The best office is wherever you do your best work. Here are tips for finding your ideal place when you’re ready to roam away from home a little.
There’s evidence to support the idea that forward motion helps your brain shake off uncertainty when you’re feeling stuck.
Photo by Quynh-Le Nguyen
The most experienced digital nomad I know is Quynh-Le Nguyen. Over the past two years, she's roamed to Mexico, Hawaii, New York, Oregon, Florida, and Georgia. As the Senior Social Media Manager at Dropbox, her work is fast paced and deadline driven. That motivates her to find an external environment that counteracts the internal pressure she feels.
To aspiring “slomads” who plan to stay in one location for a few weeks or longer, Quynh-Le recommends scouting AirBnb for locales with reliable Wi-Fi. She seeks out places with porches or decks that look out on scenic views—settings more spacious than her small studio apartment in SF—to help her get into a creative flow.
Photo by Quynh-Le Nguyen
“Being in front of a computer all day, I tend to find a workspace near the ocean, palm trees, or anywhere with a tropical backdrop,” she says. “This relaxes me and helps me focus when I have multiple deliverables. I love being near hiking areas with lots of surrounding nature so I can explore during a lunch break or after work.”
Pro tip: Approach hammocks with caution—Quynh-Le recently discovered trying to balance in a hammock while working on a laptop is a bit trickier than it looks.
Select the setting that suits the task
A couple months ago, I moved to a tiny house in Sonoma County, California. What attracted me to this space was the abundance of natural light and cedar walls that give it a rustic cabin vibe.
The kitchen nook is the best spot for admin tasks like researching
Despite its size, the house actually has several micro nooks that I’ve turned into makeshift “offices.” I tend to get restless when I’m working. So whenever I’m switching tasks, I roam from one nook to another, using the front room for Zoom meetings, the kitchen for researching, the loft for focused writing, and the deck for brainstorming. No matter which nook I’m in, I have sight lines of magnolia trees and the black oak-covered mountains.
The deck is the best place for brainstorming
I feel lucky that I got to shift from a shared desk in an open office to a space steeped in nature. Another aspect I love about this space is that it’s close enough to town that I can ride my bike to work in a café when I want a change of scenery.
When I moved in, I had the choice of buying another Wi-Fi router or trying a mobile hotspot, and I’m really happy I went with the latter.
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