WHERE TRADITIONAL OFFICES FAIL, COWORKING SPACES OFFER A UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT TO FACILITATE DIFFICULT, MEANINGFUL CONVERSATIONS

Coworking spaces are again proving their value extends beyond the physical workspace, employing their spirit of community to engage members in difficult conversations typically regarded as ‘treacherous’ by companies in traditional office settings. Our Denver coworking space, Enterprise Coworking, leans into sensitive subjects by encouraging members to engage in their community book club discussions on topics of diversity and inclusion.

The idea was formed in the weeks following the nationwide protests over the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. As a nexus of people, ideas, and backgrounds, we found ourselves uniquely positioned for members to discuss issues of social importance without fear of HR scrutiny.

“Nobody was having these conversations in the workplace,” says Katie Vaughan, Director of Operations at Enterprise Coworking. “And when you have these conversations at home with friends or family, you’re most often speaking to people with similar stances. We felt by bringing people of different backgrounds and viewpoints together, we could take people out of their comfort zone and engage everyone in meaningful and moderated conversations.”

Our first book discussion held back in July, followed the book So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo. The discussion stretched a full hour, and maintained intense yet respectful exchanges, with many members sharing their personal experiences.

This month’s book discussion features Amazon’s #1 New Release ‘Modern Manhood: Conversations About the Complicated World of Being a Good Man Today’. Facilitating the discussion is no other than the book’s author Cleo Stiller, a Peabody Award-winning journalist and member of Enterprise Coworking in Denver.

The book chronicles the hopes, fears, and confessions of men across the country as they come to terms with what it means to be a “good man” today. Rather than a prescriptive approach, Stiller interviewed 100 men ages 18 to 62 from around the country, analyzing their stories, questions, and concerns as they pertained to being a man in the age of #metoo.

“I found that everyone has a story,” says Stiller. “Men wrote in expressing their fears about doing or saying the wrong things that could get them in trouble. Men were afraid to hire female staff. Wives were telling their husbands not to mentor women in their company. And I found HR departments were too afraid and unwilling to touch on these subjects out of fear of legal backlash.”

Stiller speaks regularly around the country about her work and social impact, including workshops for businesses to educate men and women on how they can best navigate the #metoo era and beyond. She hopes to conduct 25 of these workshops this year. The book discussion on April 14^th at Enterprise Coworking ran as a condensed version of her business workshops, drawing in members from different backgrounds who shared their own stories and learned from others.

“A coworking space is sort of like the new ‘town square’,” says Stiller. “It’s a place where you can have productive discussions with people in your community that are maybe unlike yourself. And because the conversations are not happening within your own company but rather between individuals of many companies, people are more likely to open up and speak their mind. That’s when the fun begins.”

‘Modern Manhood’ was recently optioned to a production company out of LA called Gunpowder Sky and has partnered with the creator of Netflix’s ‘Bling Empire’ to develop the show. Stiller is an executive for the show and will continue to provide her guidance and input.

SHOULD YOU BECOME A SOLOPRENEUR?

Uncertainty begets possibility. If you’ve been dreaming of starting your own business, now might just be the right time. After all, the ability to set your own hours and define your own workspace is extremely appealing, now more than ever. Moreover, the market is changing rapidly. Companies that start now can build an infrastructure that supports social distancing and virtual services from the start.

There are many ways to run a business, but one style you should consider is solopreneurship. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. Here’s a look at some of what defines a solopreneur, plus some tips for getting started.

Need office space for your new business? Enterprise Coworking offers entrepreneurs a workspace that can drive their success! For inquiries, fill out this online form. 

WHAT IS A SOLOPRENEUR?

Simply put, a solopreneur is someone who intends to be the beginning and end of their company’s hierarchy. Rather than hiring traditional employees, solopreneurs wear all of the company’s hats, while occasionally outsourcing work to contractors on a temporary basis. This is the perfect fit for someone who wants total control over every aspect of their business (including, of course, the profits).

However, this isn’t a good fit for every person or every business model. If you know you’d get overwhelmed by managing every aspect of a business, you should plan to hire staff rather than go it alone. You’re also inherently limited in solopreneurship to the amount of workload you can handle alone, so you’ll effectively cap your potential profits. Take all the pros and cons into consideration before you dive in.

HOW DO I HANDLE TAXES?

Whenever you work for yourself, you have to keep track of and pay your own taxes. This can be a big adjustment for someone who has always worked for a large company that does this for them. A good rule of thumb is to set 30% of your profits away in a savings account so you’re not caught off guard come tax time. You can also look into setting up an LLC – although the rules vary by state, this designation can help simplify your tax process.

