Working from home in Sussex used to make me miserable

Clouds gathering over the Downs

I don’t know about you but I get more done when I work from home than I do working in an office.

Writing, working on challenging coding problems and developing new designs all require deep, uninterupted work. I love being in the flow for hours on end. Sometimes I’ll do it for 10 hours with barely a break — no time for commuting to an office.

So why did I bother starting a coworking space and keeping it going for 13 and a half years?

If I try and do that kind of intensive, deep work for five days straight my productivity drops like a rock.

It gets monotonous staring at the same bedroom wall day in day out. It’s lonely not having anyone to talk to about the cool project I just discovered. I miss being around people and having a change of scenery.

There’s more to work than deep work. Every. Single. Day.

My whole week is better when I get on a train to Brighton & work from The Skiff for a day.

I can do deep work at The Skiff if I want to.

Paul Silver and other Skiffmates in The Skiff’s Engine Room

We have big desks and proper workstation chairs. And every desk has a large monitor I can plug into. It’s almost as good as my home setup.

If my noise cancelling headphones don’t keep me in the flow there’s always a few desks to choose in our quiet room.

But, personally, I don’t go to The Skiff to do deep work.

I work through all the small things on my todo list that I’ve been putting off. Bookkeeping, responding to non-urgent emails and updating my website. It’s easier to stick with them when there are people around me working and often they can help me when I get stuck.

It’s really satisfying keeping those small tasks to my “Skiff Time”.

Because I’m working on small things it’s a good day for meetings too.

Meeting room and phone booths for when you need some privacy

I’ll book in person and Zoom meetings for the day I’m in The Skiff. For longer calls and confidential conversations I’ll use a phone booth or the meeting room. There’s no charge for either unless you want to book it in advance.

I’m an introvert but when I’m in meeting people mode it’s nice to do it all in one day…

The thing I love most about being at The Skiff is The Skiffmates Mess.

Pastry Morning in The Skiffmates Mess in March 2022

We have a dedicated social space, sperate from where people are working. It’s like a large kitchen/dining room/living room in one. It’s the place to go when you want to have a random chat with another human.

Members often use this space to organise informal events including coffee & pastry mornings, lunch time Show & Tells and evening drinks.

Knowing The Skiff and various spaces are there me makes working from home wonderful.

When I start to feel low I can remind myself that The Skiff is there if I need it. If I leave it too long I can change my plans and head in to Brighton to get a new perspective. I’m at my best when I stick to a routine, with at least one day a week at The Skiff.

But I don’t have to go to The Skiff to feel the joy of being connected with other members who are working the way I do.

The Skiffmates Slack buzzing almost as much as The Skiffmates Mess

Other Skiffmates working from home are always just a message away in our Slack and on our email list. They provide a steady stream of support and inspiration that makes my work better every day.

If you’d like to join us, keep an eye out for an announcement next week.

Jonathan Markwell 🇺🇦 on Twitter: "Working from home in Sussex used to make me miserable.I got more work done than in an office. But it was lonely & monotonous. I missed being around people and having a change of scenery.My whole week is better when I get on a train to Brighton & work from The Skiff for a day. / Twitter"

Working from home in Sussex used to make me miserable.I got more work done than in an office. But it was lonely & monotonous. I missed being around people and having a change of scenery.My whole week is better when I get on a train to Brighton & work from The Skiff for a day.

April is going to be the best time to join The Skiff this year!