
Ask HN: Where's the best place to work remotely? - MilnerRoute
It was nice taking a break for the holidays - but now that I&#x27;m slogging back to working remotely, I&#x27;m trying to think of new places where I can work.  Does anybody have any thoughts or recommendations?<p>I&#x27;ve been doing the public library, but I feel a little guilty about making it my workplace, day after day.  There&#x27;s some nearby coffee shops, but sometimes it&#x27;s hard to find a comfy chair there.  A few local restaurants offer wifi -- even the nearest Subway sandwiches -- but there&#x27;s only one restaurant that&#x27;s gone out of their way to say &quot;Stay as long as you like!&quot;  My girlfriend suggested the library at the local community college (though I think I&#x27;d feel guilty unless I&#x27;d signed up for a class).  I&#x27;m surprised there&#x27;s not more free co-working Meetups (on Meetup.com).  Maybe I should make my phone into a mobile hotspot and then just work in the park?<p>Anyways, I&#x27;m looking for suggestions.  When you&#x27;ve been working remotely, what were the best places?   (And how do you find them?)
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K9DRDOh
Im having the same challenges. In my case working from home not by choice, and
will likely continue to be remote for a few more months.

Its not too bad when the kids are at school, but my biggest challenge is to
convince my wife that 'I'm working'

I keep telling her 'No, I cannot watch the baby or run errands' because I need
to focus on what I'm doing. She tells me she understands ,but after a few days
it starts again.

I've done Coffee shops and libraries and I like working in that setting, my
two main concerns are

\- Meeting/Phone calls ( I dont want to disturb others)

\- Physical Security ( too much of a hassle to take my laptop with me to the
bathroom, and no proper anchor point)

If I don't have any more meetings for the day, I will just go and work from
the Library/Coffee shop.

I've seen other guys working from coffee shops, that somehow take phone calls
and attend meetings ,and I can barely hear them. If I ever master that skill
"speaking quietly, yet clearly without actually whispering" it would make a
big difference in my life.

~~~
arvinsim
> I've seen other guys working from coffee shops, that somehow take phone
> calls and attend meetings ,and I can barely hear them. If I ever master that
> skill "speaking quietly, yet clearly without actually whispering" it would
> make a big difference in my life.

First step is to get a good mic.

~~~
wallflower
If you missed Krisp.ai, check it out.

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18460726](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18460726)

[https://krisp.ai/index.html](https://krisp.ai/index.html)

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davismwfl
I've worked from my house for roughly 10 years and I will be honest there are
days when I question my own sanity. I have a wife and teenagers, so after
around 3pm my day is useless, hence I work early or late, and I just expect
3-10pm to be crappy for work (which generally is totally fine). Currently I am
working early mornings anyway, like 4am to 1pm or so.

There are also some days where my wife just has 0 respect for my office door
and just keeps walking in interrupting me until she sees me look at her with
that specific stay the fuck away, but remember I love you, look. Years of
doing this has led to a balance but it takes time to get to, and some days it
just doesn't work to be honest. If I know I have a critical day coming up, I
always prep my family ahead of time, if it becomes one of those days midway
through, I lock the door and tell them to give me time. They have figured this
out and it works pretty good now without any friction or hurt feelings.

Outside of this, I also like to schedule and spend time at hot desk spaces
some days and just go to a coffee shop or similar places other times. It helps
to just have a different physical view some days IMO. I also will just
sometimes leave the house without a destination and find a corner in a park or
near the ocean and work, which anyplace near water is my personal heaven, so
that usually lets me function and refocus some which is helpful.

I have done super critical conference calls from my truck when I am out or
even from my back yard with just a quick finger for mute. Honestly sometimes I
think this is better for me personally, because being outside and walking
around almost helps me think clearer some days. I figured this out when I
worked in the office actually, as I used to use walking (outside) meetings as
a way to do 1-1's.

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benzesandbetter
I've been a digital nomad for about a decade and have worked from all sorts of
spaces. What makes for an ideal workspace depends on the type of work you are
doing and various other factors in your life. If your work involves a lot of
interacting with clients, or handling sensitive information, public spaces
like cafes, restaurants, etc. are not going to be a good fit. Trying to
participate in a conference call with a barista in the background running the
blender doesn't help support your professional image and billing rates.
Personally, I work mostly from coworking spaces, or from the place where I'm
staying (e.g. AirB or Hotel). It's really worth paying the money for a
workspace where you can count on having consistent access to a quiet
environment and not being interrupted.

