Once upon a certain time, almost all of us, dreamed of getting rid of that 9-to-5 office job in exchange for the opportunity to work from the comfort of our own homes. Though we enjoyed going to work, the daily commute has been admittedly taxing for most of us and if given the chance, we’d all jump the opportunity of avoiding the early wake up calls, traffic jams and occasional work politics.

It’s true that being a home-based employee – or at the very least, having the flexibility to switch from your office to your couch once a week – could easily be one of the greatest decisions one could make in their career life but it’s not just the clear majority of today’s workforce who thinks so.

According to an extensive study conducted by Flexjobs and Global Workplace Analytics, the amount of professionals telecommuting has significantly increased between 2005 and 2015. All the while the number of Americans who work from their respective homes at least half of the time, grew from 1.5 million during the year 2005 to over nine million employees or 2.9% of their overall workforce in 2015

FlexJobs CEO Sara Sutton Fell says that though more companies are now allowing its teams to opt for the said work arrangement, larger enterprises are the mo st likely to offer it that SMBs. She also adds that it’s high time employers pay attention to the trend.

Further strengthening the argument that working from home can be beneficial for both parties, the report also mentions advantages businesses can get from opening themselves to it.

Survey respondents say that other than that of the real estate savings they have from full-time remote workers, another ten percent can be cut from those who would be willing to accept the opportunity to have flexible hours or home-based working schedules. Some would even go as far as forgoing health benefits or putting in more time, lessening their overheard costs.

A significant increase in productivity has also been observed in telecommuters and several other studies have supported these claims. In addition, 82 percent of the participants said that they would be more loyal to their employers if they are given the said option.

It’s not much of a surprise anymore that telecommuting is becoming more and more popular despite of it remaining to be a crucial decision that needs to be negotiated between employee and employer. Yet of course, its rise to fame came with critics revealing the harsh reality covered by its promising nature.

Veterans of the working arrangement have said it countless of times, it’s not a piece of cake. It has proven itself to countless professionals as something much more challenging than imagined.

So before jumping to the bandwagon, here are certain qualities one must possess to successfully work from their home.

Both the environment present in a traditional office and someone’s home are different from one another – each one carrying a unique sort of distraction absent to the other. And if you are not used to dealing with the interruptions working from home brings, you are sure to have quite the hard time being productive.

For example, the times you would visit the pantry in your workplace would be limited between two and three – once in the morning, once during lunch and one in the afternoon – but at home, the temptation of going to your fridge every hour is strong. Another is that it becomes much harder for us to stay away from our social media accounts unlike when we’re sitting in front of our stations.

Laser focus is needed to ensure that you stay on top of things when you are working home-based. Viewing your home office as the center of an actual one could help transitioning your mindset to professional mode.

Another quality worth nothing is the ability to embrace solitude.

Telecommuting isolates you and occupies you long enough that you go through one whole day without seeing or talking to anyone. And even if you live with a friend or your family, chances are, you shut yourself away for long stretches of hours.

It is one of the most disadvantageous reality of working in your own home. It lessens your opportunity to interact with fellow colleagues – resulting to overwhelming feelings of loneliness in the long term.

Try reaching out to your coworkers via Skype or emails and when allowed, talk on the phone and discuss important matters regarding ongoing projects. The beauty of this is that you have the chance to create a balance between sequestration and companionship.

Lastly, one should be able to keep themselves motivated throughout the day. Each skill requires the willingness to success. How can you stay focused when you’re barely in the mood to get out of bed? And how can you feel less lonely when you’re not making the effort of keeping yourself occupied with the tasks you need to accomplish.

Surely, telecommuting is not as easy as it seems, but if you’re still aiming for a much more versatile way of working then maybe you could give coworking a try. The well-known movement prides itself in curating shared offices for those who want to work in an environment that is unique from the one they have in their original workplace. Mainly targeting home-based teams and freelancers, it gives them the freedom to work whenever and wherever they want – minus the isolation and the laxed ambiance that results to a less motivated professional.

It takes a lot to exercise control when handed a large amount of freedom. Hence, before making the move towards working independently, make sure that you have what it takes to success in being a home-based employee.

So you’ve finally decided to follow your heart!

