Cool idea: Co-working
June 28, 2007 By: almostgotit Category: technology, videos, networking, employment, freelancingIt’s so new it’s not even in Wikipedia, and baby that’s SAYIN’ something!
Invented (according to Web Worker Daily) by software developer Brad Neuberg, Coworking is “a movement to create a community of cafe-like collaboration spaces for developers, writers and independents.” Mostly young, mostly hip independent workers are trading their pj’s and isolation for shared work space where they can network, meet clients, and enjoy some of the time- and space-structuring benefits of “going to an office.”
Click here to watch Brad and some of his colleagues in a “learn more about it” video.
While it’s not an entirely new concept, the current “coworker movement” among the growing number of (mostly web) workers is clearly taking advantage of the social connectivity provided by the internet to collaborate in forming a number of “coworking” spaces already available (or currently being formed) throughout the US.
It’s a really neat idea. What I want to know is whether they accept anyone older than 25, and if you can still get a mocha?
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June 28th, 2007 at 5:19 am
yeah…i think we’re all learning that the web is great to meet and organize, but nothing beats face to face. Since more and more of us are working as contractors, we might as well work from collectives. Doesn’t need to be complicated as long as we all have the same intentions.
June 28th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Thanks for your comment, Jaydedman. Some years ago, it was assumed that the internet would radically change the way people live and work together in communities — making it not only possible but attractive for more and more independent workers to move to, say, isolated ranches in Wyoming.
Fact is though, we are herd animals by nature, and while some people have been physically moving away from their communities, as a trend it never materialized. Moreover, US population studies show we are moving closer together on the two coasts while the middle of the country is getting LESS populated.
I’d love to hear from other contractors/freelancers — how do you make this work? Do we need anything more formal than our local Starbucks when we need other bodies around us, or a place to meet a client?
June 28th, 2007 at 2:50 pm
Sounds like a trend whose time has arrived. I am finding, having been out in the independent world for a while now, that there are a lot of forms of this popping up. Sometimes it entails physical connections - which can be “real” office space or simply a regular weekly group appointment at a coffee shop - and sometimes it seems to revolve more around intellectual connections (idea generation, mutual sounding boards, co-business development efforts). I think we will see the trend take on a lot of different forms, depending on the needs and interests of different groups. And, not to be overly sensitive to the age thing BUT, I am seeing a lot of this happening with us “oldsters,” many of whom recognize the positives of some level of connection from our former corporate lives, but are enjoying the freedom now to PICK whom we want to be connected with…
June 28th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Of course we accept people over 25; I’m 31 and only getting older each day
Brad Neuberg
June 28th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
@Ann: Thanks so much for your comment and insights. Your experience is a definite asset, but I’d hardly call you an “oldster”
@Brad: thanks for stopping by, and about that last bit: wow, aren’t we all?
June 30th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
Saul Bellow used to refer to his breaks riding the subway as “taking a human bath.” I find that I prefer to exercise in a gym filled with people rather than one that is empty. There is a raw energy, a buzz, that one gets rubbing elbows with others. Martin Amis has made a point of having a separate address for his writing activities from his living space. He’s also been pretty prolific, not Stephen King prolific, but he’s hit a pretty good stride.
We need community in order to realize ourselves — thesis and anti-thesis — and all that.
Interesting video clip. Nice post.
You’ve got a damn good blog.
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[[blush]] Oh Duckwork Peslar, you are too kind.
I purchased a very small laptop not because it is easier to use than my desktop or even a larger laptop (it’s neither) but so that I would pick the thing up and take it with me. Into the world. Away from my empty house. (or, if not empty– and in the summer, it is not — full of things and people who are more likely to distract me from my work than to help me get it done…)
May 13th, 2008 at 4:00 am
[…] tip to that fabulous Canadian worthy, Duckworth Peslar, who notified me today that Taser International is marketing a personal taser with a built in MP3 […]