Hey, Melissa! Congrats on opening the clubhouse! it's especially refreshing to read that you've been so cohesive for such a long time prior to moving into a space. That's really fantastic, and I'm thrilled for you.
I'm absolutely sure that we could talk and learn lots from one another, and I'd love to do that. We use Slack here at Indy Hall, in fact. My understanding of Slack is that it's a little difficult to swap between teams right now (Indy Hall log-in v. Coworking Group log-in), though I may be building that up into something more difficult than it really is. I'll hop inside and we can pick-up from here. I was also thinking that it'd be phenomenal to have a Google Hangout at the end of every week, some forum for connecting with other tummlers and managers and leaders in real time. Realistically, we have an astounding amount of potential tools and platforms, we just have to execute and meet up! On Tuesday, September 9, 2014 12:17:34 PM UTC-4, Melissa Geissinger wrote: > > Hi Adam and everyone! > > We just opened up our coworking space last week, so I'm wearing all the > hats for now. Honestly, I can't imagine it any other way for the time > being. I love getting to know every single person in the community and > making sure I do my best to serve them and meet their needs and > expectations. Even though we just opened our space, we've had a throwing > and thriving community for nearly 3 and a half years already. > > I run the group with 3 other individuals, and we've been using a chat > service called Slack for a few months now. We used to have our regular > conversations in Facebook but that just got messy and disorganized. Now we > just opened up a "team" for the greater group and it's been awesome. Other > companies around us are even starting to adopt the platform for > inter-company communication. What if we created a Slack team for Coworking > Space management - we can create different channels (basically chat rooms) > for all kinds of topics and that can be where we go when we need real-time > answers or real-time like-minded company to keep. What do you think? > > It's an invite-only service and it's free. Check it out at > https://slack.com/. I can start up a team if you guys are interested? > > *Melissa Geissinger* > President & COO | WIMP LLC <http://www.beawimp.org> > WIMPspace: Cowork * Colearn * Coexist <http://www.wimpspace.com> > p 707 827 1334 x1 > c 707 888 0225 > > > On Tuesday, September 9, 2014 8:46:12 AM UTC-7, Adam Teterus wrote: >> >> Thanks, Will! >> >> >>> how to engender that sense of commitment and passion to go above and >>> beyond the formal job requirements and to want to be involved in the Google >>> Group (as an example of going above and beyond the strict job definition >>> more generally), given that the external motivators (income potential, >>> career development) are not overwhelming? >>> >> >> This. Exactly this. I think you hit the nail on the head, and to your >> point, there very much is a critical practice of learning to *make your >> employees care as much as you do*. Makes total sense, too, because >> that's precisely what we ought to be doing for our members: making them >> care for this community as strongly as possible, as though they themselves >> own it. In many ways, your members do own it. In just as many ways, the >> space manager does own it - *I* own it, and I do my best job possible >> when I feel that way. I just don't have my name on any legal documents. :) >> >> I have to ask, and this goes to every coworking space owner: if you have >> a hired gun running the place or helping you run the place, do you >> explicitly invite that person to participate on the Google Group? What do >> you offer your hire in terms of training or job help? >> >> On Tuesday, September 9, 2014 5:57:16 AM UTC-4, Will Bennis, Locus >> Workspace wrote: >>> >>> Adam, >>> >>> Great post and great question! >>> >>> As a space owner and space manager, I could certainly learn as much or >>> more from space managers as from space owners. And I would hope that the >>> space managers would find a happy home in this Google Group, sharing their >>> own knowledge and requesting help/insight from others. We'd all certainly >>> gain a lot, just as we'd gain a lot if there were more coworking space >>> members on this list. Which I suppose begs the question, "Where are all the >>> coworking space members?" >>> >>> I guess one answer--the less interesting answer--is that most space >>> owners are or once were space managers. Margins are low for most coworking >>> spaces and many of us run one-person or few-person operations. So we >>> managers are here, but we may use the "owner" tag since that sort of trumps >>> the "manager" tag on our business cards :). >>> >>> But of course most coworking spaces also have non-owner employees &/or >>> managers, so why aren't they more active on this list? Here's a potential >>> answer, and in this case it's the same answer as why there aren't more >>> coworking-space members on this list. It's also an answer I'm a little >>> ashamed to give, because it speaks to how far my own coworking space needs >>> to grow as a *community* and not just as a business providing shared office >>> space and events: most non-owner space-managers, as with most members, are >>> not