Appreciation post: My local library study room beat every coworking space I tried

Last month I spent $200 trying three different coworking spaces downtown, but kept getting distracted by the noise and free coffee breaks. Three years ago I started using my local library's free study rooms, and I can actually focus for four hours straight without interruption. Am I missing something about coworking spaces, or has anyone else found a quieter alternative that works better?

3 comments

3 Comments

keith16411d ago

Holy crap, FOUR HOURS straight? I can barely go 45 minutes without checking my phone in a library, that's wild. Man, I paid $35 for one day at a coworking place last week and some dude was taking a loud zoom call right next to me. I think you found the real secret weapon. Free study rooms are a total hidden gem, nobody talks about them. You're definitely not missing anything with those coworking spaces, they're mostly just overpriced coffee shops with worse wifi half the time.

the_john11d ago

@keith164 nailed it, I read the same thing about coworking spaces being total rip-offs on a productivity blog the other day.

owens.laura10d ago

I snagged a study room at my local library last Tuesday (the one with the ugly carpet, you know the type) and got a solid three hours of work done before my phone battery died. It was completely free, super quiet, and nobody bothered me, which is honestly better than the $40 I dropped at a coworking space in Brooklyn that smelled like burnt popcorn. So yeah, keep hunting for those free rooms, they're a lifesaver for actual focus time.