For some, remote work has been an eye-opening experience. Many are not willing to go back to the office in fear of losing the freedom and flexibility of working from home, or anywhere else in the world. But for some, it’s been a challenging experience.
No matter how you look at it, remote work does affect mental health — both negatively and positively. This means that you’ll want to make a pointed effort to support your team’s mental health.
So, how can you support your team’s mental health?
There is no right or wrong answer here. What you decide to do will depend on your company, team, and resources available. However, here are a few great places you can start:
Take care of yourself and the team leaders
It goes without saying that it’s hard (or impossible) to take care of anyone else when you’re also struggling. It’s important that you take care of everyone on your team, starting with yourself. By doing so, you can set a positive example and truly lead your team.
Melissa Ng, the founder of Bravely, a research-based mental health app designed specifically for remote teams explained how to build a foundation of psychological safety in your team:
- If somebody says something, really listen. Don’t hijack the conversation.
- Be brave enough to be vulnerable around your team.
Schedule regular check-ins with your team
Your team can still spend time together, even if you’re miles apart. Working remotely can get lonely, and providing your team with opportunities to connect and spend time together can help alleviate this.
A few ideas on how to facilitate this remotely:
- Casual chat opportunities: Create a “place” to hangout and chat casually—this could be as simple as adding a watercooler or casual chat channel to your company Slack. Help people share more about their life and how they work.
- Audio rooms: Using a chat room can sometimes be a little impersonal, but not everyone’s ready to jump on a video call at any moment—audio rooms can be a great way for everyone to be at the same place at the same time without the pressure of being on camera.
- Company-wide digital events: Hold fun company-wide digital events like hackathons.
- Match team members: Connecting doesn’t have to mean getting together as a big group, you can give employees an opportunity to connect with one another through cohorts or clubs where they can get to know others with similar interests. Book clubs, fitness clubs, foodie clubs, etc.
- Focusmate: You can’t be in charge of creating every single opportunity for your team to interact. For people in your team that miss the feel of coworking with someone, set up an account on Focusmate that will allow them to schedule coworking sessions!
- Coworking membership: Since lockdowns have eased in most countries in Europe and the US, consider offering your team a coworking membership. You can even keep a retainer at one coworking space your entire team can use and schedule coworking sessions or hold meetings in person when they want to. It’s a nice benefit to have at a relatively small monthly cost.
Building meaningful relationships is one of the bigger challenges that remote companies have. But there are plenty of ways to connect if you’re willing to get a little creative.
Disconnect
It’s more challenging to connect in a digital working environment, but what about disconnecting? Yes, it feels like Slack messages never stop. You get a new email pretty much as soon as you hit inbox zero. But should you really be pulling an 8-hour day on the weekends when you already clocked 40 hours during the week? Unlikely.
This isn’t a problem exclusive to remote teams, but it is harder to disconnect when your office is also your home. Add the stress of the ongoing pandemic to that, and the ability to take a legitimate break from work becomes a larger issue.
This is an area where French law takes the proverbial cake. The French government increased worker protections in 2016, with a law that mandated off-work times for employees. This means that employers are not allowed to require employees to be available outside of their regular working hours.
If you want to build an efficient, happy and productive team, you might consider taking one from the French books. Your team has the right to disconnect, but you might need to get them pointed in the right direction.
Remote team benefits
Having a fantastic list of benefits won’t just make your team happy, but it will become a great asset when hiring. Working remotely is not a great perk anymore, it’s a requirement. So, what else are remote employees looking for?
In the recent survey on benefit for remote workers, these were the most wanted ones:
- Health insurance coverage – Having a distributed team of remote workers doesn’t mean you can’t provide them with health insurance. Before discussing mental health benefits, make sure your team has a healthcare plan. There are easy solutions for this that allow you to add every team member under the same plan that works globally, no matter where they are in the world.
- Dental coverage – This is a great ad-on to the health insurance plan. Some remote companies took it a step further and thought about the issues that affect remote workers the most, which are usually problems with eyesight and back pain, so they made sure they pay insurance and yearly check-ups for this.
- Retirement plan
- Sabbaticals – Next to paid time off, sabbaticals were extremely important to remote workers.
- Paid maternity leave – For both parents.
Mental health-focused benefits
While providing health insurance benefits is a great start (and we’re sure your employees are thankful for it), you can step up your game by focusing on some of these as well:
- Guaranteed vacation time: vacation days are only beneficial if you get a chance to use them—guaranteeing them is a great way to ensure your team actually takes a break
- Mental health-focused subscriptions: giving your team an opportunity to sign up for a meditation or therapy subscription can provide additional support
- Extended sick days: Unfortunately, you can’t control when you get sick and some days you just can’t do it—providing unlimited sick days and/or adding mental health days allow your employees to put a focus on their well being.
