5 Benefits of Working Outside the Office

by Charles Stone

Although I’ve been a pastor 35 years, only in the last few years have I discovered the value of studying/working outside my church and home office. I’ll either go to McDonalds (cheap food) or when I lived in Chicago, Panera (good atmosphere and the place I preferred). Both provide free Wi-Fi. While I don’t advocate spending all your time working outside the office, I’ve found that doing so once a week benefits me and the ministry in these ways.

5 Benefits  of Working Outside the Office

• Productivity: Less interruptions from others.
• Creativity: A different environment spurs it.
• Focus: Less distractions help me concentrate better (like being tempted to clean up my office or play with something on my desk).
• Energy: A different ambiance/atmosphere gives me more.
• Stress management: I feel less of it in a neutral environment.

When I do work outside the office, I use an app I play into my sound suppressing headphones. It’s called Ambiance which offers zillions of nature sounds to listen to. I use Audio-technics active noise-cancelling headphones. They’er cheaper than Bose and about as good.
If you can, try working outside your office a day or so a month and see if it benefits you as it does me.
What other advantages of studying outside the office have you discovered?
Related posts:

• The iPhone App that Improved my Concentration (more about Ambiance)
• How Much Time should a Pastor Spend on Sermon Prep?