Finding the Perfect Coffee Shop for Work

Some coffee shops are forgettable: standard music, generic art, mediocre coffee, cold baristas, clientele who hold no interest to you.

Some, on the other hand, are bohemian bliss: Edgy wall art complements sublime indie tunes. You overhear snippets of conversations about politics, philosophy, urban life, cool projects. The baristas are open and willing to take the time to ponder an idea with you. There are no godawful marketing promotions that hit you with cheese as soon as you walk in the door — just aura and more aura. They’re the real deal.

Depending on the day, either of these can be the perfect coffee shop. If you’re searching for a bolt of inspiration or looking to throw yourself in the way of ideas, it’s unlikely you’ll find them at some generic, soulless clone cafe you can find on every other corner (no names).

On the flip side, if you already have all of your ideas and tasks defined for the day and you just want to get down to business, I doubt you want some guy walking through the door in clown shoes and spouting off about chemtrail conspiracies. Even a clever conversation can bump your fragile, forming ideas off track, becoming your enemy.

The spaces we work in affect our output, and sometimes inspiration is exactly what we don’t need from them.

Using spaces to create channels of openness and obstacle can either protect or enhance the flow of your work, depending on your needs, and if your location’s not working on a given day, it’s worth pondering alternate venues to get where you need to be.

How will your work space define the work you do today?