22yo working from a cafe divides internet with simple question

A young worker has taken to social media to ask a question around remote work “etiquette” and Aussies can’t agree on an answer.

“People who work from cafes, how many coffees are we having?”

Generation Z has hightailed it out of offices and are embracing cafe culture, to the point that they are turning it into a central part of their working lives.

Tully, 22, lives in Melbourne and works in social media for a skincare brand. She also likes to “romanticise” her working life by setting herself up in a coffee shop for the day.

In true Generation Z fashion, she took to TikTok to ask the “etiquette” around coffee ordering. Her question amassed over 700,000 views and sparked a big debate in the comment section.

If you’re setting up business in a cafe with your laptop and your own cup and using their Wi-Fi, heating, and electricity, how many coffees makes the exchange fair?

Tully’s cafe question divided people online. Picture: TikTok/tullyrigoni

The 22-year-old loves working from cafes. Picture: TikTok/tullyrigoni

First, the mere premise of working from a cafe was controversial.

“As someone who’s worked in a lot of cafes, we generally don’t understand why you don’t just go to a library? But yeah, at least once an hour,” one person wrote, with the comment receiving over a thousand likes.

Besides that comment, people were keen to debate how many coffees one should order while tapping away on one’s laptop.

There were lots of people in the comments who told Tully she should buy one coffee an hour.

One advised, “One for every hour or 1.5 hours, depending on whether you get food at some point.”

“Realistically, probably one drink every 45 min-1 hour is a good rule of thumb,” another recommended.

Someone else wrote that the cafe “rule of thumb” was to order one to two coffees every hour.

Tully was quite taken back by the answer and pointed out that if she worked from a cafe all day, she’d be “bouncing off the walls” if she consumed that much caffeine.

Other people were less heavy handed with the caffeine.

“I’m a barista and we genuinely do not care as long as you buy one,” one commented, with similar comments following.

“If the other tables are full, then keep buying! If it’s empty … sitting there making the cafe look busy is helping.”

“Everyone saying one an hour is insane … personally I do one every three hours or get a drink then a treat two hours later.”

“Who is saying one an hour? Get a $3 hot tea and stay for as long as you want. We don’t care as long as you leave by the time we close.”

Some were saying she should order one coffee per hour. Picture: Instagram/tullyrigoni

Tully said she just wanted to know what was the right thing to do. Picture: Instagram/tullyrigoni

Tully told news.com.au that she posted the TikTok because she wanted to understand the right thing to do.

“I think it’s one of those things everyone who works from a cafe thinks about, it’s one of those unspoken rules that I wanted to get to the bottom of on my TikTok video,” she said.

The young worker said that, when she posted the video, she had just wrapped up working at a cafe for four hours.

She ordered two drinks and had breakfast, which she felt “justified” her stay, but she wanted more clarity about the WFH issue.

The TikTok amassed over 700,000 views. Picture: Instagram/tullyrigoni

She said the response was ‘interesting’. Picture: Instagram/tullyrigoni

Tully said found the reaction to her working question interesting.

“As humans that we create these mini ethical rules and regulations about simple things like this. I always say to the staff, ‘I’m going to be sitting here working for a while, so if it gets busy and you need to give the table to someone who is coming in to eat a meal just let me know and I will move’,” she said.

“It was interesting to see how divisive the comments section became. Especially in this cost of living crisis, I feel this discussion was quite pertinent.”

Tully said that she really enjoys working from cafes because it gives her a change of scenery that beats any office.

“I get a random surge of productivity when working from a cafe. I’m not sure what it is, but there’s something about having your headphones on and romanticising the working experience from a cosy cafe with a nice mug of coffee, or matcha in my case, classic Gen Z,” she said.

In fact, if she’s feeling “unmotivated”, working from a cafe “snaps” her out of it.

“There was a lot of debate in the comments section of my TikTok about why don’t people just work from libraries, but there’s more ambience at a cafe. You can eat food, sip on warm drinks, and chat with your local barista,” she said.

The young worker said the idea of working in a library feels “stale” and reminds her of being back in high school.

“I also sometimes like the background noise of the chatter, the clinking of cutlery, etc. Sometimes I will listen to a YouTube audio while I work from home called cosy coffee shop ambient rain sounds to emulate the experience,” she said.

“Lastly, it’s an excuse to treat myself to a drink and maybe a sweet treat.”

Originally published as 22yo working from a cafe divides internet with simple question