Working in the UnOffice: A Guide to Coworking

An all-around guidebook to coworking.This packed edition chronicles the
rise of coworking and the social and economic trends making it possible. Readers learn
how to find and select the perfect space and master the art of adjusting to collaborative
environments. Discover the secrets to "accelerated serendipity" as members and founders
recount their experiences of how coworking became a driving force behind critical
business decisions and breakthroughs.
“Part anecdotal narrative, part practical, how-to guidebook, this book has amassed tips and the
shared wisdom of coworkers all over the country on making the most of a collaborative
environment to spark ideas and enhance productivity. With this illuminating and no-nonsense take
on coworking, you’ll get inspired to change how you work.”
-- Campbell McKellar, CEO, Loosecubes
About
Working in
the UnOffice:
A Guide to
Coworking
Coworking
For more info: www.CoworkingGuide.com
Only $4.99!
Available
on Amazon,
iTunes, and
Barnes &
Noble for
your Kindle,
Nook, and
iPad.
BUILD ENTREPRENEURIAL
MUSCLE.
Over 300 pages of straight talk,
tips, and strategies for improving
your business or organization in
collaborative workspaces.
FIND PROOF OF IMPACT
AND GET INSPIRED.
More than 100 pages of
interviews with 33 coworking
members.
GET INSIDER ADVICE.
19 founders of spaces like The
Hub, Indy Hall, NextSpace, and
Affinity Lab give their candid
views on working independently
with others.
Foreword by Campbell McKellar, CEO, Loosecubes
PREFACE: Coworking - Triumph of the Commons
1: Sharing How We Work & Thinking Outside the Space
The Making of the Coworking ‘Perfect Storm’- Discussion of trends contributing to the rising
popularity of coworking (e.g. shift to a ‘sharing economy’ and collaborative consumption; rise of
telecommuting, home-based businesses; cloud computing; and the science of group innovation).
2: Coworking Deconstructed
Free, Un-tethered— but Alone- Discussion of the big drawbacks of independent working:
Isolation, lack of productivity, and distractions-- and how it stifles creativity and productivity.
Ditch the Dash, Rev Up a Revolution– Coworking Begins- Discussion of the movement’s origins,
how it evolved and is defined today, and why it's regarded as the future of work.
Coworking’s Core Values- Collaboration, Community, Sustainability, Openness, Accessibility (with
real-life examples from coworking space founders and members illustrating each in action).
State of the [Coworking] Nation- Summary of coworking stats from the latest surveys and studies.
3: Making the Leap!
What’s So Great About Where You Work?- The good, the bad, and the ugly of your workspace
options, mainly: home offices, coffee shops, serviced offices, and coworking spaces (with insights
from coworking space founders and members discussing each environment).
Finding a Coworking Space- Discussion of directories and portals, such as Loosecubes.com.
Selecting and Test-Driving the Right Coworking Space- Critical factors for every prospective
coworker to consider, such as: #1 Type of Community (e.g. incubators, D-I-Y/hacker spaces,
industry-specific, etc.); #2 Industry Requirements (fields that thrive in spaces); #3 Membership
Costs and Plans; #4 Membership Turnover; #5 Stability of the Coworking Space; #6 Access to
Multiple Locations; #7 Diversity of the Community; and #8 Amenities and Programming.
4: Recalibrating Your Business for Coworking!
Coworkers share tips and strategies on what to do during your first 1-3 months:
The New Kid on the Block- Break the ice; Let socialization happen naturally; Master the art of the
polite deflection; Mingle; Expect a drop in productivity levels during the first month; Get the lay
of the land to master the open floor plan; Get with the program; Conserve energy and supplies.
Playing Well With Others- Don’t be a space hog; Follow common courtesies; Lend a hand; Get
involved; Watch out for coworking space politics; Promote others.
Getting in the Groove- Work on the cloud; Organize events; Check out the Coworking Visa;
Collaborate; Get a work buddy; Invest in a good pair of headphones; Observe when there are
downtimes and busy periods; Be more aware of who’s around you when working on sensitive
info; Update your address; Rethink your company dynamics.
Tools of the Coworker Trade- Recommended apps and tools for coworkers.
