I grew up in Western civilization, raised on Darwin’s, survival of the fittest worldview. No matter where you are on the evolution/creation theories, his competition, bloody tooth and claw perspective has become a pillar of our cultural heritage. It has been the prevailing influence in how we’ve run our businesses. “Eat or be eaten” and “It’s a jungle out there.” Yes, it is a jungle out there. And until very recently we’ve been making the nearly fatal mistake of following… Read More »
The coworking movement has survived it's infancy, learned to walk and talk, enjoyed the freedom of childhood, and now sits somewhere in its young adult phase. The individualism of childhood fades as teens begin to run in packs, so excited to have found others like themselves. At that stage, you bond by defining what you are not, i.e. "we are not a typical office", and rebelling against difference in others, I.e. "that place is not a 'real' coworking space". At… Read More »
There are a lot of different reasons to open a coworking space, some are closer to business considerations while others are more on an idea, on the way you see the world. No matter why you decide to open a coworking space, the key to its survival is profit. We are not only talking about money when we talk about profit. Without building a community, a good product, and using marketing skills to bring clients in you will not be… Read More »
Coworking breaks down the emotional barriers (and sometimes the physical ones too) that the traditional business world put up to keep us each in our place. Isolated. After working in this vacuum for a few years, its no wonder some of the best and brightest are striking out on their own, trading a little financial security for a lot of professional freedom. Coworking provides solopreneurs with exactly what they’re looking for: a place where collaboration and community are highly valued,… Read More »
It all started as a meet-up of people coming to SXSW with an interest in Coworking. The meet-ups were held in Austin in 2008 and 2009 and organized by a local Coworking enthusiast. In 2010 Loosecubes decided to turn it into an actual event—the first ever Coworking Unconference. Liz Elam of Link Coworking helped the Loosecubes team with logistics and finding sponsors. The half-day Unconference was a huge success and drew about 120 Coworking enthusiasts from around the world. In… Read More »
The minute a group of people share a space there is going to be the challenge of getting every one to follow the community norms that are necessary to keep that space clean and make sharing it pleasant. That’s just a politically correct way of saying, “There’s always going to be some jerk who leaves dirty dishes in the community kitchen.” It is an ongoing theme on Cheezburger.com’s Monday Thru Friday Fails. It has been an issue ever since our… Read More »
If you’re still on the fence about whether or not you should attend GCUC this year, we have a few reasons for why you should: If you own a coworking space, you already know first-hand how beneficial networking can be to your business. At GCUC, you’ll have the opportunity to meet hundreds of coworking visionaries and share ideas with them and learn from them. As you already know, coworking space owners are some of the smartest, most innovative people you… Read More »
Why Coworking? Coworking is a Marketing Goldmine Coworking spaces are their own little ecosystems. In our experience at Link Coworking in Austin, TX, we find that they tend to make good money and enjoy spending it on quality products. At work, they use an arsenal of laptops, tablets, monitors, smartphones and related accessories – headphones, headsets, cases and stands. They drink great coffee, teas and bottled beverages; and enjoy convenient snacks daily. Many coworkers listen to internet radio, and most… Read More »
Coworking is already, by nature, a sustainable idea. It's part of the shared economy - which is part of the larger sustainability platform. By sharing and not duplicating resources, coworkers are quite eco-friendly just by going to work. But what if coworking spaces and members started doing more. Maybe the coworking movement can extend it's green-mindedness to other on-going practices. I'd like to propose an Unconferece Session at GCUC to explore ideas for how coworking spaces can up the ante… Read More »
Guest blogger and GCUC speaker, Don Ball, shares the lessons he has learned from being in the Coworking business with CoCo for two years. He will be participating on the "Ask a Coworking Owner" panel at GCUC. We didn't make a big deal of it, but on January 4th we celebrated CoCo's 2nd anniversary. That is, if you consider a simple handshake a celebration. (We seem to have trouble stopping to admire the view – there's just too much to… Read More »
