I’ve always had good experiences of co-working, as a self-employed copywriter and journalist. The first time I decided to co-work in Sheffield was in 2010, when I’d been freelancing for some time. I was feeling quite isolated working from my home office and finding a lot of my working time taken up by networking to meet people.
At that time, there weren’t many co-working spaces to choose from. I ended up taking a membership at Electric Works, which turned out to be a great decision. I not only found clients directly in the same building, but also valued feeling part of a creative and supportive community. The people running the building really looked after their co-workers and held some fantastic resident events.
When I restarted my freelance career this February, there were many more spaces I could go for. I only need to co-work two days a week as I also value spending time in my quiet home office. The other important co-working aspects are having a welcoming space to meet current and potential clients and having a commercial address for my business.
After six months’ co-working at Kollider – where I met one of my current clients – I’m about to move to The Local Theatre. It’s a lovely, quirky space run by an independent theatre company so I’m looking forward to settling into the community there.
Co-working isn’t for everyone – it’s not ideal if you are territorial about your space or have a lot of professional equipment. But it’s a great springboard for a solo worker who’s sociable and needs a space to focus on work and potentially collaborate with others.
