An exploration into where Who Do You Know? readers work
You may not know it, but the person on the other end of your Slack conversation is oftentimes someone laying in bed in their pajamas waiting for the laundry to dry.
Since the pandemic, work culture has forever changed, as more companies shifted to remote or hybrid setups that gave more opportunities for workers to work wherever they want.
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While we’ve seen many companies pull back on these policies, mandating workers come into a traditional office for 40+ hours a week, ‘work from home’ is a Pandora’s box that cannot be closed.
Don’t get me wrong, there are my upsides to working from home. People have the freedom to do their laundry in the middle of the day, take their dog on a walk, or take care of children or older family members.
But on the whole, work from home has spurned a worrying trend—
The amount of time people are spending at home shot up during the pandemic, but has not returned to remotely close pre-pandemic levels.
And amidst this we are seeing increased usage of addictive social media apps like TikTok, which some analysts say users spend 1.5 hours a day scrolling.
This twisted combo of isolation and addictive entertainment has caused a massive spike in Americans reporting they’re lonely.
A 2022 study by Harvard University found that 36% of Americans reported feeling "serious loneliness." Among these, 61% were young adults (18–25 years).
This younger worker demographic likely graduated into a remote work situation right after college, and may have very little to no experience working in an office.
And how does this affect their career trajectory?
Remote employees were 50% more likely to feel left out of career advancement discussions than those working in-person.
57% of remote workers believed their company favored in-office workers when considering promotions or pay raises.
Remote workers often miss out on crucial collaboration that happens in-person and are more likely to be distracted by menial house chores. They also miss out on being in the outside world, where opportunities are abound for those who are looking.
One solve is the rise of co-working spaces and member’s clubs like WeWork, Soho House, and The Malin, which offer physical spaces for remote workers and freelancers to mingle.
I was incredibly curious where Who Do You Know? readers worked from so I conducted a poll. Here are the results—
Where do you work?
In-Office: 11.1%
Hybrid: 44.4%
Remote: 44.%
How many hours do you spend at home? (awake)
If you work from home, do you get dressed up each day?
A staggering 55.6% of remote WDYK readers wear pajamas all day.
What do you like about working in the office?
Selected a few responses—
I can easily talk to colleagues. There are customers that I am able to interact with that breaks up the monotony of office work. Additionally, separating work from life makes me more productive
Free coffee, bigger screen, easier to deal with issues, being around colleagues, easier to move up
Socializing, dressing up
Human interaction, solve problems faster
Social interaction/being able to be responsive to issues I see on the shop floor (I work for a manufacturer
Wearing sick fits
I love being around people. I like hallway conversations, quick brainstorms, gossip, everything.
I love the energy of being around motivated people. I love getting questions answered in person or clarity in person. I walk down the hall and speak with my co-workers and the conversations are clear and things can get done quicker. I love having a space to go to other than my home that is free. I love dressing up.
Dedicated space to work, there’s no risk of doing other things.
Invite more space for collaboration, spontaneous convos
being around people
it's where I made some of my closest friends earlier on in my career when I was new to a city and didn't know anyone
Helps me stay focused, easier to learn from mentors
What do you like about working remote?
I can work on my Substack. Also, move at my own pace, less stress, no management presence, less hierarchy, can do things around the house, easier to workout
More likely to be focused (no coworkers distracting me), ability to make healthy lunch at home, wearing sweatpants, ability to do some house chores between meetings, less time wasted driving to office
More time for myself in the morning and at night
Getting to avoid office politics/gross leering and uncomfortable comments from middle age dudes! My workplace is not that friendly to women!
(Yikes)
Eating healthy, no coworkers, ability to run errands
Pauses invites reflections, and the environment is more creative for me to initiate thoughts at the start or a project & get in my zone. Also more focus at home. Jump into work earlier too, instead of commuting.
can workout whenever + run errands - but may be more related to being a freelancer vs being remote with a corporation. although idk you can really do anything if you have teams on your phone
being able to cook my meals at home, walking the dog, not worrying about what I look like, not dealing with office politics or drama
Sleeping in, taking meetings from bed/couch, running errands in between meetings, getting to have a slow morning, intense focus time with no distractions
Cooking lunch in my kitchen and eating healthy
Again, with ADHD it's a must, but for women it also saves so much time spent on getting ready, and then for all on commuting back and forth.
Do you wish you could switch? (if you're remote do you wish you had an office or if you work in office do you wish you could be at home?)