passionately involved in the world of coworking and in learning about >>> and contributing to that world. >>> >>> The material incentives/external motivation (large potential salaries, >>> career advancement up a high ladder) are not there except in the very rare >>> cases of some of the most successful coworking spaces that can really >>> attract people ready to do their very best at the job for the financial >>> benefits, and the internal motivations that have to do with love of the >>> job, commitment to the community and doing one's best are just rare, I >>> think, for often part-time, low-paid work. I would guess non-profit >>> coworking spaces and for-profit coworking spaces that do an incredible job >>> developing a strong sense of commitment to the space and its community can >>> find space managers ready to give the job their all without the external >>> motivators (the money or career trajectory), but I think that's a rare >>> achievement. I think once that's achieved, those are the places also where >>> you find space *members* and not just managers getting involved, posting >>> answers and questions to this list, trying to build the movement more >>> generally. >>> >>> So the challenge for me, who runs a for-profit coworking space--but does >>> it in large part because he's passionate about the importance of coworking >>> spaces as a kind of human/social capital for freelancers & independent >>> workers--is how to engender that sense of commitment and passion to go >>> above and beyond the formal job requirements and to want to be involved in >>> the Google Group (as an example of going above and beyond the strict job >>> definition more generally), given that the external motivators (income >>> potential, career development) are not overwhelming? >>> >>> I'd guess this is a challenge for many of us (space owners) and the main >>> reason you don't see more non-owner space managers actively involved here. >>> >>> Will >>> >>> ---- >>> Will Bennis >>> http://en.locusworkspace.cz <http://www.locusworkspace.cz/> >>> >>> On Sunday, September 7, 2014 3:47:49 AM UTC+2, Adam Teterus wrote: >>>> >>>> Hey, all. I'm Adam. >>>> >>>> So I've been running Indy Hall as the Point Man for just shy of 3 >>>> years, looking over this place and these people on a daily basis from >>>> January of 2011 to right now (and well beyond right now, I should hope). 3 >>>> years of facilitating relationships between new and old members, >>>> introducing newcomers to our community, saying goodbye to longstanding >>>> members who came before me, bumping into very *human* obstacles and >>>> guiding members through sometimes tough social situations, always toward a >>>> place in which we're much tighter and stronger and better than where we >>>> came from. >>>> >>>> I recently had a really great conversation with a friend about what it >>>> is that I do here at Indy Hall. Given that coworking is relatively "new" >>>> in >>>> the scheme of things, and given that it's a burgeoning meta-community and >>>> industry in its own rite, she asked me who I turn to when I have >>>> questions, >>>> when I encounter something new. >>>> >>>> That's a long, winding answer. My reference points are ALL OVER the >>>> place, there's not really anyone one, particular role model. Not really a >>>> coworking space manager that I look to for parallels or direct reference. >>>> Many of you on this forum are among reference points, but there's a >>>> contingent missing from the Google Group: the person that most closely >>>> reflects me and what I do here at Indy Hall. I know that person and those >>>> people exist, but...where are they? >>>> >>>> My friend, she's a researcher type, and she points out that I've got >>>> this wealth of domain knowledge >>>> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_knowledge>, this set of skills >>>> and attributes that I reflexively understand and act on every day to keep >>>> this community up and running. Things that I often take for granted, >>>> admittedly. Things I rarely think about because I'm not talking about them >>>> out loud with other people who do it, too. >>>> >>>> She goes on to say that it sounds like I'm lacking a field >>>> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discipline_(academia)>, a network of >>>> people who share the same domain knowledge. A group of people like me. >>>> Where are those people? >>>> >>>> I know the Google Group is primarily for/frequented by owners and >>>> prospective space owners, but where do the space managers go to talk to >>>> one >>>> another? The daily, boots on the ground, hired to be here community >>>> leader - where does she go for answers? Where do they go to learn and talk >>>> and share? Hell, where do they go to debrief and unwind after a long week >>>> of weird social situations? Who teaches them how to do what they're doing? >>>> >>>> Further, for owners and prospective owners: when you're hiring for a >>>> coworking space manager, who are you looking toward and thinking, "yeah, I >>>> need *that* person"? When you do hire someone, who do you refer that >>>> person to in terms of a role model for the gig? >>>> >>>> Where are the people like me? Who are they? I want to meet 'em. >>>> >>> -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
