Almost a month of working at the shared workspace in London. Here are some tips:
- Reserve a desk and get to the space before nine.
- Depending on which desk, you may need a plug charger. Keep one on hand. Also have one charging cord per device that you need to charge.
- Carry a bag that zips, no open totes.
- There is a social ettiquette in London. Do not eat lunch at your desk if you are alone or snack on anything you can get at a convenience store. This also goes for the train. Do not eat or drink on the train or underground.
- Do not keep your spoon in your cup if you are drinking tea or coffee. This is a form of flirting.
- If you want to drink water, do not use a water bottle – buy a bottle or use a coffee cup.
- There are specific days that have specific meanings for the British. Do not carry any fresh fruit or vegetables to work and check social media to see if you can figure out what to be wearing. If you are worried about this, just wear black clothing and avoid designs, fur, or the colour brown.
- For breakfast, if you are female, do not eat a croissant or anything at the office. I drink an oatmeal coffee and that seems to be working ok.
- Take a headset and use it. People will not disturb you while you are working if you are wearing headsets.
- If someone goes to the bathroom wait until they return. Leaving at the same time as someone else may give them the wrong impression. This is part of British culture. If you happen to go in at the same time as someone else, make sure you close your lips so they can’t see them then they know you are there for the toilet and not a chat. The person may get grumpy but when it happens to you, you will know it is kind of insulting to have someone say “not interersted” but this is a necessary facial expression. Use it and face the grumpiness with a grimace or the same lip expresssion.
- The bathrooms at the workspace are clean and safe. Some locations have safe shower rooms others are ok. If you need to use a shower in the city, go to the gym but avoid using a hairdryer if someone else is in the room with you and do not sit down and use a hairdryer.
- If you are at the gym, do not leave out your jacket or your shoes and wear headphones. Do not look at anyone in the locker room. No friendly chatting. This is a location where females hook-up based on their shoes, clothing choices. A lesbian at the gym will mark herself with a pink towel. I use a gray or purple towel. Do not use a brown, pink, blue or green towel or animal print if you don’t want to get marked as a specific type of person. I like going to the gym and have not found a way around this other than getting dressed in the shower stall. Do not walk around naked – it is considered flirting.
- Back to office desk, you can leave your non-apple tech on your desk and leave for a bit. Your belonging will still be there when you return. Do not leave out your pens or office supplies if you leave your desk.
- If you are working later, wear your headphones and don’t eat anything. The workspace will become more flirty in the evening, if you are there and don’t want to flirt, wear headphones and don’t look at anyone not even to see who is around – best to start your day earlly and end it a bit early.
