreat them constantly. Without emotional intelligence in the workplace, it becomes infested with toxicity and betrayal. Without EQ, there’s a lack of trust between the employer and the employee, and a level of strife that renders all work tainted.

How to Harness EQ in a Company

EQ is relevant for workers and leaders alike. We cannot simply pretend that the personal and the professional are entirely separate. While we should strive to dictate and preserve boundaries, a mark of a high EQ would be to embrace and resolve issues that affect our performance and thinking, rather than ignoring them for the sake of keeping the personal out of the professional, or trying to ignore the toll of an excessively stressful work environment on our relationships and health.

There’s a value in this beyond making the workplace feel more welcoming and understanding of everyone’s struggles. Emotional intelligence in the workplace also describes one’s understanding of other people’s thoughts and emotions.

- - Leaders: this means knowing what motivates your workers, and what makes them tick.
  - Salespeople: it means knowing how to sell, and how to convince a customer to pay for a product or service.
  - Marketing people: it means understanding how to advertise something so successfully that people who might not have bought it otherwise, now feel compelled to do so.

Emotional intelligence allows you to appeal to something deeper and more ingrained than rationale. It’s the power behind rhetoric, propaganda, and good marketing. Beyond making the office a better place to work, good emotional intelligence is critical for running a great business and selling more products.

1. Encourage Honest Conversations

Trust is the foundation of interpersonal relationships. At work, it’s important to encourage honest conversations about matters of emotional and mental health, to promote a productive and healthy workplace. Workers should feel free to come forward with concerns and issues, from high workloads to issues with stress and problems at home that are bleeding into work.

While managers cannot be expected to fulfill every worker’s wishes, compromises can go a long way. An employer-employee relationship built upon trust and the understanding that good, quality work is compensated for through good pay and a flexible work environment that encourages good mental health can be very productive.

Outside of usual office setups, such as in coworking offices, it can be helpful to encourage coworkers to be social with one another, and setup special events throughout the year to prioritize getting to know one another and cooperate in teambuilding activities.

2. Set Boundaries

Listening to your emotions can potentially have a negative impact at work. Professionalism has its place, and there’s no room for being hurtful or antagonizing at the workplace. Such behavior, even if it’s cathartic, is not indicative of emotional intelligence. It’s also important to set personal boundaries to preserve a barrier between work and home, such as being unreachable at certain hours, or on certain days.

Boundaries help us tell others where we draw the line, and while boundaries are hard lines, they vary greatly between individuals. Understanding and respecting other people’s boundaries and clearly defining your own are critical components of emotional intelligence in the workplace.

Conclusion

Emotional intelligence is not only necessary or beneficial for employees, but for those in charge as well. This skill helps a business to run smoothly, while creating trust, improving morale, and creating a closer workplace environment. Taking the time to improve emotional intelligence throughout your office can go a long way.