Congratulations! You’ve now overcome your fears and have gathered enough courage to build a career for yourself. And as you lay out everything that you need for your journey toward entrepreneurship, the first item that should be on your list is to work up an appetite to learn and do more.

Hunger is the primary ingredient of success and once you have it, the other critical qualities such as persistence and disciple will follow suit. And while having the apt know how in doing business remain to be a requirement in leading a startup, today’s competitive industry meant becoming more efficient with your research – more creative, if possible – in developing strategies.

Admittedly, though the market continuously expands, the bleak truth remains; nine out of ten startups will surely fail. These numbers were not reported with the keen intent of discouraging a budding entrepreneur but rather, was meant to push them to work smarter and harder.

With that being said, here are 3 strategies that will boost every aspiring entrepreneur needs:

Go into battle prepared instead of blindly attacking your enemies.

Learn everything that you can about your competition and don’t just rely on the belief that constant demand will keep you in business. Newbies will have to fight for the attention of their customers as medium-sized companies have already caught the attention of their target audience and have gained their loyalty – not to mention the leading players in the field.

Though opting for a market with high demand but very little providers is a smart move, the fact still remains that in order to gather a following and make loyal consumers out of them, your brand needs to be there for them.

Several startups and businesses fail due to the lack of well-developed financial management skills. Saving money and wise spending should be your priority as an entrepreneur, not only during your first few months but throughout the rest of the year.

Upon deciding whether or not you should open up your very first office, evaluate all the available options that you have and ensure that your future workplace will be of smart investment to your business in the long run.

The industry have grown over the years, giving entrepreneurs a wider selection of versatile alternatives from the traditional headquarters. Experts highly suggest that budding businessmen take advantage of the well-known coworking space movement.

These shared offices provide startups, freelancers and other solo-preneurs work areas that are fit for their needs. Its cost-effective rates and flexible lease terms allows them lessen overhead expenses. Members can choose between private offices, desks of their own and even shared open areas. Some providers also offer the option of virtual offices for those who want to work remotely. More and more are moving into these seemingly unconventional workplaces not only for its affordable pricing but for the opportunities it offers to them

And if prudent financing isn’t your field of expertise, educate yourself to handle money with confidence or hire someone who will help you do so. Though penny-pinching is usually seen as a negative quality, it will pay off quite soon.

Building an enterprise doesn’t happen overnight. And for it to have a strong foundation, there should be a fair amount of effort from your core employees.

Inaugurate trust between one another and treat each other the way you want to be treated. As a leader, one should be a proper example to your team by cultivating moral and ethical values within the office from day one.

After doing so, work on your communication. It helps build teamwork and creates positive work environment. Moreover, fluent correspondence between members perfuse throughout all business operations

Admittedly, being a young businessman – or businesswoman – there’s much more to learn and coming to terms with the reality that not everything will go according to our plans. Develop your existing skill set yet at the same time, adopt new ones and don’t be afraid of change. Enable each member to have professional growth as you direct your joint efforts to expanding your company.

Psychologists cannot stress it enough, but just so that we remember; other people’s thoughts and behaviors are powerful enough to influence us. We’re all humans after all, so it’s only natural for us to be affected by external factors such as peer groups. The people whom we surround ourselves will affect your overall potential and this is not just a mere speculation.

Social Scientists have said that a child’s economic mobility – and even the amount of opportunities they are bound to receive – is largely governed by the country they grew up in. Kids coming from communities that produce low income are less likely to have the potential of earning higher than their parents compared to those of their peers who descend from affluent neighbor hoods – proof that sometimes, it’s just hard to break out of our surroundings.

Even in groups of friends, individuals tend to pick up one another’s behaviors and even living style. The more we spend time with them, the more we use similar phrases or words as we speak. It even comes to a point wherein we alter each other’s clothing choices.

American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn says that we are the average of the five people we spend most of our time with. Whenever we surround ourselves with high achieving individuals with good characters, there’s a high chance that we become like them yet at the same time, those with sub-par qualities can bring upon us negative habits such as poor outlook in life.

Life coach and philanthropist Tony Robbins add that everything that we allow into our life – as well as every action we take reflects on who we are. Furthermore, he advises that we associate ourselves with people who carry the same high standards as we do – possibly leading to a higher quality of life.

