If you’ve been working from home long enough, chances are you’re starting to feel tired of staring at the same four walls and the same boring decor. Whether you usually work in your office, your bedroom, your living room, anywhere in your home — constantly being in the same place must be driving you crazy by now. It can be easy to fall into the same old routines once you’ve done it long enough and one day, you might find yourself coming up blank when you’re trying to think of good ideas.
Repetition bores our brain, makes us long for something different, a change in the routine. If your usual working spot isn’t cutting it anymore, you might want to switch it up a bit. Switching up your work location every now and again could help you get into that productive mindset. It could be a welcome change of pace, plus an opportunity to get out of your house and your cloying headspace.
You’ve heard of going to cafes to work, and you might have done that before, but if you either can’t afford it or you’re looking for more unique spots where you can still get your work done, here are some suggestions:
Go outside
It doesn’t even need to be far from your home. Sometimes taking your work outside with you can be refreshing, especially if the weather’s just right. You can work in your own front or backyard, so you still have the convenience of home nearby, but you can try working at the park too or other public spaces where you can sit and camp out for a bit. The only downside to this is that you obviously can’t bring your desktop computer or can’t plug in your laptop to charge. Free WiFi isn’t guaranteed either.
You’ll be in a public area, which means lots of people might be around depending on the place and the time of day. But if that’s not an issue, or you don’t need to bring your laptop for this, going outside to read, study or write might just be what your brain needs to kick it into hyperdrive.
A conservatory
If you live near a conservatory or a botanical garden and if they allow you to stay for a couple of hours, you might be able to get some work done there. Being surrounded by plants and sunlight could help you to focus better. Conservatories are known to be calm, quiet places and if that’s the kind of environment where you’re most productive, then seeing if you can bring your work to one might be a safe bet.
If you’ve got a conservatory in your own home, even better! Unless you’ve already been working there for the past months, sitting in your own beautiful glass garden room might improve your productivity without needing to leave your house at all. A little bit of nature and natural sunlight never hurt anybody.
A library
No, seriously. This might seem like the most obvious choice, but libraries are still good places to go if you need to get work done but don’t want to stay at home. First of all, they’re free. They’re open to the public at all hours. You’ve got tons of written resources all around you if you ever have to do some research. And most libraries have Wi-Fi installed and places to charge your laptop or phone. Nothing puts you into the mood to get some work done quite like being in a library does. Settling into a nice quiet nook with nothing but the sound of your typing for hours on end. Who doesn’t feel nostalgic for that?
Museums
They’re not just for sightseeing anymore. Most museums usually offer free admission and have their own Wi-Fi connection. Plus, they’re the ultimate research trip if you happen to be doing work related to history and the like. If you’ve grown tired of staring at your office, a museum offers the best change of scenery, what with its many exhibits and paintings. They might be full of people on some days, especially on weekends, but if that doesn’t bother you, then inspiration could just be one museum visit away.
Bars or Restaurants
If you don’t mind spending a bit of money but don’t wanna go to a cafe, going to a bar or a restaurant instead might just work. Coffee might not do it for you anymore, but liquor might! Some writers even find that drinking alcohol helps in their creative process. Look at Ernest Hemingway. Of course, remember that you’re still in a public area and you still do need to get some work done.
Fast food restaurants might be unlikely choices, but you might be surprised by their ambiance. Besides, who hasn’t seen tired college students slaving away at 24-hour fast food places before? Maybe you were or still are that student.
