Living the Soma Vida, baby

Soma Vida logo

Some folks complain about how Austin feels too small — everyone knows everyone it seems and therefore everyone knows everyone’s business. Me? I like all the overlap — fun for me to see how fast I can figure out how someone I meet is connected to someone I already know.

When I met Laura Shook, a Somatic Psychotherapist and co-owner of Soma Vida, a new coworking space on the East Side of Austin, it took about two seconds to make my first connection. My friend Pascal Simon’s mosaics are hanging at Soma Vida. I spotted them right away. And Austin being Austin, coincidentally I had had coffee with Pascal earlier in the day. Of course I did.

I also mentioned that I knew Peter Staats, an old friend and wonderful photographer, whose house backs up to Soma Vida. Laura smiled and told me Peter isn’t just her neighbor, he’s her landlord. Of course he is.

Before we got into talking coworking, Laura told me a little bit about her work as a therapist, which was cool, since psychology is a side passion of mine. Then she gave me a tour, explaining the space, the co-goal of the anchor tenants, and how Soma Vida came to be.

The three owners — Laura Shook, Laurel Darlington, RN, BSN and Sonya Davis, a Work/Life Balance and Business Coach — are all single mothers and entrepreneurs. Each works in a field that has them helping clients find balance between work and family. And they understand, first hand, just how challenging it can be to try to find success professionally while holding down the fort at home with young children.

mosaic by Pascal Simon

Laura spent some time living in Stockholm when her daughter was very little. Having moved from LA, land of me, me, me, she was especially blown away by the focus on families and how the Swedes emphasized community. She wanted to instill more of that back in the States.

After resettling in Austin, she and her partners came up with the idea for Soma Vida. Their mission: “to encourage a more holistic approach to living, where there is time to live well, work well, and play well.”

Which is why the seven anchor tenants include a couple of acupuncturists, a naturopathic doctor, a couple of masseuses, an medicinal herbalist, and the Green Corn Project, which is all about small, organic gardening. And which is also why, when you walk into the place, yes, you get that New Age feel. (Don’t misinterpret — some folks use “New Age” in a negative fashion. I’m not one of them.)

Those anchor tenants have dedicated, private rooms/offices in the 3800 square foot historic building, which originally was built by members of African American churches that came together to create a living space for widows. Laura likes that the original purpose and the current purpose of the space both share the theme of sanctuary.

“We wanted to have a workspace that meets the needs of families,” she explains.

After plenty of research looking at already established coworking spaces on both coasts and feeling a special connection with Cubes & Crayons, which offers on-site childcare, the partners opened SomaVida. Besides the private suites, there’s a bright front room, a community room, a by-the-hour coworking space, a childcare room, and a yoga room.

SomaVida is open Monday through Friday, with the space available to rent for special events on the weekend. They offer childcare two days per week, with a three-hour cap per visit so that kids don’t get antsy. Morning and evening yoga and pilates classes are available daily.

Laura says people are catching on to Soma Vida’s vision. “A lot of people ask about the concept. When I explain, they get excited. I think our biggest market will be moms and dads.”

The actual coworking space is comprised of six desks, with filmy curtains between each that can be pulled across for privacy or left open for collaboration. Each desk is labeled in a way that coworkers who want to set their intent for a day’s work can choose from: serenity, balance, prosperity, tranquility, abundance and harmony. There’s also a small conference room with some very groovy teal rolling chairs gathered around one big table. Coworkers get free wifi, coffee, tea, printer use, and access to the kitchen (refrigerator and microwave).

Business has picked up in response to outreach that included offering some free opportunities to try out coworking. “As more business comes in, we’re seeing what we need to tweak,” says Laura. “We let clients know we’ll respond to their requests and the needs of the community.” She’s also hoping to do some co-promoting of coworking with Conjunctured and LaunchPad Coworking to educate more people about the benefits of shared workspace.

A little irony has tiptoed into the space — the owners, focused on life/work balance, are having to contemplate their own schedules as more people show up at Soma Vida.

“When it was slower we could do more of our private practice work and keep up with office management,” says Laura. “Now we have to set hours — it’s more complicated. One entrepreneur told us, when it was slow, to be glad for that. It was an opportunity to work out kinks.”

These days, Soma Vida’s owners are setting intent for the day down the road when they’re busy enough that hired staff will run the coworking side so they, of course, can maintain balance in their own work/life.