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toomuchtodo
> I've been doing the public library, but I feel a little guilty about making
> it my workplace, day after day.

Don't feel guilty. That's what your taxes pay for.

~~~
snazz
To add to this: if your library is a part of a system (as most are in the US),
you could go a little farther to another one to get a change of scenery.
Sometimes working in just another room from your usual work space will improve
your clarity of thought immensely.

~~~
marketgod
What do you do for monitors? I need 4 screens.

~~~
cweagans
Really? People are plenty productive on a single monitor every day. I have no
idea what you do or who you work for, but it seems like "need" might be a bit
of an exaggeration.

~~~
marketgod
I trade stocks so I need many charts open. Also another screen to code on. The
issue is libraries don't have monitors in general so a single laptop screen is
not ideal.

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ineedasername
No need to feel guilty about the library, serving the public in a variety of
needs is what they are there for. That said, why not home? If there are
specific reasons that home isn't a good or preferred locale, those reasons
might help guide the suggestions you receive.

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yulaow
Don't you have some co-working space around you? Usually you can rent a shared
desk for a very little fee (something like 300$ month)

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neverartful
$300 per month strikes me as being quite steep for a shared desk.

~~~
marketgod
This is why companies want remote workers. Cities like Toronto, where I am, an
office is more than some of the employees salaries.

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hluska
When I was freelancing full-time, I rented some shared/temp office space. For
$400 a month, I got an office with a locking door, a desk, chair, space to
plug in multiple monitors, access to conference rooms, and a mailing address.
The place I rented was a ten minute walk from where I lived, so I got the best
of all worlds.

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bagsvaerd70
I love working remotely from a home office in some sunny spots of the
Mediterranean. If you choose well, you can find cheap places with great
weather all year round, quality food and very good services (including
healthcare).

For me nothing beats a quiet home office as I need to do really deep work in
probability & logic.

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ioddly
A coworker and I sometimes work remotely from the local community college
library, since they have private rooms that you can grab. You shouldn't feel
guilty -- that's what it's there for after all. (You should feel guilty if you
go on there and talk on the phone all the time though).

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sansopticon
University libraries are usually pretty great if you can find one that permits
non-student access - depending on your city they may have better internet than
the public library.

If you can find coffee shops that are inside business parks or college
campuses, those too usually have great internet and plenty of outlets.
Employees at those kinds of locations are also unlikely to bat an eye at you
camping out for half the day while you work.

But yeah, for me its a circuit of home, coffee shops, and libraries.

If you're working full time, or have a long-term contract, I'd recommend at
least trying a co-working space. It seems silly to pay 300 bucks for a desk,
but it can be nice if you 're working steadily and can afford it.

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neverartful
Anyone rent dedicated office space? By that I mean 4 walls and a door that you
can close. I was thinking that if I ever get back into full-time remote work I
might try to find something like 100 sq. feet to rent.

~~~
mbrock
I'm renting a private office space where I do my work as a remote contractor.
It's glorious; it's also my firm's biggest expense, but hey, life quality.

For various reasons I'll be terminating the lease soon. Instead I'll spend
money on renting a bigger apartment—one with a room dedicated as an office.

Four walls and a door is the only way to work as far as I'm concerned. Stable
internet, my own printer, silence, comfort, etc.

~~~
pyvek
I did the same thing – I had an private cabin in a co-working space for some
time and then moved out to a larger apartment with a dedicated office room.
It's been working pretty well so far, although I have make sure I go out for
workout and some tea every day to prevent myself from going insane.

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sethammons
My big advantage of being remote is zero commute (used to do 5 to 6 hours of
commute per day). I have a dedicated room at home and I would not trade that
for some office space I had to drive to without some compelling and temporary
reason.

Occasionally, the sounds of the house interfer, but I can either drown it out
with white noise or ask those making the noise to stop. My wife and kids are
very good at respecting my workspace.

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infinii
Please, do not be those people who squat all the seats in coffee houses.

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gamma-male
Hotel lobbies, cafes, other people's places in other countries.

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gnulinux
For me definitely not home, as I get depressed 2 days in. Strangely, I rarely
leave home on weekends. For me, libraries is the best.

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Cypher
at home

