Figure out where you are going to work. At home? Co-working space? Rented office away from home? Global nomad? You’ll want a place free of distractions and large enough for your desk and equipment.
Figure out where you are going to work. At home? Co-working space? Rented office away from home? Global nomad? You’ll want a place free of distractions and large enough for your desk and equipment.
As you’re setting up your own consulting practice, one clear thing you have got to figure out is where are you going to work. And maybe you’ve already solved this. Perhaps you have a space in your house that works just fine. Fantastic. If not, you may need to look elsewhere; you may need to look at co-working spaces or even consider renting an office.
It is useful having a dedicated space where you can work and where you can say “When I’m in this space, I’m a professional.” It’s a lot tougher to do this at the kitchen table.
When I started out in 2008, after leaving McKinsey, we had a three-year-old and a three-month-old in the house and it was tough to do client calls. Today it’s a lot easier to find a flexible space to work. Some characteristics to look for: a space that you can go into, that you can call your own, that can be a place where when you’re in there, you’re a professional.
I like to have a place that’s relatively clear of distractions — a place that’s large enough that you can have two monitors set up.
So, some characteristics to look for when you’re setting up your office. When you’re in this place, can you be a professional and set aside your daily life? It’s useful having a separate space. If it’s in your house, a separate space for when you’re in that space, you’re a professional.
Number two, is it a good place to have phone calls? Number three, can you get high-speed internet? Number four, is it large enough for you?
The way I like to set up my space is to have one desk for the computer and a separate desk for no computer and working just by hand.
Do you have space in your office for office supplies and a printer and any other office equipment that you want to have?
I like to keep the walls fairly clean so I can tack up some key papers or put up a large flip chart. It’s useful if you have a space that’s relatively free of distractions, relatively quiet. Maybe that’s a space in your own house that you carve out just for professional use, or maybe you decide to get an office at a WeWork or other co-working space or even rent an office. That’s up to you. But, find a space that you will call your own. That you will say,
“Okay, this is my office. When I step into this space, I’m in a different frame of mind. I’m in a professional frame of mind when I’m in my space.”