In a world where nearly an entire generation is separated from excessive face-to-face interaction due to the limitless abilities of technology, one area is rebranding and reinventing the idea of mixing social and professional qualities. That being, co-working spaces. These new-age shared workspaces are popping up across major cities and revolutionizing the way small businesses, freelancers, start-ups and entrepreneurs create their office environments.
One of the most commonly heard of co-working environments across Canada is WeWork. Offering an open concept office space for up to 25 people, per business, at an affordable price tag, co-working spaces help to cut costs, boost productivity and give new business a professional environment, already built and ready to move in to.
While co-working spaces are open to all types of businesses and walks of life, there does seem to be some common elements across the board. The trendy style, the groovy furniture, and of course, the top 5 people you will inevitably meet at nearly any co-working space.
The Healthy Hippie
The great thing about shared work spaces is that you get a very social environment, especially when it comes to the kitchen and lunchtime, which is where you’ll meet The Healthy Hippie. This particular workspace dweller will almost always be inconveniently prepping their elaborately green lunch, while simultaneously be telling the people in line for the toaster the importance of hemp hearts and how disappointed they were with the organic chives at the farmer’s market this past weekend. Don’t be fooled, The Healthy Hippie doesn’t just drone on about their superfoods and antioxidant-filled bowl of what appears to be grass, they are inconspicuously judging your hot pocket in the communal microwave. Snacker beware, The Hippie’s eyes are everywhere.
The Shockingly Young Entrepreneur
Co-working environments are almost perfectly designed for a young, fresh entrepreneur. Offering them a professional space, without the cost. Thus, in every WeWork across the country you are bound to find the trendy, yet stressed out, Shockingly Young Entrepreneur. They can easily be spotted by their casual attire and expensive accessories, whether it be a Gucci wallet or brand new, just released iPhone, The Shockingly Young Entrepreneur keeps very much to themselves. Constantly offering mystery as to how they made it happen for themselves, but you will rarely see the young entrepreneur standing around socializing. Friday afternoon ping-pong? Not a chance for the token Shockingly Young Entrepreneur.
The Floater
Not unlike going to a high school library or cafeteria, there is constantly one person who drifts from group to group, offering no major loyalty or productivity to any group in particular. The Floater is always very social, seemingly friends with people from all corners and work areas, chatting and offering lively small talk about local events, restaurants, Netflix specials, you name it. The true mystery behind The Floater is that while they offer a personable distraction when that Venti Double Shot has your mouth running a mile a minute, you never really see them accomplish anything nor even truly learn what they do for a living. But you have to admit, they’ve got the entire recap on the last season of Games of Thrones when you need a refresh.
The Random Dog
Always. There is always a dog. In nearly every office in major cities, people are bringing their dogs. I mean, who wouldn’t want to break up their workday with some puppy petting and snapping some solid IG content of a golden retriever sitting at a computer? The owner of The Random Dog is usually somewhere in the office, but nobody is ever quite sure who the pet-parent of the office dog is, as everyone seems to jump in and care for the pooch at every chance they get. You will notice though, The Random Dog almost always has an adorably ironic name, and is usually the most socially well-behaved being in the entire building. Just sayin’.
The Anti-Socials
The cool kids. The mean girls. The group that deep, down wishes they had the office to themselves. There is always one, and usually a small one, group of workers who live in a bubble of ignorance to those around them. They look like the studious adults you’d find in the U of T library, and they are never caught aimlessly cruising websites not related to their work. Hats off to the professional mindset, and don’t take it personal. Let them work, watch them from a safe distance, and if you find a great sale suddenly happening at Zara, tell the floater instead.
As the working world continues to evolve and expand, the idea of open concept and co-working environments is becoming more and more of a hot topic. Providing equal opportunity to small businesses to have access to professional work spaces, board rooms, interviews areas and more, there is no limitation as to where to the world of co-working will go. See for yourself by checking out the wide range of shared working environments in Toronto which Spacie has to offer, perfect for businesses of any size.