The prospective opportunities that peer groups can bring did not go unnoticed by the leaders of today’s business industry. Hence, it came as no surprise when the greater community started coming up with ways to turn the traditional office as a place for business to a microcosm of a society that is connected, commercially viable and collectively responsible.

Inspired by the idea of American urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg widely known as “third places” or the concept of building informal spaces meant for public gatherings that can contribute to a functioning civil society, the pioneers of the well-acclaimed shared offices called coworking spaces have placed great importance in vibrant internal communities among its members.

Founders of the movement saw the right set of circumstances to lead the market to a near-future wherein each and every one of us is given the equal opportunity to be part of something greater than our profession.

With the directive of supporting freelancers that connect small businesses, providers continuously shape their respective communities through engaging events and activities. Some are also able to utilize today’s online tools to leverage their interconnectedness.

Coworking became an avenue for professionals to meet like-minded entrepreneurs and build peer groups around them, to share experiences, advices and tools that aid success in business with one another. It gives them the advantage of having access to a wealth of information and resources. More than that, they get the support and inspiration that fuels their motivation to keep on doing what they’re doing regardless of the failures and hindrances they go through.

Former Yahoo director Tim Sanders once said that one’s network is their net worth. Whenever we surround ourselves with good people who strive to become both a better professional and person, their positive energy becomes contagious.

We become motivated to always aim for excellence, no matter what it is that we are going. These kinds of peers will surely help us grow into the best version of ourselves and would teach us to become more in-love with life.

Ready to see the greatest people you could ever meet? Talk to us today and we’ll introduce you to a bunch of wonderful peer groups!

Majority of us start our work day with a clear outline schedule in our hands. If not, we have our to-do lists – with the most crucial tasks written atop and those that could be accomplished at a later time found down below.

Our automatic response during a surge of heavy workload and other deliverable is to work long hours, or worse, grind till our bodies hit its breaking point. It’s a common phenomenon to believe that in order to maximize one’s productivity, putting on hours and hours of work is necessary. And though there’s no denying that a lot can be done if you manage your time properly, it inevitably takes a toll on our physical, mental and emotional well-being. Only to result to declining levels of engagement, increasing vulnerability to distractions, higher turnover rates and escalating medical bills among workers.

The fundamental flaw of the conventional view in being productive and energy management – spending endless hours stuck in our desks – is that time is actually a finite resource. As mentioned earlier, we can delegate ourselves to accomplish menial tasks later in the day but energy, as a resource, is a different story.

Physics define energy as one’s capacity to work. As human beings, our energy comes from four main sources: the body, emotions, mind and spirit. Each one is capable of being systematically expanded and regularly revitalized by a series of rituals – set of behaviors that should be practiced with the goal of making them daily acts.

Experts suggest that it’s high time for organizations to shift from getting more out of their workforce to investing more so that they are motivated to bring more of themselves to the office. And in order for us to fully recharge ourselves, it’s important that we recognize what energy-depleting behaviors costs us and slowly but surely, change each one, to successfully achieve a better energy management solution.

Partner of multinational professional services firm Ernst and Young, Steve Wanner, shared his journey to having a healthier routine after seeing how disengaged he has become with his family and self to a Harvard Business Review article.

According to him, his overhauled energy management routine simply started by establishing an earlier bedtime and by giving up mannerisms that disrupted his sleep such as drinking. This then resulted to a well-rested Steve motivated enough to do his morning exercise until he becomes accustomed to it as an activity he does in the morning. Later on, he lost 15 pounds and now sits down with his family for breakfast. Admittedly, his habit of working for long hours remained but now, he renews himself regularly. Instead of staying in his desk to eat, he goes out for lunch and has both morning and afternoon walks outside the office.

It’s these simple rituals that creates an impact across employees in several organizations.

Just like Wanner, you can restore yourself throughout the day with small routines you can slowly incorporate and reach the 90% of your output that correlates with you body’s naturally productive rhythms. Here are three tricks that you can do to manage your energy in general.

Instead of forcing yourself to work for long stretches of hours until every task on your list is crossed out, encourage yourself to break your day into 90-minute blocks of work sessions.