Inside ‘Working in the UnOffice’: HIGHLIGHTS
PROOF of IMPACT
Joey Coleman, founder of Design
Symphony, member of Affinity Lab
“Within three months of getting a desk
at Affinity Lab, I had been referred
business by my coworkers that covered
my rent for the first year. Dozens of
Affinity Lab member companies have
become clients of mine, creating direct
revenue opportunities. I’ve received
approximately $50,000 in direct
revenues from Affinity Lab members
and another $100,000+ in referrals.”
Lisa Van Damme, Performance Impact,
member of Boulder Digital Arts
“With a home office, I felt compelled
to work at all hours of the day and
night. As soon as I moved to my
coworking office, I gained much better
control over my hours and better
work/life balance. I certainly feel
happier in my job now that I have my
coworking space.”
Phil Hughes, co-founder of Clustered
Systems, former member of TechShop
“We started with an idea that neither
of us had much experience with nor
the experience to implement. That's
really where TechShop helped because
they had all the tools. We could build
quick prototypes and try something out
with immediate feedback. If we had
done that at a regular machine shop, it
would have cost us over $100,000.”
Jason Barnett, director of The UpTake,
member of CoCo
“Organized coworking environments
are ideal workplaces for modern
organizations that are interested in
partnerships, collaborations, and a
healthy work environment.”
Lisa S. Malul, director of Action
Alliance for Children, member of The
Hub Bay Area
“I think that [coworking offers] a
tremendous savings in overhead for
almost any organization. There are
reasons for large organizations to stay
in their own independent spaces, but I
think for smaller organizations that
need to be very nimble and meet many
changing financial demands, I think
that coworking is a great solution.”
For more info: www.CoworkingGuide.com
5: Getting the Most Out of Coworking
Coworkers offer advice for optimizing the coworking experience through interaction and
participation:
Interact - Be interested in others and get to know people; Turn to your community; When you
have a bad day, talk it out with a member; Use your coworking space as a testing ground for
ideas; Feed off the energy of people around you; Establish personal and business
relationships; Participate in community group projects and outside user groups.
Share- Share ideas; Share contacts; Share expertise; Share problems.
Play- Take a break and laugh; Eat, drink, and be merry; Share interests and hobbies.
Participate- Brown bag lunches; Networking nights (or days); Seminars and workshops; Bar
camps, hacker nights, and forums; Community events; Social events.
Maximize Your Space- You don’t have to work at your coworking space every day; Make the
most of the space even if you aren’t working there; Accept that there are good and bad days;
Get to know your coworking space founders; Take an active role in designing the coworking
space experience; If someone or something bothers you, speak up.
Enhance Productivity, Creativity, and Serendipity - Discipline yourself against distraction; Court
creative sparks by engaging in conversations; Practice filtered hearing; Don’t ditch the office
structure completely.
Use Collaborative-Friendly Resources- List of organizations that focus on helping startups and
entrepreneurs, either with financing or business development.
Create Meetup Groups- Coworking creates community. Leverage that sense of community into
a Meetup group to enhance your credibility.
Plan Your Exit Strategies - It’s sometimes inevitable. Members have had to leave their
coworking space because they couldn’t drum up enough clients to justify the membership
costs, or because they were so successful they outgrew the space and needed to relocate to
accommodate their growth (includes advice from people who have ‘graduated’ from their
respective spaces and how they maintain ties as virtual members).
Epilogue: Coworking as the Future of Work?
Proof of Impact: 33 coworking members interviewed
Movers & Shakers: 19 space founders interviewed
Alex Hillman, co-founder of Indy Hall
“[Coworking] has allowed us to form
relationships before a transaction takes
place. I get to know my coworkers based
on what they are interested in, what they
do/don’t do well. Then, when we're
working together it's more enjoyable
because we have common interests beyond
the money at the end of the rainbow.”
Jeff Shiau, director, The Hub Bay Area
“You’re not just saving on rent, but you’re
also able to make connections, to build a
community around your ideas at a creative
level that's beyond what you would be
able to do working by yourself.”
Chase Granberry, founder of Authority
Labs, member of Gangplank
“With issues, it all flushes out quicker
through discussion and collaboration rather
than trying to figure it out on your own.”
Angel Kwiatkowski, founder of Cohere
“Members’ work has improved by
coworking because they can now
outsource tasks to one another. There's
probably a member who loves to do what
you hate! I've seen a web architect
subcontract out proposal writing to a
writer, and a writer subcontract out
graphics to a designer.”