I work 1 day remote, I wish it was one more day and sometimes a third
Wish I could control how many days I WFH vs go into the office instead of being told I need to be in office x amount of days per week
I wish I had a more hybrid situation
I spent three months end of last year working in an office, 5 days a week. I loved being around people and having a clear line drawn between ‘work’ and ‘not work.’ It was also a way more junior job so that was a factor there too. But I loved being around people and being in an office, with office rules and procedures and processes. Now I am working mainly for myself, I could work from home but I live alone and would go loopy. Plus I need to be in an office to make me work (coffee shops are too inconsistent and expensive - and the company I work for pays for my WeWork)
sometimes yes. made great friends at my last job being fully in office. water cooler talk can be fun etc.
Ironically, the allowance of flexibility is what I value the most. It means I come in more often since I come when it’s convenient for me which makes it more enjoyable.
What is the best co-working spot?
Komune (92 Orchard St. -- you should come visit)
If I do go in public, chic hotel lobby or coffee shop
I've got a space near me that used to be a Wonder Bread Factory. Just a good vibe.
WeWork - not for the vibes, but for the very effective coffee, a space to actually work (sometimes a proper office chair), and flexibility of choosing different locations to fit around my other plans.
Soho works
I love hotel lobbies. They’re quiet, productive, great snacks and food, and fast wifi
My guest room in my house is my office, but I am also part of a members club where I go when I host meetings. It also has a coffee shop
A lot of them aren’t great for working, but I like St George, Sogno Toscano, and Popup grocer
Superba Food and Bread or Saba Coffee.
Crew Collective (Montreal), Bar Bara (Montreal)
the local ones (offset and hi-fi in redondo beach)
I like bodega wine bar in Santa Monica. Comfy seating and food during breaks is essential. Plus pets welcome
Im in LA. Zinque is best for work
bibliothèque, book club in east village, pause cafe
What do you do for work?
Head of strategy at a retail startup
E-commerce ops and client relations management luxury
Retail + Social Media Marketing for luxury auto brand
Tech sales
Copywriting/marketing in house at a company
Chief of staff at a fully remote tech company
freelancer - copywriter / social media / events
Account Director & Producer
SVP, Digital
Art Director / Creative Director / Branding
Software Engineer
PR
Takeaways
I was shocked at how small the percentage of 100% in-office workers was… but considering the types of jobs WDYK readers have, it makes sense why so many roles are hybrid of remote.
Many people recognize the potential career drawbacks of working remote, and some opt to go to the office to advance their career and socialize with coworkers.
Others without a physical office to go to are making their own office out of hotel lobbies, coffee shops, and co-working places.
The overarching sentiment I’m taking away is that workers really just want freedom to make their own decisions on where thy work. Flexibility is key, and its great to be able to choose to be home if needed or to venture out regularly.
Where I Work
When I first moved to New York and worked remote, I had very little reason to ever leave my tiny apartment, which made me feel like a f*cking loser.
I’d see people commuting downtown wearing amazing outfits and be jealous I had nowhere to go.
Early on I realized I needed to get out of the house. I’d sneak into the WeWork on 14th Street (I called it FreeWork) after a friend told me they didn’t lock the stairwell doors. I’d spend time at the Public Hotel lobby. And occasionally, I’d try to work from Equinox, but they never stop blaring music in the lobby so its hard to take a call.
I’ve had tons of people recommend chic spaces like SAA in Bushwick, which is beautiful but to be honest I don’t want to go to Bushwick everyday.
But in Williamsburg, there is a ubiquitous block known for its corporate gentrification that hosts all the amenities a 20-something remote worker could ever want…
N 4th St is home to Equinox, Whole Foods, WeWork, Cava, Sweetgreen, Dig, Blue Bottle, Levain, Just Salad, Glaze and pretty much any other corporate slop bowl your heart could ever desire.
So I’ve chosen this WeWork as my new stomping ground. I can easily get in my 5am workout at Equinox and then come over here to start writing around 7am, grab lunch at Cava, and work here till around 6-7pm before going back to the home office.
And the conglomeration makes it incredibly easy to get everything done without commuting around the city, but the close proximity of the L makes it convenient to quickly run into the city to take a lunch or attend an event.
I’ve heard great things about WeWork! I’d be curious to know how it’s doing post-pandemic… for a while it looked like they were going to completely shutter since WFH became more available.
I am scared to say this as I might not find a spot ever again there but here we go - I love working from the garden of AIR MAIL in West Village. No calls allowed though - it is good for a quiet focused work for 2-3 hours.
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I’ve heard great things about WeWork! I’d be curious to know how it’s doing post-pandemic… for a while it looked like they were going to completely shutter since WFH became more available.
I am scared to say this as I might not find a spot ever again there but here we go - I love working from the garden of AIR MAIL in West Village. No calls allowed though - it is good for a quiet focused work for 2-3 hours.