Comments on: Got a Place to Flee to from Home Office Distractions?

By: Katie

Katie — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:20:54 +0000

Though I’m just now in the process of setting up as a FLCW, I’ve been doing other sorts of writing for years, and I used to head to McDonald’s once a week (it’s the only place near home that’s open late enough for me). My husband’s job has taken him out of town more and more in the past two years, though, so I’m not able to get out that much anymore; I have nowhere else to take the kids. I miss it terribly. I could get a lot done without those at-home distractions.

By: Gary

Gary — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:45:36 +0000

We have Regus in the UK as well (I know that as I happened to meet one of their Area Sales Managers about 2 hours ago!) and they have the same gold card business lounge system as already mentioned.

I’m a freelancer and work from home (as a web developer, not a writer), and although I’ve half-heartedly researched into office space, I’ve not considered it a necessity for now.

My trouble is that it’s not things around the house that distract me (though a making a cuppa is a nice way of procrastinating), but all sorts of online stuff, which as a web developer, makes it hard to shy away from…

By: Jenn Mattern

Jenn Mattern — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:05:29 +0000

For me it’s the library or Panera (neither is terribly close, so when I go I make a nice long trip of it). I find the distractions at home are worse when I’m working on my own projects than when I’m dealing with client work, so I intend to take a few days off to go out of state and stay at a hotel while I work on research and writing for a book — a few of those trips this year actually. It won’t be enough to get everything done, but it will give me dedicated chunks of time where I don’t feel like typical little work and home issues are invading my every thought.

By: Michael D. Scully

Michael D. Scully — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:02:28 +0000

Well, I actually *tried* the public library yesterday. Never again. I was under the impression that there were desks off to the sides in the so-called “quiet areas.” No, the only desks were out in the open, on the main floor. No thank you.

By: Laurie Schmidt

Laurie Schmidt — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:29:04 +0000

I occasionally go to a local coffee shop when I need to get something done like develop a preliminary outline, review some material, etc. But I’m like Peter – I go with pen and paper. I *don’t* take my laptop, or I would sit there and waste away the hours on “trivial email” (see an earlier blog topic). For example, I’d been procrastinating for days about writing new text for my homepage, but when I headed to the coffee shop today with my notepad, I cranked it out in less than an hour. For me, I think there’s something about getting away from the desk/office, so you’re not constantly reminded of all the other things you need to get done. You sip a latte and focus on one task. And yes, getting out among other humans is a must when you’re single and working from home!

By: Valerie Alexander

Valerie Alexander — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:43:17 +0000

I work at coffee bars or bookstores almost every day. Otherwise I get cabin fever. However, I divide up my work by locale – my red-hot writing mode is for home where I can zone out. When I’m working in a cafe, I tend to do editing, research, marketing and other businessy stuff.

What’s crucial is the kind of cafe; if it’s a more social one, or attracts groups of students working loudly on projects, I don’t concentrate as well. My current favorite plays host to a lot of telecommuters and freelancers all working on their laptops and it’s come to embody the perfect mix of community and quiet.

By: Marlene Oliveira

Marlene Oliveira — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 16:21:10 +0000

I do prefer my home office, which is a nice space with everything I need. However, I realize that interacting with fellow humans is a good thing, once in a while. So I rent a ‘hot desk’ at a place in Toronto called the Centre for Social Innovation: http://socialinnovation.ca

The space is filled with not-for-profits and other social change makers. I work from there roughly one day a week for a change of scenery. For me, it’s also a nice spot to make connections, as most of my clients are in the not-for-profit sector.

By: Stephanie Gerbig

Stephanie Gerbig — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 03:24:21 +0000

I love coworking! If you’d like to find out if your city has a coworking set-up, check out the link: http://coworking.pbworks.com/

William, it looks like there are several in the Austin area.
http://coworking.pbworks.com/CoworkingAustin?SearchFor=austin&sp=1

There’s a great one in Ann Arbor, MI that I belong to. I’ve found it to be very valuable if I need to brainstorm something with another real-life human.

By: Weekend Reading: January 17, 2010 | All Freelance Writing

Weekend Reading: January 17, 2010 | All Freelance Writing — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 16:03:18 +0000

[...] Got a Place to Flee from Home Office Distractions? [...]

By: Alan Kravitz

Alan Kravitz — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:28:42 +0000

I’m fortunate enough to live near several coffee shops and cafes, so those are my “satellite offices.”