Over the last decade the United States has seen a vast increase in the number of working professionals becoming independent entities. How big has this rise been? Well, let me put it this way: if the rate of individuals becoming freelancers and independent contractors continues at the pace that it’s been at, within the next five years you are going to see a lot more converting to a telecommute system.
There have been projections across the board that suggest this theory to be true, but nothing is more astonishing than the thought of having almost 40% of your country’s entire workforce carrying out their mandated occupational duties from home or on the own accord.
From a personal perspective, the rise in working professionals becoming independent contractors is synonymous with the rise in co-working spaces on a worldwide level, not just in the United States. And when it comes down to it, you really can’t even put a negative spin on the situation because the benefits outweigh the costs.
Working professionals are finding more and more solace, comfort and productivity in their ability to work within an environment that caters to their talents. These co-working spaces successfully provide professionals with a community of knowledge at their disposal, generalized perks and unwavering encouragement to seek collaboration.
When Researchers Find Their Jaws Dropping, You Know The Hype Is Real:
Co-working is a very special privilege to have and take advantage of. The importance of finding somewhere comfortable to carry out your business practices is invaluable, but the success rates of these alternative workspaces even has researchers now baffled. The conclusions of their studies showed that working professionals who belong to co-working spaces have reported significantly higher levels of success and productivity.
On a scale of 1-7, researchers found that most of these individuals reported a 6 out of 7, which is a point higher than those of employees who work in a traditional office setting. That is probably the closest result to achieving a perfect score that you can get, so the findings are rather astonishing.
Some key lights of the Harvard Business Review study are…
- About 70% of individuals reported feeling healthier than they did when they worked in a traditional office setting.
- About 70% of individuals said that they were able to not only focus better, but concentrate on their tasks at hand without distraction.
- Almost 65% of individuals noticed that they were able to meet deadlines without delay.
- Nearly 60% of individuals found themselves more comfortable and relaxed when they got home at night.
- Over 50% of working professionals reported a higher income due to productivity levels at their co-working space.
When you analyze those statistics, it’s super hard to deny that there aren’t any benefits to going against the grain and joining a co-working space. Not only are successful individuals finding more and more gradual success at these facilities, but they are becoming a part of a greater whole that concentrates on getting the best out of everyone.
Co-Working Inspires Professionals to Be the Best They Can Be:
Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of co-working, and any owner will tell you this, is that the working professionals who utilize this service are finding more pride in the work they produce. Not only are these individuals viewing their work as being more rewarding, but they are also finding their occupation to be more meaningful and full of promise.
Co-working spaces allow working professionals to create in their own element, thrive within their own comfort zone and interact with other like minded individuals who are going through the same situations. By fostering this unique culture of teamwork and entrepreneurial spirit, more and more working professionals are for lack of a better term, “finding their purpose” within the workforce.
By taking a working professional out of an environment where they are forced to be someone they are not due to office politics or internal discrepancies with opinion, you are getting the most polished and focused product. Co-working not only makes a professionals’s sense of identity reappear, but it also empowers them to carry out the missions they are assigned with their heads held high and their hearts in the right place.
Not to mention, co-workers essentially have the ability to decide on when they want to work and for how long, unless they are instructed otherwise. The whole structure of a co-working spaces revolves around preference and convenience, two important aspects that allow people to create an optimal habitat for success.
How to Introduce Co-Working Strategies In A Corporate Environment:
If you’re not the owner of a co-working space, or a co-worker who carries out their duties in one, it’s important to know that you too can implement strategies to create an optimal occupational safe zone. Being yourself is always rule number one when it comes down to it, beaches it is essential to always be true to yourself at the end of the day.
However, the following suggestions may also serve as a catalyst in improving your work space. If the necessary changes are made, you may even be able to avoid spending that money on a co-working membership!
To successfully implement co-working strategies into a corporate environment, one must…
- Be able to encourage individual flexibility and support a mobile workforce for convenience.
- Establish an appropriate type of work environment on a social level.
- Allow professionals to carve their own path within the confines of the space so that they can find their purpose and meaning within the workforce.
- Allow professionals to work alongside one another and to pick each other’s brains about important issues.