WHAT TOOLS WILL I NEED?

Organization is a solopreneur’s best friend. As a result, any tools that work to help you keep your tasks, goals and projects on track will be a major helper. If you work best with paper and pen, look into planners designed specifically for business owners. Use these to keep track of deadlines, appointments, and to-dos, as well as to track and evaluate your goals.

Next, set yourself up for success with a reliable computer, a headset, webcam, and, of course, a comfortable desk and chair. These are the foundational tools of your office that you won’t be able to live without. Also, make sure you’re connected to powerful and dependable internet service. 5G internet is now available in Denver and is up to 25 times faster than 4G networks. As time goes on, you’ll have a better sense of what else you may need to ensure your work makes a difference and is productive.

You can also look into task management software, if you’d prefer something digital. There are a ton of great programs out there you can use to make sure you’re staying on track. Look for digital planners that can sync between several devices. This way, you’ll always have your to-do list with you, making it easier to stay aware of what you’re doing now and what’s coming next.

Finally, consider hiring a virtual personal assistant on a contract basis. Even if you only need their help during particularly busy times, an extra hand can substantially simplify your workload. Freeing up some of your time means you have the energy and mental headspace to push your business forward.

SHOULD I WORK IN AN OFFICE?

Just because you’re a solopreneur doesn’t mean you should be totally isolated from other like-minded professionals. Opting to run your business from a shared office space, like Enterprise Coworking, has all kinds of wonderful benefits for solo business owners. From a cost standpoint, it’s one of the best ways to work, since you have access to free internet, copying and printing services, and even coffee and tea. Coworking spaces also offer free opportunities to network (without having to pay expensive membership fees for networking organizations). Not only is connecting with other professionals a great way to learn about your market, you may even build relationships that bring you business. With all of these perks, working from home or at a local coffee shop simply doesn’t compare to coworking!

WHAT IF I WANT TO EXPAND DOWN THE ROAD?

There’s nothing wrong with changing your plans down the road. It’s perfectly conceivable that you might start off thinking you can manage things all on your own, then realize you really need another person. It’s also fine to manage just well by yourself, but eventually decide you’d like to expand.

However, the transition from solopreneurship to a traditional business hierarchy can be challenging. Before you start hiring, reflect on your experience going solo. Take some time to think about what you’ve valued most about the experience, and see if you can bring that forward into the new structure.

Running a business on your own is a major challenge, but it can be incredibly rewarding. Take a closer look at solopreneurship to see if it’s right for you. If so, your great idea is just waiting for you to start!

Photo Credit: Pexels

Ryan had never worked out of a coworking space in Denver or anywhere before. He’s a brand-new member in our Greenwood Village coworking location, belonging to a commercial investment company that leased a 10-person private office starting earlier this month. While Ryan was making himself a tea in the kitchen, I approached to introduce myself and welcome him to the space.

As the Marketing Manager at Enterprise Coworking, its part of my job to get to know our members and their reasons for choosing our office space. The first thing Ryan said as I introduced myself was, “I can’t believe more businesses aren’t doing this.” I asked him to elaborate.

Ryan’s company is larger than 10 people. The total number of employees is 25, and that number was growing before the COVID-induced recession. When businesses were forced to close down in March, Ryan, like many of his coworkers, feared for his job, but the company was able to retain their entire workforce with the help of a PPP government loan.

For two months Ryan and the rest of his team worked from home, leaving their 6,200 square-foot office space in the DTC to collect dust and cobwebs. When the initial wave of COVID had subsided, his team was instructed to return to the office on a more flexible basis. Some people continued to work remote full-time while others, like Ryan, went into the office two or three times per week.

“The office felt so empty and cold when we returned,” Ryan told me. “It was nice to see some of my teammates in-person, but the emptiness took the energy out of the workplace. Returning to a ghost town did nothing to boost morale, especially when we knew money was tight and we kept staring into over 4,000 square feet of unused office space that we were paying $23 per square foot for. It didn’t make sense.”

Ryan’s company was paying almost $12,000 per month for their DTC office space while using under half of the space. Ryan wasn’t the only one to realize this. With 4 months remaining on their 3-year lease, and the unsettling feeling that this recession/pandemic could last a while, the company began looking at other options.

“That’s when we found Enterprise Coworking.”

Ryan then spelled out a few reasons why they thought Enterprise Coworking could support them through the recession.

COWORKING LEASES ARE CHEAPER

With members of different companies sharing communal amenities, coworking spaces offer businesses more affordable rent. For this reason, you see many startup companies investing in a coworking office. But established businesses and enterprise-level companies both have found homes in coworking offices, more now than ever.

