More Coffee Shop Etiquette

Those working from home choose to work out of coffee shops, bookstore nooks, bakery café s and other places offering a network of free WiFi Internet access. As a self-employed freelance writer, computer programmer and research specialist, I decided to leave the comfort of my lazy boy to congregate with other laptop vagabonds at a local coffee shop located within a large national chain bookstore. My goal was to get comfortable toting my laptop around, managing my battery life and to observe the overall portable word processing, student cramming, telecommuting-working employees and other self-employers coffee shop working culture. Here's what I learned:

Do's

1) Scout out the place when you first arrive. Whenever I go to any new coffee shop, book store establishment, etc...I always give the walls a strong glance, locating as many electrical outlets as possible. Then I see how many of those outlets are in use and how many empty chairs there are next to each. Pick a place near an outlet if possible. Then it's on to the next order of business.

2) Order something. I don't care how many articles you see on this subject, this rule will always be one of the more important ones. Nobody is generally allowed to loiter. Besides, if you're using the free WiFi available purchasing something will help contribute to keep it that way. If you are on a budget, buy small items or sip on larger ones. When you get hungry, treat yourself from the food case. Part of working at a coffee shop, or similar establishment is being able to eat the yummy deliciousness screaming your name from behind the glass.

Keep in mind, if there are large crowds, the WiFi network could experience sluggishness and slow speeds. I noticed during my stay, my fellow laptop-ers got kicked off the free WiFi from time to time. Personally, I use a portable wireless service through my cellular provider. My work went uninterrupted.

3) Stretch. You know all those different ergonomic exercises traditional 9-5, cubicle goers are supposed to do? Wrist stretches, neck stretches, standing up, looking away for periods of time, etc... Do those. Nobody expects anybody there to risk a neck cramp or other potential injury just because you're not in a cubicle. You have the ability to be more flexible with your work environment than most of the rest of the working world. Be good to yourself and take care of your body so you can keep choosing your work locations.

4)Try to mimic the body language or behavior of those around you if you find yourself in an awkward social moment. Let me explain. Sitting in the coffee shop as long as I did, people around me came and went, talking about various life issues, their own or others, some working some not and then it happened---I talked to myself. "That's messed up," I said shaking my head. It had to do with the article I was writing and the sentence structure of whatever paragraph was giving me trouble. When the people next to me stopped talking enough for me to notice silence, I looked up and saw two sets of eyeballs staring at me. "Oh, I was just working on my article and I talk to myself sometimes," I smiled. They seemed satisfied with my explanation. They weren't working on a laptop, but my other neighbor was.

"Oh, don't worry about it. We all do it," she took another slurp off her twisted combination of caramel, vanilla coffee concoction. She nodded at me to carry on. I returned the nod. Later, I listened and noticed that yes, the laptop-ers indeed talk to themselves periodically. I began to mimic throat clearings, "uh-huh's" and "ah-ha's" of those of my neighbors. It seemed to soothe them in a weird way and I found myself comforted that my idiosyncrasy was actually normal.

5) Devise a system of packing, unpacking and loading your gear that is efficient and quiet. Practice at home first, with your gear. Take all of your gear with you that you think you'll need for your laptop while you're out. Walk from one room to another and practice setting up the laptop, plugging it in and arranging your belongings near your feet, away from others and away from the path where others would walk. Pretend you have to use the bathroom and that you're right in the middle of a project. You'll want to find a way to pack up your belongings as quickly as possible without disrupting those around you.

Don'ts

1) Don't hog the electrical outlets. Communicate with the person sitting next to you if you must share the outlet. Determine who's battery will potentially die first and let that person use the outlet first. As soon as your laptop is charged, disconnect from the electrical outlet. Take turns accordingly.

2) Don't unplug the wrong power source. I was sharing an outlet with the two women next to me. The one directly next to me was finished charging and I was next to unplug. The lady furthest from me had the top plug in. I had the bottom. It was time for me to disconnect and the second I unplugged my laptop, she looked up and accused me unplugging her computer. This was a completely new experience for me. I kept my cool and despite my efforts to show her the cord came from my computer, she couldn't believe it was true because she "lost power." After a few minutes, she saw she was merely kicked off the WiFi network and was satisfied when she understood I had not yanked her plug from the wall. Look before you pull!

3) Don't ask the person next to you to watch your stuff during short bathroom breaks no matter how tempting it might be. Although this is an acceptable practice and most people will keep your things safe, not everyone you meet has good intentions. If you insist on leaving your laptop and possessions behind, take measures to protect your personal information as much as possible. Lock or log off your laptop and remove your USB's prior to leaving your chair, even if you'll only be gone a few moments. Prepare to find a new seat with a new plug in if you return to find your previous seat taken. If you do find your seat taken, use it as an opportunity to purchase an item from the front counter.

4) Don't offer someone unsolicited advice without asking. You're in a place where people have conversations, lie to their bosses and conduct job interviews. (One of my laptop neighbors did this simultaneously, then proceeded to share with her interviewer of who was sitting right next to me, that she just lied to her boss and why this seemed like a completely acceptable thing to do.) You're going to overhear things you can relate to, have expertise in or would have done differently.

As comfortable as you might be, don't forget that others around you may be completely oblivious to you and unsolicited advice will come as an unthinkable intrusion to his or her privacy. If you choose to broach the subject with a complete stranger, try some polite, non-aggressive, non-committing intro's like: "I'm sorry, but I overheard part of what you were saying. Could I give you my thoughts?" or "Excuse me, you probably hear this all the time, but have you thought about ______?" or "Wow, I could only hear part of that, but you've got me curious. Could I ask you about _____?" No matter how much the person offers or doesn't offer, don't push the limits of your conversation and always thank the person for the conversation or information since they were nice enough to take up their time to share it with you. Remember, it was really none of your business to begin with.

Overall

Overall, all the laptop-ers there really wanted the same thing-a somewhat quiet, social, semi-private workspace where the undone laundry couldn't be seen and the dishes that weren't done were nowhere to be found. For all the solitude that is found by working from home, for some of us, the coffee shop environment offers a portable, real social network of like minded workers all with the same goal: To enjoy with others the unspoken appreciation of the flexible lifestyle we are lucky enough in life to enjoy.