I recently moved to a new house and, as part of that, moved office premises. Be Leadership is in a better space now, with more room for growth. I have a better desk, more shelving for files, and nicer view. It’s not fully set up yet but I already love it and am sure it will be a productive and creative working space.
What matters though is less the specifics of the space but the change. Creating a change in environment is a wonderful way to jump start your creativity and effectiveness. Even if you work from the library, or a coffee shop, or your garden for a day, you’ll find that breaking your normal routine allows more focus and fresh insights. Not only are you likely to have fewer interruptions, you can set aside quality time to think, reflect, write, or just work. It’s amazing what’s possible.
I have been lucky to spend most of my working career with organizations who support flexible working. As long as I get high-quality work done, my clients don’t mind (or know) where I am. I can be travelling, sitting on my sofa or waiting for my daughter in the car as I check my email. This was true in my past corporate life as well. While this requires discipline to ensure I am not working and on-call 24/7, it also allows a wonderful level of autonomy over how I structure my work and life. I am not alone in having this level of flexibility: According to the Institute of Leadership and Management, 94% of UK organisations offer employees some form of flexible working, and 73% of managers say that their organizations are largely supportive of it. But even if we have it, we don’t always take advantage of this option.
One of my colleagues recently sent me a link to an organization that is connecting hosts and ‘office riders‘ who want to find room for co-working, a meeting or event space or even a creative venue for a photo shoot. Their proposal is that professionals can connect with hosts who have under-used space in private places, allowing you to work wherever and whenever you want. Their current options include Sophie’s living room, Sebastian’s rooftop and Yann’s connected caravan. Sadly OfficeRiders appears to be largely French based, so I can’t register my new walled garden or look for local homes to escape to for my next UK offsite just yet. But the concept is so good.
Whether you are stuck in an office cubicle or even lucky enough to have a cool modern workspace that you haven’t ventured outside of in a while, I encourage you to start the year right and break out of the box to try a new working space. You’ll be amazed at how much you can achieve.
