The two words on everyone’s mouths when entering the work space in the recent couple of years has been work-life balance. In short, work-life balance is the possibility to be able to separate work responsibilities from family or leisure time. It means the ability of work not taking over someone’s life when work time is over. In fact, it’s been something that many young people in particular look  at when applying for a new job, and one main factor that leads them to leave a job or refuse it, even if the pay is a high one. Year upon year, coworking spaces keep proving to offer this balance between work and life, because by nature they help with clear separation of the two. This blog will tell you the how and the why of this all.

A Marketplace-Edison Research poll concluded that workers aged 18 to 34 were more likely to choose the opportunity to have a flexible schedule and remote work opportunities as important in a job than workers 35 and older. In fact, that is why many ambitious young people nowadays tend to opt to start their own small businesses or freelance business, because it partially gives them the possibility to work in their own time and be able to take a step back when life gets hard, without the need to ask permission from any higher power except themselves.

Recognising this need, back in 2019, the European Union even sent into force what is known as the Work-life Balance Directive. The Directive introduced a set of legislative actions designed to modernise the existing EU legal and policy frameworks, with the aims of pushing towards better work-life balance for parents and carers, encouraging a more equal sharing of parental leave between men and women, and addressing women’s underrepresentation in the labour market. This brought a start to many legislative changes and also discussions around the topic with the aim of showcasing the importance and need for such a balance to be reached.

But how do coworking spaces enable this push towards work-life balance?

Whether you run your own business or work remotely, a lot of people end up tempted to curl up in bed or on their sofa, open their laptops and work from there. As comfortable as that sounds,  working constantly from your home ends up offering distractions from work, as all of a sudden the dishes you didn’t feel like washing last night become more interesting than the blog you need to write to populate your or your employer’s website. While this might be a silly example, there are several other life factors that might end up distracting you from reaching a specific goal. So many, at one point or another, end  up struggling to balance between their lives while working remotely and end up looking for something that could help them create this balance….a lot of the time arriving to coworking spaces as the solution. But why is that? What do coworking spaces have to offer that working from home doesn’t?

1. You are forced to create a bit of more structure for yourself and you now have an excuse to create a work schedule that suits your personal needs.
2. It  also helps you to mentally make that distinction between work and life, as now, instead of staying with your pjs on, you get dressed and leave your house. Many underestimate just how much more productive one can be when they get out of those super comfy pjs.
3. You now have a specific space dedicated for work, so you no longer feel like your safe space, your family space, is also your work space. Suddenly, entering home no longer feels like you’re going into work as well. Your house is now truly and just a home.
4. It allows you to create a routine for yourself.
5. You also meet new people, something that working from home doesn’t really allow you too. While online meetings would help you interact with others, there’s something about interacting with people face to face that online meetings can never replace.

Speaking about the concept of coworking, let us take a moment to tell you a bit about our coworking space located in Gżira, a stone’s throw away from Sliema and St Julian’s. Over at Glashaus we offer a modern work space in a small office setting to provide our clients with the opportunity to network while avoiding distractions that may come along with larger spaces hosting larger numbers of people. We offer a relaxed atmosphere, free coffee, tea & water, internet, awesome people, and stunning sea views of Valletta and the yacht harbour. When joining our Glashaus family, you can choose from a range of super flexible short- and long-term leases. Whether you just need a virtual office community, a hot desk, or even your own private office – we have the right solution for you.