Anna Thomas, Loosecubes, former member
of New Work City
“Working among a diverse group of
independent professionals was invaluable.
There were numerous times when we were
able to connect with a neighbor who
provided insight on our product that we
wouldn’t have received otherwise.”
Suzanne Akin, founder of Akinz, former
member of Cohere
“One of the hardest things to get used to is
to have to constantly schedule work to
avoid ups and downs in my workflow. I
would have a big down cycle and would
simply put the word out to my community
that I needed work and it never failed that
something would end up on my to-do list.”
Mike Muldoon, founder of Infrno.net,
member of NextSpace
“Need a cable for a ten-minute project?
Somebody’s got it, and you don’t have to
burn half a day spending $40 at
OfficeMax for a part you’ll never use
again. Whatever your problem is, there is
probably somebody with help to give.”
Inside ‘Working in the UnOffice’: HIGHLIGHTS
For more info: www.CoworkingGuide.com
Target Audience:A book for freelancers,
startups, small businesses and organizations, and
telecommuters
“A raucous chorus of insights and experiences about getting out of the work rut. Hear
people's raves, confessions, and straight talk on working better.”
PRESS
Change How You Work
PRESS
The Next Web
“Working in the
UnOffice: The Lonely
Planet of Coworking
Guidebooks”
26 September 2011
Fast Company
“How to Get a Job in
America”
27 September 2011
Deskmag
“Five Must-Read Books
About Coworking”
2 October 2011
PRESS
Shareable magazine
“A Feng Shui Checklist
for Coworking and
Collaborative
Workspaces”
3 October 2011
GigaOM
“What’s next for
coworking? Space
founders and users
weigh!in”
10 October 2011
CNN Money
“What’s next for
coworking? Space
founders and users
weigh!in”
10 October 2011
Work Awesome
“Coworking: Sharing
How We Work”
19 October 2011
Deskmag
“Home Office, Coffee
Shop or Coworking
Space? A Comparison”
21 October 2011
Freelance Switch
“How Freelancers Can
Network Better at
Coworking Spaces”
1 November 2011
For more info:
CoworkingGuide.com
Available
on Amazon,
iTunes, and
Barnes &
Noble for
your Kindle,
Nook, and
iPad.

Working in the
“UnOffice”
A Guide to Coworking for
Indie Workers, Small
Businesses, and Nonprofits
Genevieve V. DeGuzman and Andrew I. Tang
A Night Owls PressBook
Copyright © 2011 by Genevieve V. DeGuzman and Andrew I. Tang
All rights reserved worldwide.
Night Owls Press
www.nightowlspress.com
San Francisco, CA 94122, U.S.A.
Cover design by Michael Kostuchenko
First Edition August 2011
Practice good karma! No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in
any printed or electronic form without the written permission of the publisher, except by
reviewers who may quote brief excerpts in connection with a review. You can reach Night
Owls Press at admin@nightowlspress.com.
Much of this publication is based on personal experience and anecdotal evidence shared
by the participants interviewed. Where statistical data or facts are cited, the authors have
made  every reasonable  attempt  to  achieve  complete  accuracy of  the  content  and  to
reference sources in the endnotes. Readers should use the recommendations and advice
cited in the book as they see fit and at their own risk. Readers’ particular situations may
not be exactly suited to the examples illustrated here; they should adjust their use of the
information and recommendations, accordingly.
Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the
property of  their  respective  owners,  and  are  used  only for  reference  and  editorial
purposes. There is no implied endorsement if we use one of these terms.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
DeGuzman, Genevieve V. and Tang, Andrew I.
Working in the UnOffice – A guide to coworking for indie workers, small businesses, and
nonprofits/ Genevieve V. DeGuzman, Andrew I. Tang
p. cm.
E-book ISBN-13: 9781937645007
2011937204
About Night Owls Press
Night Owls Press  is an editorial services  and  publishing company based in San
Francisco, CA. We work with small businesses, startups, and nonprofits  around
the  world  to  produce e-books, reports, feature articles, web  content, and  other
creative and analytical materials.
