Whoops - in that second paragraph I meant to say "coworking," not "corking." :) I'll admit, I've never plunked down to get a sense of what corking is all about, either. UNcorking, now I've done plenty of that...
;) Susan __ Office Nomads officenomads.com On Apr 21, 10:31 am, Susan Evans <[email protected]> wrote: > I spent some time reviewing this article over the weekend and got hit > with a lot of thoughts. Thanks Venkat for writing up a thought- > provoking piece. > > That said, I am sitting here prepping my notes to respond to you (I > wrote down pages of them over the weekend), but I’m not sure if any of > the responses will resonate with you as you’ve never been to a > coworking space. As Dave said this is the critical piece of the > puzzle as far as those who participate in this listserv are likely > concerned. You may think it a trivial point – that you can still > review the model without seeing it in action. You CAN analyze it > academically and make a ton of great points about the benefits and the > pitfalls of the concept. But after a year and a half of owning and > running Office Nomads in Seattle, I’ve heard folks all too often say > things like "wow - working here went way beyond my expectations," or > “I don’t think I’ve been this productive in years,” or “I feel like > I’m on the cutting edge here,” or "thanks for giving me a great reason > to go to work," or “It’s worth every penny – you guys aren’t charging > enough for this.” None of this can truly resonate with you unless > you’ve plunked yourself down in one of the spaces around the country > and gotten a true sense of what corking is all about. > > Specifically, I think that visiting a coworking space would really > change your opinion about the value vs. cost analysis you went through > in your review, as well as the thought that you mentioned there at the > end about not being able to rely in the longterm on “economic-cultural > benefits” such as potential teaming and start-up creation out of > coworking spaces. Until you sat side-by-side with other workers and > got to really see the “accelerated serendipity” (yes, a woo-woo hippie- > like term, but when you see it you GET it) of coworking spaces. There > is value in the potential that coworking spaces bring to independent > workers. It is a risk to take to join a coworking space, but a > calculated one at that. You are taking a financial risk on a space > (only if you’re used to getting your space for “free” at cafes and at > home) but there is useful filter on that risk that I don’t think you > take enough into consideration. It’s like getting to pick the > customers who sit alongside you in the coffee shop – you get to put > yourself in a room full of potential collaborators. There is > incredible value in this. We see it nearly every day at Office Nomads > and I hear similar stories from other coworking spaces all the time. > This indicates that it is not an accidental, temporary outcome of > running a coworking space, but a vital component of the success of > these spaces in th efuture. > > I think you’d also see that coworking spaces aren’t painting > themselves into a corner by dissenting against mainstream office > spaces, but instead are part of a growing trend to make collaborative > workspaces which encourage people to work closer to home (as in ditch > their commute and spend more of that commute time doing more valuable > things like hanging out with friends and family. We're actually in > conversation about working with local transportation agencies to > spread the word about coworking locations in the Puget Sound so they > can share them with businesses who have commute trip reduction (CTR) > strategies). Coworking spaces are not the end-all, be-all of where > this new business model is heading. In fact, as you may have seen on > this list, we dialogue (almost too-)regularly about what coworking is > and what the model encompasses as it is put into action around the > world. At SXSWi this year, there was a ton of talk about what the > next step would be for coworking spaces. There is an infinite amount > of possibility – just sit down with Alex and Geoff and IndyHall for 5 > minutes and you’ll know what I’m talking about. They are the industry > leaders and are pioneering some incredible methods and tools that are > going to launch coworking into its next phase. > > What I DO think you do a great job of in your article is making us > coworking space owners think a bit. We mull over all of the points > you brought up daily, and I thank you for bringing many of them all > together in one place (with even bigger, more important thanks to the > authors of “I’m Outta Here!” for giving the book up for review in the > first place, of course. ☺). I agree with you that the value > proposition of coworking spaces has to be a serious one in this time > in order for independents to take the financial step towards joining a > space. It is similar to a gym in that respect – you know that > coworking will help the health of your worklife, but you have to take > the step to get in the space in order to get the value. These days > many independents are looking for ways to garner value from the > choices they make to move their business forward, and it is our > challenge to let them know that the value they can gain from a > coworking space is worth it. > > Again I have about a million more thoughts – but them’s the start. ☺ > > On Apr 16, 9:15 am, Venkat <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Dave: > > > Your moon metaphor is perhaps not the best one, since the greatest > > experts on the moon and how to get there and survive there are not/ > > were not the astronauts in the Apollo program :) To the extent that > > direct experience is relevant, I think I drew some fair conclusions > > based on my experience of similar setups like coops, visits to > > incubators/companies that try to foster similar atmospheres, and the > > like. But yes, some of my commentary on cultural elements is > > speculative, and I make full use of the bill of rights of book > > reviewers :). I'd be glad if some of my speculative inferences about > > the limited range of cultures on offer proved to be unfounded. > > > But there ARE a lot of elements in the coworking conversation that > > yield to armchair analysis. Economics and relation to other 'future of > > work' trends being among them, and I hope to hear some interesting > > conversations around those elements. > > > As for me personally, it is pretty darn clear I can't afford coworking > > on my current budget. But I am hoping something cheaper happens in > > Pentagon City or the Crystal City area once commercial real estate > > costs start coming down. I personally don't have the bandwidth to try > > and start anything, though I may try something simple in the common > > areas of the new apartment building I am moving to next month (nearish > > Crystal City, in Arlington, VA). > > > Venkat > > > On Apr 16, 8:36 am, Dave Troy <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Venkat, > > > > You make some very interesting points, however, the most important > > > thing you state is this: > > > "Though I haven’t yet managed to visit an actual space..." > > > > In this regard, your article has a speculative air -- like a Jules > > > Verne novel wondering about what the moon might be like, and what it > > > should be like if the theories are correct. > > > > I'd also argue that coworking has no particular interest in "winning," > > > so the harping on a 3:1 odds against it becoming "the market leader" > > > is a moot point (and obviously speculative since you haven't observed > > > it first hand). It's a model and it works for some folks. > > > > Books may not necessarily help the cause. You are right to write a > > > review of a book; it is a physical object that tries to stand on its > > > own, and a review is entitled to do the same. However, a book about > > > coworking that doesn't afford an opportunity to actually experience > > > coworking is arguably as lacking as an essay critiquing the coworking > > > model written by someone who has no first hand experience with it. > > > > Towards that end, I reiterate: come to Baltimore and cowork. And visit > > > one of the other sites. Then write about the model once you have some > > > experience with it. > > > > Also, I'm very interested in helping you advance coworking initiatives > > > in DC and would suggest that actions speak louder than words -- even > > > well crafted and intelligent ones. > > > > Thanks for your interest and enthusiasm -- it's the fuel that will > > > drive us all forward. :) > > > > Best, > > > Dave --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
