Coworking? If you’d presented me with the term and asked me to define it, I’d have said something along the lines of “people who work together” or “colleagues in a collaborative setting.” While those are both part of it, the larger concept of co-working spaces that cultivate creativity among independent professionals was totally foreign to me.
I’m happy to say that is no longer the case.
At the beginning of Yes Louisville we were a tiny team with no need for a full office of our own. But, we did need to be together to work in tandem as we sought to grow our platforms and further our mission of helping people to discover the city and unlock their best life in it.
Enter co-working!
Our current office at Yes Working
For almost the first full year of our first phase of growth we had the blessing of renting one small office room and additional flexible working time in a co-working space in Louisville. This was my first introduction to a co-working space. It included private offices for rent, open working areas where any member could set up shop at any time, conference rooms that could be booked for private meetings and presentations, a kitchen area, and basic office resources.
I loved it. It made so much sense.
Why would a small business team or entrepreneur in business for themselves spend an arm and a leg on a whole office or risk low productivity working exclusively from home when there was an affordable in between option like this available? The answer is, they shouldn’t!
I told everyone who asked where we were located about the awesome benefits of co-working.
Apart from the physical space, our work was enriched by
the perspectives of others in the space.
It’s amazing what fresh eyes and insight can bring to us when we are open to it. Co-working gives you access to an endless pool of perspectives every day!
When we reached the next phase of our company growth and were hunting a permanent home we found a property that, while way too big for just us, would provide us the opportunity to create more co-working space in the city! It was too good to pass up.
One of our current conference rooms
Yes Louisville has it’s HQ on the second floor, but the first and third floors are a haven for anyone in need of space to get things done. Yes Working has conference rooms of all sizes, open event space to reserve, a full kitchen, always working internet and other amenities, and it’s handicapped accessible so there’s no limit to who can utilize the space! There’s a big front porch overlooking Baxter Ave. across from O’Shea’s and an even bigger back porch with a private yard connecting the main space to the adjacent carriage house, which we’ve converted into a hip Airbnb. There’s room for bigger teams to rent upstairs office space, too.
The opportunities are endless and we are a better company having
the neighbors we do inside our space.
I can’t imagine sitting home alone cranking out content and trying not to get distracted by a million other things I could be doing during the day. I love having group lunches when we can take a break and enjoy a meal and learn about each others’ lives and business. I enjoy the buzz of other people’s productivity around me. I’m motivated to do more and feel challenged by others’ independent ambition. I appreciate their suggestions when I seek out help and I am happy to share mine with them anytime. We help each other be better at what we do, even if our work is nothing alike.
Can you tell I love co-working?
I speak for all of Yes Working members when I say we’d LOVE to have you come see our space! Even if you’re not looking for a place to do your work, you may know someone who needs the kind of community we have, or you may just be curious about how it works. Whatever the case, come see us at 965 Baxter Ave. anytime. You can call ahead or just pop by.
We’re always up for guests!