Get in touch: editor@nightowlspress.comGet more info:
www.nightowlspress.comRead our blog: http://www.nightowlspress.com/blog/
Follow us: www.twitter.com/nightowlspressBecome a fan: www.facebook.com/
nightowlspresscom
About the Authors
After getting a case of cabin fever working on their own, Genevieve and Andrew
became  dazzled  with  the  concept  of  coworking. Share  resources!  End  the
isolation!  Spark  collaboration! They set  out  to  unravel  the  hype,  collecting
stories from across the coworking universe. Working in the UnOffice is the result
of that investigation.
Genevieve  V. DeGuzmanis  the lead  writer/editor for Night Owls  Press. She
enjoys  working  with  small  businesses  and  nonprofits  to  communicate  their
visions  and  ideas  to  the  world.  In  a  former life,  she  worked  as  an  economic
development researcher for international organizations and lived and traveled in
Asia  for  several  years,  writing  on  issues  related  to  improving  the  business
environment, sparking economic growth, and  helping micro-entrepreneurs. She
dreams  of  starting  a  shared  space  in  a  developing  country hot  spot  to  bring
together NGO and international development workers with local entrepreneurs.
Andrew  I.  Tang is  the  production  editor  and  business  maven  behind  Night
Owls Press. A long-time resident of San Francisco, he has worked on a number of
media start-ups  and digital ventures. Before that, Andrew was a senior portfolio
manager for Mellon Capital Management and Barclays Global Investors. He's an
avid hiker and runner (more  than 100  marathons  completed), veteran traveler
(more than 50 countries visited), and has  lived in Malaysia, the U.K. and briefly
in Argentina and  Mexico. Andrew is  currently putting together a book  on his
experiences  over his  900  km trek  on  the  Camino  de  Santiago  from France  to
Spain.
To  the  freelancers,  small  businesses,  and  organizations
around  the  world  that  continue  to  inspire  us  with  their
entrepreneurial zeal and creative visions.
Contents
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Working in the UnOffice: A Guide to Coworking for Indie Workers, Small Businesses, and Nonprofits
iv
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Working in the UnOffice: A Guide to Coworking for Indie Workers, Small Businesses, and Nonprofits
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1
Foreword
Today, independents and entrepreneurs are becoming more connected than ever
before. Digital technology enables us to work with team members located around
the  world.  We  interact  with  our  colleagues  over  e-mail,  Skype,  and  social
networking. We often have the option of flexible and remote work arrangements
that allow us to choose our hours and work where we want. We rarely work for a
single  company for our entire  lives  anymore, and  often reinvent ourselves  with
multiple  careers,  making  networking  more  crucial  than  ever.  But  despite  this
increasing connectedness, independents, startups, and small businesses, in large
part, still work in isolation.
Work has changed. It’s time for the office to catch up.
Back  in  2009,  I  arranged  to  work  remotely for  several  months  in  Northern
Maine. I’d been able to  escape New York City for a bit while maintaining my job
and salary. Although I  was equipped with the technology to do my job effectively
hundreds  of  miles  away from the  office, I  struggled  to  be  productive. I  started
dreaming  of  being  in  a  Wi-Fi-equipped  art  studio  where  I  could  plug  in
occasionally and get my work done, while still relishing the perks of my remote
set-up.
I  wanted to be free to travel, to work on my own terms, and to  meet interesting
people  along the way. So, I  set out to  create Loosecubes, a platform that would
enable me to do all of these things.
When  I  returned  to  New  York,  I  joined New  Work  City,  New  York’s  first
community  coworking  space.  Aside  from  the  obvious  benefits  of  increased
productivity,  shared  amenities,  and  economies  of  scale,  what  was  most
compelling about coworking to  me  was  the  community around it. In a city like
New York  where  the  pace  of  life  can make  it difficult to  form lasting personal
connections,  I  was  amazed  to  see  that  the  group  of  independents  and
entrepreneurs at New Work City were creating thriving friendships, partnerships,
and businesses.
What’s  more,  I  learned  that  New  Work  City wasn’t  the  only place  this  was
happening. All over the world, coworking spaces of all shapes and sizes were also
embracing communities born out of working together, in a way that hadn’t been
organized in the past.
Just over one year later our community of shared workspaces on Loosecubeshas
grown to over 2,000 worldwide. And while the physical spaces look different, the
common thread that binds  them is the spirit of collaboration, camaraderie, and
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community. Coworkers across the globe are meeting every day and sharing ideas,
insights, and support with each other as we work to build our own businesses.
