I absolutely love this idea - as a person who is more likely to be productive sitting in a local coffee/sandwich shop (we’re lucky that many in Pasadena have free wifi) than at home, this is totally made for folks just like me.

Last week someone asked if I’d ever considered founding my own business, being my own boss. This kind of venture is right up my alley…along with a few other ideas I have cooking, which one of these days I’ll actually make a reality. After going through their website, there are a few things I would change -

Phone service - they should absolutely be offering this. It may be a little trickier because you have to staff a couple more people to answer phones, and what do you do since people don’t have set “extensions” but this is all workable. Offer one tier of service that redirects the caller to your cell phone. The cost should be slightly greater than what you’d have to pay to get a second line in your home…I think that’s worth it for a chirpy, happy greeting.

Build Photocopying/Admin fees into the cost - the way it’s broken down right now feels nitpicky. If everyone paid $4 more per month, would that cover the occasional time someone needed help booking a dinner reservation? I don’t know, maybe they tried that…but it seems like one of those things that would just be expected as part of the ‘amenities’.

Add more than just days of the week to the tiers - this goes back to my last point. There should be some value added to moving up a tier…more than just another day that I can come in. There should at least be something that gets me over the five days a week level to ‘private’. Then will you answer my phones? Is photocopying free now? What sort of furniture do you provide for my private desk? The cost could easily go up even a bit more and the offer would be more enticing because of it…people love this stuff. It’s why private first class “suites” for fluffy little dogs are commonly sold out twelve months in advance at pet hotels (don’t ask me how I know this).

Anyway - when I run my own business, I’ll be able to implement these suggestions, instead of just write about them!