What is Hybrid Working With Coworking Space?

During the pandemic, people were forced to adapt to a new world. Everything couldn’t just stop so instead we developed ways to work from home. While this was a great temporary solution, it seemed impossible that it would stick. However, time went on and everyone acclimatised to working from home. The thought of returning to the office after working from the comfort of your own home for a couple of years seemed daunting and impossible to some when things returned to ‘normal’. Because of this, and the need for people to be in the office, Hybrid working was born. So as you may have guessed, Hybrid working is when you work partly from home and partly from your coworking space or office space. 

Hybrid working can be a great solution to get your staff into the office, while still allowing them the benefits of working from home. While this can help keep your employees happy while still keeping your business going, as usual, is hybrid working better than being in the office full-time? Or should things go back to how they used to be? In this blog post, we will highlight the benefits and downsides of hybrid working at home and in a coworking space. 

Benefits of Hybrid Working 

There are many benefits to working from home. Here are some reasons why hybrid working could benefit you and your employees to have a more balanced and productive work life. 

Less time commuting

Commuting to work can be a long, stressful and draining process. If you travel by public transport, there is always the possibility of being late for work, even if you leave yourself ample time. Things out of your control while travelling to your office or coworking space may include delays, buses or trains just not showing up, or even there being slightly more people than usual commuting that day.

If you travel by car, there is traffic to consider so you may have to leave much earlier than you would normally if you go to work during rush hour. Having a bad experience first thing in the morning can put you in a slump for the rest of the day. Of course, that’s up to you, but sometimes the mind of the matter isn’t strong enough to keep you in good form. Working from home means you can use that commute time to wake up, eat breakfast, and get ready to work without stress. You could even do all that while still getting an extra 30 minutes of sleep depending on how long your commute usually takes you. 

Less Chance of Burnout in Coworking Space

Burnout happens when you push yourself too hard for a long period of time. Different people can burn out in different ways and at different times. Not only is burnout real but it can happen much easier and is much more common than you may think. A typical office job is five days a week, 9 am to 5 pm (maybe 6 pm or later). It can be hard to have a work-life balance when you’re not getting home until after 6 every night. If you are leaving all of your social interactions until the weekend you may be too tired. If you push yourself to meet friends for drinks or hikes every weekend there’s a good chance you’ll eventually burn out. 

Save Money

If you’re not careful, your money can drain pretty quickly when you are working in an office or coworking space. Coffees, transportation and lunch and possibly breakfast and dinner can all factor into this. The Glasshouses provide free coffee and tea for members, which can make a big difference to your weekly budget. Coffee in Dublin costs anywhere between €3 and €4.50 so if you are getting one or two per day, they can really add up. On top of that, petrol prices keep rising and bus fares add up.

If you are not prepared for the week or don’t have leftovers from the night before, you may have to go out for lunch. You don’t need to be quite so prepared when you’re only in the office two or three days a week. You can buy affordable lunches near The Glasshouses Sandyford, The Glasshouses Blackrock, and The Glasshouses Dun Laoghaire, but if it is every day, it can build up. Check out some of our recommendations for Blackrock here and some of our recommendations for Sandyford and Dun Laoghaire here and here. Hybrid working means all of these costs can be halved.

Downsides of Hybrid Working

While all of the reasons listed above make you think ‘why would anyone want to be in the office’ there are some real downsides to not having people working in the office. Here are some reasons why it’s important to have some in-office time. 

Less or No Face-to-Face With Clients

If your company involves working directly with clients, as most do, it can be a hindrance to not have face-to-face contact. Meeting people over video chat is impersonal and it is easy to forget they are real people. Having face-to-face interactions with your customers builds a solid relationship that can be nurtured and encouraged to grow. Not to mention the fact that brainstorming and working on projects together is substantially easier when you can do it in person. 

Company Culture in Your Coworking Space

Building relationships between your coworkers or staff is very important to a well-functioning company. This is especially relevant if you have a company that does project-based work. If your people are all coming in on different days of the week they may never meet except on video chats of course. 

Separating Work and Home Life 

When you are working in the office it is easy to say “I’m finished” at the end of a busy day, even if you still have a pile of work. If you’re working from home it can be difficult to stop working. When you get in the groove of things you may not realise the time or come back to it after dinner. While this may be necessary every now and again it is not healthy to completely put yourself into your work. You need to separate the different aspects of your life to make sure you have enough of your energy to take care of yourself at the end of the day. 

‘Zoom Fatigue’

‘Zoom Fatigue’ is a term coined for the exhaustion you feel from being on video chats all day every day. There are a few reasons this is more tiring than being in person.

Close up eye contact – When you’re video calling you are closer, as so is everyone else than you would ever be to someone in real life. So you are looking at every detail, focusing up close on their voices and actions.

Being aware of your appearance – Though you can turn your camera off, in most meetings, especially with clients, it would be considered rude to be talking with audio-only. It can be exhausting to have your reflection in your eye line constantly. You are aware of every movement, facial expression and sound you make. This means your brain is always alert and self-conscious. This leads to the next point.

Brain exhaustion – Looking at your computer and meeting with your coworkers and clients on zoom uses more cognitive ability than being in person. This is because our brains are used to being around people. It’s natural and normal. Our brains actually crave human interaction.

Sitting in one spot all-day – When you are in the office, you’re more likely to get up and walk around. This could be making coffee or tea, making small talk with your coworkers or even going for a walk on your lunch break. Working from home makes it easy to get in one seat and stay there all day. If you do not set strict lunch times and breaks it can be hard to set down your work to go for a walk. Especially if you have not gotten fully ready to leave in the morning as you would going into the office. This means you may be less mobile and therefore have less energy at the end of the day. 

About The Glasshouses

The Glasshouses are purpose-built coworking spaces and hot desks in Dun Laoghaire, Sandyford and Blackrock. These spaces are used by professionals who wish to have an office for themselves and employees, or just to get out of the house for two/ three days a week.

All of our locations are outside the city centre, to make a nicer working environment. All of our buildings have fully equipped kitchenettes with a fridge, microwave, sink and dishwasher. Of course, we supply tea, coffee and milk for our members.

The Glasshouses is a working environment where businesses can thrive and grow. Contact us today to book your place.