We sat down with Commons Member, Spencer Elkington, a dynamic professional whose career spans across multiple domains and passions. By day, Spencer works at Constituent Voice, a Texas- and D.C.-based company that bridges the gap between U.S. voters and their representatives through innovative applications. In their free time, they run Chaotic Good Computing, offering expertise in data privacy, economic analytics, and project management to businesses in need. Read on to learn more about your fellow coworker!
Tell us more about your company, what do you do?
Day to day, I work for Constituent Voice, a Texas- and D.C.-based company building applications to help U.S. voters connect with their representatives. In my free time, I also run Chaotic Good Computing, advising and writing software for businesses and organizations who need a helping hand with data privacy, economic analytics, and project management!
What is your favorite part about the work that you do?
I’ve never been the type of person who can sit down and work on the same thing for forty hours a week. It’s been fun (and lucky!) to work in fields where I can not only build up a core set of technical skills, but also use those skills to solve a broad and interesting set of problems.
And — not for nothing — I love graphs. There’s no shortage of good graphs in the data business!
How has being a member of The Shop Workspace impacted your work and creativity?
As a perpetually distractible person, a good rhythm for good work is hard to make and easy to break. While remote work is incredibly flexible and freeing, my house has no shortage of distractions to throw me off. Coming to The Shop for a dedicated & separate space where I can settle down and focus up has given me an incredible frame to build my working rhythm around.
For me, a day at The Shop means grabbing a coffee from the kitchen, opening my laptop next to a window seat (there’s no shortage of either) and getting an order of magnitude more work done than I could’ve sitting on my couch at home.
Can you share a memorable moment or achievement that has happened in your time with The Shop so far?
I was absolutely floored to find out how many people I knew in Salt Lake City were coworking as well! Just a couple of weeks after starting at The Shop in January, I found out that no less than a dozen people I know and have worked with were also members!
It’s been amazing to get to catch up with old friends, and to make some new ones while I’ve been here!
What’s your favorite thing about the community at The Shop?
In the same way my work has given me the opportunity to solve a broad range of problems with a core set of skills, it has been so fun to meet people from a broad range of industries & backgrounds with our shared space at the core.
Having worked in company offices, doing the same work in the same place every day can get stale — the community here makes sure every day is interesting and fresh.
Any advice for fellow members or entrepreneurs considering coworking spaces?
If you — like me — are a person who struggled to find a good, sustainable rhythm working every day at home, I can’t recommend a coworking space enough. The Shop has made a perfect space for both doing work and catching up with familiar faces. If you’re looking for a great place to focus on good work, a coworking space like The Shop might just be what you’re looking for.
Be sure to say hi to Spencer Elkington next time you see him at The Shop. Ready to join our growing community of professionals like Spencer? Book a tour and trial today and take the first step now.
P.S. Huge thanks to Spencer Elkington for letting us spotlight, so grateful you’re in our community!