Lessons Learned Working from Coffee Shops
blog.sqwiggle.com
blog.sqwiggle.com
Besides, i find the coffee shops in the city are usually very cramped, lots of noise and young parents/babies, mediocre wifi. I enjoy working from a coworking space and i also enjoy a proper working enviroment with a beefy workstation, 2 external displays, people around that are developers vs young hipster moms, stable fast internet etc. I go to the coffee shop to take a break and well, grab a coffee.
A partial workaround for this can be to prop the back of the laptop up with a book. Being careful not to block any critical ventilation slots with the book.
I also find the noise can be distracting, unless its a really busy cafe, where all the conversations can blend into a sort of "white noise". Even then, that noise tires me out after an hour or two.
Black and green tea are caffeinated; herbal ones are not. You can have it hot or iced. With or without sweetener, with or without milk. And it's good for you (unsweetened).
I've always operated by the tenet that, if they take my money, I am justified in staying for as for long as is necessary. This seems to be the generally accepted precedent, as I've seen an immeasurable number of people purchase a single item and spend an entire day working. This is especially true of local, boutique coffee shops, at which the patrons seem to be less transient than those of, say, a Starbucks. Personally, I generally purchase a single espresso for $1.50, add milk to attempt to simulate the taste of an actual cappuccino (at one third of the cost), and stay for between three and six hours. This seems to be standard operating procedure for many people. Are extended stays stigmatized elsewhere?
One of my local coffee shops gives 2 hours free wifi with purchase. If I plan on sticking around all day then I consider it that I am paying for wifi in 2 hour increments and getting a free coffee or food item out of it.
There's an opportunity here. Starbucks popularized the notion "third place"; even if they didn't quite execute, many others did.
If a cafe served real food (not just treats), even prepackaged, and sported a printer (charging per copy), I'd never leave.
In my neighborhood, there's a postbox + copy center joint with unused square footage right next to an espresso cafe filled with laptop campers and scarce seating. Both have plenty of customers. But a combo would rule.
There's a cafe near me that has good food, coffee, and beer and wine. They also have taken over the space next door and put together a separate annex with just lots of cozy chairs, as well two reservable conference rooms. The conference rooms are subject to a food & beverage minimum (If you commit to spending something like $100 on food or drink, then you can have the room for two hours).
They kind of blew it because their internet router MITMs your connections to insert javascript to display ads, and they block VPN connections to work around it, but I just tether my cell phone and get a better connection anyway.
Yes. Try ordering a side of bacon then covering it with your own couple slices of bread to simulate the taste of an actual sandwich (at one third of the cost) and see if you'll be allowed to hang around for three to six hours at any restaurant.
They provide bread under what most people understand to be the social contract: that you will order more than a side of bacon.
Some restaurants -- especially those that serve students -- even require a per-person minimum order to ensure that they're not losing money on cheapskates.
You, sir, are a cheapskate, in that you're willing to break the social contract as to further your own interests, while transferring the cost of your benefit to your host.
That someone can scheme up a rationalization for some behavior does not make it right, desirable, or honorable.
It's OK to put milk into a coffee you buy. It's not OK to buy one coffee and then drink several glasses of milk.
The same goes for seating. Seats and tables are there so people have a place to sit while they consume their purchases. There may be no set rule on how long it should take to you drink a coffee, but this is where people have to be honest with themselves and consider if they are really still finishing up that coffee or if they are now, so to speak, just drinking free milk.
If you want a cappuccino, buy a cappuccino. If you want a sandwich, buy a sandwich. Commerce is a collaboration between buyer and seller. Both sides are responsible for making sure that the value exchange is sustainable.
$1.50 espresso for 3-6 hours feels a little like you are taking advantage of the coffee shop. There is always going to be some variation, but I would prefer to be a customer that helps a business--that provides a service that I like--stay profitable rather than one that helps put them out of business.
If/when times are hard it is good that you can do this, but otherwise if you can afford to support a business that is supporting you then order the cappuccino!
I usually end up averaging between $1 and $2 per hour which I think is completely reasonable for the space, drinks, snacks, and internet access. I'll ramp it up a bit if they get busy and if they stay busy for very long (30 min. or longer) I will usually leave.
If the place is almost empty, you'd actually be doing them a favor probably by sitting in there to make the place look popular and happening (those that don't know the place might skip it as well if they see it completely empty).
The rule of 'give any amount of money however small and stay for as long as I want' is not a good one to live by.
Say there are 20 tables, and it's open for 12 hours a day. Every customer spends $1.50 and hogs a table for 4 hours. Assuming constant full capacity (a very optimistic assumption), each table has 3 customers a day and brings in $4.50. Which means the shop as a whole brings in a maximum of $90 a day.
In other words: if everyone did like you the coffee shop would be bust in no time.
Frankly, I thought this was satire.
But wait- you are using electricity and WiFi. You cost them money. Electricity is cheap and if they have reasonable internet service, so is internet- but now they aren't even making a dollar. Just how much profit do you think a shop can generate at $1 per 6 hours for a chair? If they have twenty chairs, that's maybe $30-40 gross for the day?
Afraid I've never heard of anyone being accosted by officers about hanging out in the parking lot inside their car w/ their computer. Who is to say who's wifi they are using anyway (especially in a tight area where you have multiple choices for wifi)?
I really like the back of iWaffles' laptop, and the suggestion to put your Twitter handle on there too (or website etc).
As to your comment on the validity of this article:
When I read an article or a book, I focus on getting something of value out of it. If I can gain at least one good idea that I can use for the rest of my life, then it was a worthwhile. Focus on the positive. It will change your life.