- Gym membership: good for both body and mind!
Not sure what benefits work best for your employees? Have a chat with them about what they’re looking for, or opt to provide a wellness stipend instead—that way they can use it in the way that best supports them.
How do you support your team?
Historically, mental health has been overlooked by employers as a focus area when it comes to providing benefits. But with the increase in remote work and the decrease in physical face-time, it’s become increasingly important to check in with your team.
Providing pre-emptive support can not only help your employees day-to-day, but show them that you take their mental health seriously and are ready to provide assistance when needed.
Back to blog
Looking for a new Community Manager!
Spring Hub is a vibrant coworking space that provides a professional and collaborative environment for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small businesses. Our goal is to provide a quality working environment that connects people and gives them the tools and knowledge to advance their ideas.
Job Description:
We are seeking a friendly and motivated Community Manager to join our team. As a Community Manager, you will be responsible for:
We are looking for a person with:
What we offer:
We offer a cool working environment, where there is never a dull moment, an opportunity to create and lead new ideas and put them to action, a chance to work with entrepreneurial people from all over the world and opportunities from which to learn and grow.
To apply:
If you’re excited about joining us, please submit your resume and a cover letter explaining why you’re the best candidate for the position to triin.tamm@springhub.org
We look forward to hearing from you!
Back to blog
Spring Hub Sale: Save 30% on Dedicated and Hot Desk Memberships – Limited Time Offer!
Get Ready for Spring Hub’s Incredible Sale – Save 30% on Dedicated and Hot Desk Memberships!*
Spring is finally here, and we’re excited to announce our amazing spring sale! If you’re looking for a professional workspace that’s affordable and inspiring, Spring Hub is the perfect place for you. And now, for a limited time only, you can save 30% on our dedicated and hot desk memberships!
This offer is available exclusively to new members who join us in March. When you sign up, you’ll enjoy the discounted price for the next three months, which means you can save big while enjoying all the benefits of being part of our vibrant community.
But that’s not all! We also have a special offer for our current members. If you invite a new member to join us, you will also receive 30% off your current membership for the next three months. It’s our way of saying thank you for being part of our community and for helping us grow.
So, what are you waiting for? Join Spring Hub today and take advantage of our incredible spring sale. With our discounted memberships, you’ll be able to save money and work smarter. Contact us today to learn more about our membership options and to schedule a tour of our space. We can’t wait to welcome you to our community!
* Offer is valid from 08.03 to 31.03.2023. The discount starts from the first day of the membership. The offer is valid for new members that have not used named services in the previous 6 months. Current members get the discount on a monthly basis for three months, unless the new member leaves earlier. Discount only applies to full month packages.
Want to give our coworking space a try?
Looking for a new Community Manager!
Read More »Spring Hub Sale: Save 30% on Dedicated and Hot Desk Memberships – Limited Time Offer!
Read More »Back to blog
Remote Work and Mental Health: Supporting Your Team
For some, remote work has been an eye-opening experience. Many are not willing to go back to the office in fear of losing the freedom and flexibility of working from home, or anywhere else in the world. But for some, it’s been a challenging experience.
No matter how you look at it, remote work does affect mental health — both negatively and positively. This means that you’ll want to make a pointed effort to support your team’s mental health.
So, how can you support your team’s mental health?
There is no right or wrong answer here. What you decide to do will depend on your company, team, and resources available. However, here are a few great places you can start:
Take care of yourself and the team leaders
It goes without saying that it’s hard (or impossible) to take care of anyone else when you’re also struggling. It’s important that you take care of everyone on your team, starting with yourself. By doing so, you can set a positive example and truly lead your team.
Melissa Ng, the founder of Bravely, a research-based mental health app designed specifically for remote teams explained how to build a foundation of psychological safety in your team:
Schedule regular check-ins with your team
Your team can still spend time together, even if you’re miles apart. Working remotely can get lonely, and providing your team with opportunities to connect and spend time together can help alleviate this.
A few ideas on how to facilitate this remotely:
Building meaningful relationships is one of the bigger challenges that remote companies have. But there are plenty of ways to connect if you’re willing to get a little creative.
Disconnect
It’s more challenging to connect in a digital working environment, but what about disconnecting? Yes, it feels like Slack messages never stop. You get a new email pretty much as soon as you hit inbox zero. But should you really be pulling an 8-hour day on the weekends when you already clocked 40 hours during the week? Unlikely.
This isn’t a problem exclusive to remote teams, but it is harder to disconnect when your office is also your home. Add the stress of the ongoing pandemic to that, and the ability to take a legitimate break from work becomes a larger issue.
This is an area where French law takes the proverbial cake. The French government increased worker protections in 2016, with a law that mandated off-work times for employees. This means that employers are not allowed to require employees to be available outside of their regular working hours.