Loosecubeshad the honor of hosting the first Coworking Unconferencein March
of  this  year.  And  more  than  ever  before,  it  was  evident  that  the  community
behind  the  coworking movement is  strong and  growing fast. As  the  coworking
movement  gains  momentum,  expands,  and  redefines  the  traditional  office
environment, I  hope our community continues to  embrace its  potential to  lead
something that changes the world for the better. As the group becomes more and
more  organized,  it’s  crucial  that we  stay true  to  the  ideals  of  what  coworking
really means  to  us. It’s  a serious  responsibility, and  my team and  I  couldn’t be
more thrilled to be taking on the challenge.
For those  who  are  still strangers  to  shared workspaces,  exploring the world  of
coworking  in  all  its  different forms  can sometimes  feel  like  spelunking in the
dark. As a professional who’s gone through the gamut of options in the past and
outgrown  working  at  home,  staring  at  cubical  walls,  and  fighting  for  power
outlets at cafés— I know how hard it can be to find the right place out there and
make that transition.
Working  in  the  UnOffice:  A  Guide  to  Coworking works  like  a nifty passport.
Read  it  and  travel  to  coworking spaces  across  the  country and  meet  over 30
independents, small businesses, and nonprofits like you who are thriving because
of  coworking.  Part  anecdotal  narrative,  part  practical,  how-to  guidebook,  this
book has amassed tips and the shared wisdom of coworkers all over the country
on  selecting  a  space,  getting  settled,  and  making  the  most  of  a  collaborative
environment to spark ideas and enhance productivity. With this illuminating and
no-nonsense take on coworking, you’ll get inspired to change how you work.
Campbell McKellar
Founder & CEO of Loosecubes
August 2011
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Preface
Coworking: The Triumph of the Commons
BACK in 2009,  when the  Nobel  Prize  in Economics  was  awarded  to
Elinor Ostrom, it gave credence to  a simple  idea we’ve all known as kids
but often forget as we get older and enter the real world: Sharing is good.
In her decades of research, Ostrom wrote about things that we share, such
as collective resources  like our oceans  and forests, infrastructure like our
roads and public transportation, and services like our public libraries and
community  centers—  suggesting  that  a  “commons”-based  society  was
more efficient.
She’s  right. There is  no  tragedy of  the commons. The  debate  about who
was  best qualified  to  manage  the  resources  of  society—  the  state  or the
market— always  seemed too simplistic. Drawing on Ostrom’s  ideas, some
say that perhaps the best steward is, in fact, us. Yes, folks. We the people.
Many of  the  solutions  to  issues  we  face  today—  such  as  reducing  our
environmental  impact on  the  planet  or figuring  out  the  complexities  of
ownership  in  the  digital  age—  can  be  traced  to  the  fundamentals  of
collaboration and sharing.
In many ways, Ostrom’s ideas  are no  longer revolutionary notions. That’s
because we’ve been moving in this direction for years with the emergence
of companies and organizations that allow us to share, barter, or exchange
goods  and  services.  Today,  the  self-interested  capitalist  sentiment  of
“every man for himself”seems to ring false and hollow. What makes more
sense for creative thinkers, inventors, writers, artists, and entrepreneurs is
this:  innovation and  growth are  more  likely to  come  from collaboration
and  the  free  flow  and  sharing of  ideas,  not from lone  efforts.  As  more
people start businesses and personal projects, or telecommute and opt for
flexible arrangements with their employers, this collaborative movement is
encompassing how we work.
You’re Wondering About Coworking
On first glance, coworking seems  like the  perfect set-up  for startups  and
freelancers,  small  organizations,  and  the  remote  worker:  join  a
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collaborative  or shared  workspace  to  save  money,  beat  the  doldrums  of
isolation, and collaborate with other organizations and startups.
But it’s  the promise of innovation and community that makes  coworking
most  appealing.  Behavioral  studies  have  long  shown  that  sharing  and
collaboration  can  lead  to  instances  of  creativity and  innovation  in  the
workplace.  It  only makes  sense  that organizations  and  small  businesses
find that they gain more from working together, rather than alone. This
type  of  collaborative  working  doesn’t  mean  you  surrender  your
independence and lose your individuality, but instead share resources and
space—  and  in  the  process  find  common ground  with each  other,  lend
expertise, and share ideas.