By switching to coworking, Ryan’s company saved around $6,000/month, what will be $72,000 saved their first year in the coworking space.

“That’s an entire employee salary right there,” says Ryan. “That’s saving someone’s job, putting food on the table for a family. That right there was enough reason to switch.”

COWORKING LEASES ARE FLEXIBLE

Ryan’s company chose to keep over half of their employees working remote, but that’s not to say they wont ever come into the office. Coworking spaces offer “hot desk”, or as we call them, “floater memberships” where a member works from a random non-dedicated workstation spread out about the space starting at only $99/month.

“Some of the remote employees were given floater memberships so that they could have a workspace with amenities to work from as they wish and also be close to the team,” says Ryan. “For the price, it was a no-brainer.”

Going along with flexibility, coworking spaces also generally have shorter-term leases, so you don’t feel locked into anything for too long. This is especially significant when your team could grow or shrink quickly, changing your office size needs. Coworking spaces work with you to scale to different-sized office suites outside of contracts.

UTILITIES INCLUDED

Coworking offices come business-ready and include utilities. Internet, HVAC, janitorial, mail—its all on us! Coworking spaces use the power of community to bring these costs down for us (the operator), and make them free for you.

COWORKING SPACES HAVE FREE AMENITIES

Coffee, tea, beer, and snacks are all complimentary at Enterprise Coworking. Do the math. Calculate how much you are spending on office coffee, snacks, and happy hour. In our coworking space, you can negate those costs completely.

Other amenities differ between locations. In RiNo, our coworking space has an on-site café selling breakfast and lunch, as well as a gorgeous rooftop patio perfect for working, events, and happy hours. We have a full-kitchen so members can make elaborate breakfasts and lunches and also a personal gym we allow members to rent out by the hour for free.

COWORKING OFFICES OFFER COMMUNITY

We’re in the midst of weird times. Our spaces aren’t filled with as much activity as they once were, but for good reason.

In the good old days, you’d walk from the member’s area or your private office into the kitchen to grab a coffee and you might find yourself listening to a startup pitch its business model to a crowd of interested ears. Maybe you’d walk into a networking event or just stop to exchange a few words with a friend from a company down the hall.

Today, you’ll still find people in the space, doing what they came to the space for: to get work done. We’re not trying to push the boundaries of what we are allowed to do for the sake of community at the risk of member health. So now when you run into someone new in the kitchen, respect their boundaries, wear a mask, but still engage each other in conversation. Because that’s what it’s all about!

Our community activities will return stronger than ever once the world digs itself out of this COVID hole and we can’t wait for that day! But as a business owners and employees, now is the time to focus on preserving your business, and that requires a space that allows you and your team to get work done.

That is exactly where we come in.

See how a coworking office for your team can help you through this recession. Take a tour of our space in RiNo or Greenwood Village today!

Denver churches are getting creative to offer their followers a safe way to attend services in the age of COVID-19. The pandemic forced churches to turn services into virtual events since March, but as cabin fever sets in and people long for a new way to connect, some churches are finding new ways to use technology and coworking spaces to bring their members together on Sunday mornings.

Beginning October 4^th, The Embassy Church—a multi-cultural, non-denominational, evangelical church in Denver—will be transitioning Sunday services from virtual services over Zoom to an in-person service at the 90-space parking lot of Enterprise Coworking in the River North Art District of Denver. Attendees will stay inside their cars and tune into an FM station broadcasting the service from the main entrance patio where Pastor Brandon Washington will speak.

“We took the idea of the old-school drive-in theatre and applied it to our needs,” said Pastor Brandon Washington of The Embassy Church. “We heard of similar solutions happening around the country and since our church was already a member of Enterprise Coworking, the perfect space to try this was right under our nose.”

Pastor Brandon Washington expects 150 to 200 people in attendance. The church met with city officials to ensure they were abiding by local regulations. Only people of the same household can share seats in a car. The Pastor will speak from the entrance of Enterprise Coworking, which is elevated four feet above the parking lot, allowing every car to see the service as well as listen in on their radios. The church plans to hold services every Sunday for the foreseeable future, weather permitting.

The Embassy Church is not the only church service being held at Enterprise Coworking. Denver Presbyterian, another member of the coworking space, has begun holding small services on the workspace’s large rooftop patio, enforcing strict social distancing and mask guidelines.

“Our mission at Enterprise Coworking is to facilitate connections to enable our members to elevate not only their careers but all aspects of their lives,” said Josh Fine, the company’s president. “Working creatively to help two churches who are members of our community hold safe, in-person services was a natural extension of what we do every day for all our member companies and individuals.”

The Embassy Church plans to video record each service so those still attending virtually can participate.