If you want to build an efficient, happy and productive team, you might consider taking one from the French books. Your team has the right to disconnect, but you might need to get them pointed in the right direction.
Remote team benefits
Having a fantastic list of benefits won’t just make your team happy, but it will become a great asset when hiring. Working remotely is not a great perk anymore, it’s a requirement. So, what else are remote employees looking for?
In the recent survey on benefit for remote workers, these were the most wanted ones:
Mental health-focused benefits
While providing health insurance benefits is a great start (and we’re sure your employees are thankful for it), you can step up your game by focusing on some of these as well:
Not sure what benefits work best for your employees? Have a chat with them about what they’re looking for, or opt to provide a wellness stipend instead—that way they can use it in the way that best supports them.
How do you support your team?
Historically, mental health has been overlooked by employers as a focus area when it comes to providing benefits. But with the increase in remote work and the decrease in physical face-time, it’s become increasingly important to check in with your team.
Providing pre-emptive support can not only help your employees day-to-day, but show them that you take their mental health seriously and are ready to provide assistance when needed.
Want to learn more?
Sign up for a free demo day
Back to blog
Why is a coworking space better than an (home) office?
Lower costs
Having your own office requires an investment for furniture and usually an extra person whose (parti-time) job is to manage the office (managing the cleaning, kitchen, office supplies etc). If you need meeting rooms, phonebooths or reception in your office then that is an extra cost. In addition to rent you usually get a utility bill as well.
When working from home you might need to invest in a good working table, chair and maybe even a separate room to keep yourself healthy physically and mentally.
Focus on the important
In addition to spending less money you can also spend less time on thinking about office related issues and focus your energy on the important thing: growing your business. This is especially important to small business owners. In a coworking space you can walk in, “hands in your pocket”, and start working right away with no need for preparation.
Flexibility
In comparison to rented offices the contracts in coworking spaces are more flexible with conditions to terminate (notice periods vary between 1-3 months to a few weeks instead of a few years). If half of your team wants to work from home for example you have the opportunity to make that change quickly and cut costs on office space. Coworking spaces are quite spacious which gives you flexibility when adding new people in your team quickly.
The people
Sitting in a confined space with the same 2-4 people or alone could start to feel annoying and lonely. With a small team of the same people ideas could start repeating themselves. The work place is where most people get their daily dose of socialising needs met and when working alone it could start to feel like an echo chamber.
A coworking space has a constant flow of interesting people and usually a vibrant community life. Frequent events where members of the community can meet and exchange ideas make the life there more inspiring and fun. It does not matter if you identify as an extrovert or introvert, all of us have a need of being part of a community or network.
Cooperation and inspiration
A coworking space brings together people from different fields. A lot of them are business owners and know a thing or two about the struggles of growth. You have access to a lot of knowledge and you can use it to solve your problems, see things in a different light, get new ideas or be part of eye-opening discussions. When being part of a network it is quite easy to find partners or clients as well.
Work-life balance
After the pandemic people have realised that having an office is not essential. But what they also have realised is that working from home for a longer period of time can influence the mental wellbeing and productivity levels. The act of getting dressed and moving out of the house is important for putting you in the mindset of working and kicking off the day with good energy. Being in the same room with other people who are also in the work mode can be quite motivating. Freelancers know this well: when there is no separation between your home and work life, they can start to mix and the result is the feeling of never actually working but never really resting. It is a source of constant stress.
Professionalism
Being credible in the eyes of the client or investor can make a big difference between success and failure for a small company. Meeting them in your kitchen might not make you seem trustworthy and a loud and crowded cafe won’t be a very private place to discuss important business topics. A coworking place provides a professional environment with a private meeting room with a screen to show important data, coffee for your guests and it shows that you take your work seriously.
Want to learn more?
Sign up for a free demo day
Back to blog
5 ways to stay energised without coffee
Here are a few tricks our members use to avoid drinking coffee too much. Although coffee in general is not bad for you it still influences your sleep quality and can be quite an addictive habit.
Drink tea
For most people drinking a warm beverage is part of the habit of drinking coffee. Black and green teas actually contain a little bit of caffeine – a 200 ml cup of green tea has 24 mg of caffeine and black tea has 40 mg. But the same amount of coffee has about 81 mg. If you want an easy transition from not drinking coffee then replacing it with tea is a good step. For example, adding milk to your black tea will make it as creamy as a coffee . But if you want to go “cold turkey” then try herbal teas or decaf coffee. The market is also full of all kinds of different warm beverage choices but check their caffeine levels before drinking.
