Coworking spaces are turning into regular offices with worse Wi-Fi

I was in Chiang Mai last month at a popular spot and counted 14 people on Zoom calls at the same time. Nobody uses headphones anymore and the whole place just sounds like a call center. The whole point of being a nomad is flexibility, not sitting in a loud room with bad internet. Does anyone actually find these places productive still or am I the only one?

3 comments

3 Comments

kim_patel891mo ago

Blame the coworking spaces themselves for this. They market themselves as laptops and coffee but they don't enforce any rules about noise or calls. I've been to places that have a phone booth room nobody uses because it's always taken or broken. Maybe the answer is just capping how many people can be on calls at once, like a time limit per day. Until they actually manage the space better, it's just a loud library with worse snacks. I think most owners don't care as long as the day passes are selling.

ericgonzalez1mo ago

Early mornings at a library worked way better for me.

maryh961mo ago

That "sounds like a call center" part really got me, I used to defend coworking spaces but you're right.