Author and CEO of the Energy Project Tony Schwartz said in an article that our minds function better if we allow it to have both times of highly focused work and times of rest. Schwartz adds that we can imitate the habits of elite violinists who practice for no longer than 90 minutes and took breaks in between each one.

Reassess your to-do list and outline tasks that is realistically feasible to be done within a span of that block. After doing so, take a break. Get up and visit the café and snack bar for your refill of coffee or maybe stretch for a while.

Schwartz further adds that by breaking up work sessions into 90 minute blocks with the insight that there will be a 15 minute break at its end is a great stepping stone to balancing your energy thought the day.

By doing so, your work periods can be approached in a relaxed manner with the knowledge that a scheduled recess is on the horizon. Utilize this time to refresh your mind and take a walk outside or if you’re residing in a shared office like coworking spaces, explore and go around. Make use of the recreational amenities that they have such as pool tables, karaoke rooms and game rooms.

Though allowing yourself to have these kinds of breaks seems strage, Schwartz and the complementary studies supporting it making it worth a try.

Taking naps in the office isn’t welcomed with much enthusiasm as the aforementioned activities but the reality is: naps are actually a strong source of competitive advantage. Experts have seen a 16 percent increase in pilots’ reaction time when they are given the chance to have 30 minute naps.

Though majority of organizations would be skeptical in allowing this, a certain number of corporations have already implemented this energy management approach by allocating specific spaces for sleeping pods. Given the opportunity, take a nap and science says you’ll surely wake up rejuvenated.

We, and the rest of the corporate industry, remain to be dependent on the draining ethics of overworking ourselves. And until we all see past the myth, both employees and companies will remain depleted instead of enriched.

Talk to us today and we’ll introduce you to an office that helps manage your energy better.

The coworking movement saw nothing but so much untapped potential and great opportunities during the year 2017. The movement slowly but surely became a global phenomenon as the population of digital nomads and remote workers grew. This generation’s startups and professionals created a new need for flexible workspaces that allows them to work anytime and anywhere they like. Moreover, they have put much emphasis on the importance of a good work-life balance. As a result, the demand for office spaces that allows them to maximize their efficiency without sacrificing their overall well-being rose.

As the year comes to an end, let’s take a look at all the major developments coworking has made over the year before moving forward to the coworking predictions that the new year has in store for us.

The Global Coworking Unconference Conference recently released their GCUC Survey for the year 2017. Discussing the results of their annual survey, the report showcases a quick summary of the improvements and future predictions for the following year.

According to the aforementioned report, a total of 14,411 coworking spaces are now available around the world. Experts forecast that the number will grow to over 30,000 in 2022, globally. Members originating from the US would grow to 1,076,000 by the same year.

It was also during this year that large companies and tech conglomerates experimented on workplace models.

Given the proliferation of open layouts and shared offices, established corporations are giving the latest workplace organization strategies a try by moving some of their teams into coworking spaces. More and more employees from big players are moving in and taking over.

A recent survey have also said that almost half of corporation in the US alone are making use of some sort of flexible office space solution. Moreover, based on the data gathered from the aforementioned report, researchers believe that an increase in the demand and usage of these work areas can be expected in the following years.

By studying the information we have observed from survey data results and trends of the previous year, experts have put together a picture of what coworking predictions for the year 2018 has in store for the industry.

As mentioned earlier, the population will continue to thrive as the years go by. GCUC predicts that the number of spaces will expand to 17,725 this year with an annual growth rate of 16.1% and members will grow to 2.3 million globally from the previous year’s number of 1.74 million with 24.2% annual growth rate.

The trend of mega corporates transitioning to flexible workspaces will accelerate over the next five years as administrations look forward to reducing their exposure towards long term leases. In addition to this, the continuous demand of this generation’s labor force for better workplace options will move the numbers forward.

Startups will also continue to flock these shared offices around the world because of the flexibility and talent attraction advantages that they provide. And as the market grows, so does the demand. With the prediction that over 50% of the global population by 2020, more brands will continue to consolidate spaces that will be built to suit the arrangements of the ever-changing workforce.

It seems that the movement will continue to move upwards and has the capability to evolve even more. Sounds interesting right? Talk to us today and take a quick look at the future.