Work out
Adrenaline can give you energy and the best way to achieve that is by working out. This does not require a full 45-minute workout session. A few exercises that get your heart rate up will do the trick. Some easy ways to work out in the office are planking or push ups, emptying the dishwasher or just walking around the office in a high speed. Or do what we have done – install a pull up bar in the office for some afternoon energisers.
Do handstands
This is a tip we got from our member Egle who has been doing it for two years now. Doing a handstand for a few seconds or minutes a day can have multiple benefits. The blood flow to your brain has an energizing effect. It can also reduce the production of cortisol, a stress hormone, which can have long term benefits of relieving feelings of sadness and anxiety.
Being able to do a handstand requires training but it is possible. If you are the type of person who is motivated by progress or doing a project, then this could be this little thing you do with the added benefit of keeping you energised. Start out with using a wall to help you and when you experience headaches then reduce the time you are upside down.
Drink water
Drinking water is generally a good thing for our health. One of the greatest benefits is how it can boost your energy. Studies have shown that drinking water may activate the metabolism and increase energy levels (source 1; source 2). One trick to make sure you drink enough water is to have a big water class next to you at all times when you’re working and every time you drink the last sip, you have to refill it. This also gets you moving throughout the day. In the office you can try filtered water but tap water is also very good for you as it has higher ph levels that are similar to the body’s natural ph levels. Some offices also have carbonated water if the regular water “taste” is too bland but keep in mind that carbonated water is not very good for your teeth in the long run.
Push through the midday slump
It is quite often that the energy levels only drop at a certain time of the day. Every day between 3 – 4 pm you will see a group of people gathering in the cafe lounge chatting and drinking coffee because they are trying to survive the midday slump. Is it the same for you? It is getting closer to 3 pm and the yawning just does not want to stop? We have noticed that this slump only lasts for about 30 minutes so if you can get over that line then you have defeated the midday slump. But how to do it? One way is to distract yourself and move around, maybe talk to other people and drink a beverage we have suggested above.
Want to learn more?
Sign up for a free demo day
Back to blog
How to choose a coworking space? 8 things to look for
Are you looking for a coworking space and do not know how to make a decision which one to choose? We have made a list of things to help compare your options and to understand which coworking space will meet your needs the best.
Location and accessibility
Time is one of the most valuable things we have and we do not want to waste it on commuting. When you are traveling with a car, what is the traffic like during rush hours on your commute or is the place close to public transportation? How long is the drive? What are the parking options for your car or bike and what is the cost?
Meeting rooms
How many meeting rooms does the space have? The number of rooms determines how available they are and if you are able to conduct meetings at any time. Is there a self booking system or do you need to do it through the staff? Meetings can change with short notice and waiting for a confirmation from a third party (the staff) is time consuming.
If you need to do video calls does the room provide a quality system for it – good lighting, camera and a platform that is easy to use for everyone? A quality video call makes you look professional and trustworthy to clients or partners.
Productivity
A few practical aspects determine how productive you can be in the space. Does the work desk fit all your things (monitor, computer, notebook or papers) and can you change the height? How ergonomic is the chair and how does your next and back feel at the end of the day? If you have multiple client calls are there enough spaces (private areas, phonebooths or meeting rooms) to make them? Is there a quiet place for concentrated work? And finally: how many things from your to do list you were able to accomplish at the end of the day?
What is included?
What is included in the membership and what comes extra? This is important when comparing the final cost. Is the coffee, meeting room use, printing, utilities, parking, extra screen, lockers etc free or do you need to pay for it? What are the things you need and use every day and what do the costs add up? What are some perks that make the experience more enjoyable? Do they have special discounts for members, a snack fridge, a yoga room etc and would you use them?
The community
The people in the coworking space make up a community which contributes a lot to the general vibe of the place. First ask yourself: what kind of social interaction are you looking for?
Things to look for: how many people are in the space? How often do they have events for the members and what kind of events are they? How is the communication for the community set up and do people in general talk to each other in the common areas? If you prefer to be left alone does the environment support that?
Contract terms and conditions
This has to do with flexibility. If you travel a lot or have a team that’s growing or changing constantly you need to be able to make changes fast and with low cost. The notice period for terminating the contract or pausing your membership determines the flexibility.
Design
Another aspect that contributes to the vibe of the space is the design – the colors, lighting, room sizes and the furniture. Do you feel comfortable and is the space inspiring? Are there enough work spaces and is there a separate area where you can take a break? Is it relaxing or does it support productivity? How do you feel at the end of the day?
The staff
Does the staff work in the same space and how accessible are they? A staff that is part of the community has a better insight on how to make the lives of the members better and they understand what are the important components of a successful coworking space. This also determines how fast they can help you. You can ask what is their usual communication with the members (newsletter, slack, fb groups etc) and how do they manage feedback.
Final question
What is the general vibe of the place and do you vibe with it?
Want to learn more?
Sign up for a free demo day