Still, many organizations are puzzled at how surrendering their autonomy
(if they owned or rented  their own offices) or paying for a space (if they
worked  from home) would lead  to  any benefits. “How would  coworking
expand my bottom line or inspire me to innovate?”
For the  uninitiated,  coworking  isn’t  an  easy sell.  We  understand.  As  a
small business ourselves, we started test-driving a few coworking spaces in
the San Francisco Bay Area— but couldn’t make up our minds. We thought
about the money we could save  by continuing to  work at home—  and all
the other typical excuses. And yet we were torn because we also felt drawn
to the dynamic layouts of the spaces we saw: people working at shared and
cloistered  tables,  the  bright  colors,  and  the  cool  décor.  Most  of  all,  we
loved the energy and the hum: people milling about, talking excitedly with
each other while  swiveling in their chairs  from one desk to  another. Oh,
and the free coffee on tap, of course.
And then we realized: maybe there were other businesses and freelancers
out there with the same dilemma, curious but still hesitant about making
the leap— possibly missing out on an amazing opportunity. And so a book
project was born.
Why We Need a Guidebook
Coworking spaces are popping up everywhere left and right it seems. The
latest estimates from Deskmag, for example, put the count at 820 spaces
worldwide, with 380 in the U.S. and  Canada.1
Loosecubescounts 2,000
shared spaces and offices in its directory of offerings around the world. It
shows  the  enormous  enthusiasm  and  faith  in  the  idea.  In  this  rich
environment  of  options,  you  are  faced  with  limitless  possibilities  to
flourish— but it can be difficult to make the right choices.
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There are questions to consider, such as:
How can I tell whether a space is right for me?
How do  I make  the  transition  from  my  home  or  a  conventional  office
space to a shared or collaborative workspace?
Once I’m in, how can  I leverage the space—  the community– in  making
my business or organization better?
Get the answers to these questions (and more!) inside this book.
What You’ll Get
We did our research. We talked to coworking members across the country,
as  well  as  to  space  founders  and  reps,  and  their  collective  stories  and
insights have been distilled into this handy volume. This book is built from
the  experiences  of  small businesses  and organizations  tackling the  same
questions above.People like you.
We’ve written a book that is  both a dissection and analysis of  coworking
trends and its rising popularity (Chapters 1-2), as well as a guidebook and
narrative chronicle from people in the coworking trenches (Chapters 3-5).
We’ve  set out  to  help  you find  and  select the  right space, listing all the
critical  factors  to  consider  when  deciding  which  space  best  suits  your
needs (Chapter 3).
Then,  once  you’ve  found  your space, learn the  ropes  to  adjusting to  the
coworking environment and master the art of networking among the mix
of  personalities  (Chapter  4).  You’ll  find  tips  and  tricks  for  navigating
shared  spaces  (Chapter  5)—  measured  steps  to  take  advantage  of  the
shared  facilities,  strategies  to  access  your  community of  entrepreneurs,
and  optimum ways  to  collaborate  within and across  fields—  all to  make
your  small  business  or  organization  thrive.  We’ve  also  put  together  an
annotated  list  of  collaborative  tools  and  resources  to  enhance  your
productivity and workflow as an independent worker (Chapters 4 and 5).
What we’re most proud of is the collection of profiles (see the “PROOF of
IMPACT: Interviews” and “MOVERS and SHAKERS: Interviews” sections
at the end of the book) that cover the candid  conversations we had  with
members and former members, as well as with the founders of coworking
spaces across the country.
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The community of entrepreneurs that makes up a coworking space largely
determines the essence of that space— and so it is also with this book. The
33 businesses and organizations we talked to range from the usual digital
technology  and  graphic  design  freelancers  that  flock  to  coworking  in
droves, to  the more  unusual inventors, innovation consultants, and  even
telecommuters  working  remotely for  corporations.  Some  of  them have
been in business for years, with polished operations and venture capital to
boot. Others are plucky, bootstrapped shops, or people throwing their hats
into  the  ring  as  “accidental  entrepreneurs”  because  of  the  recession—
tough folks who are freelancing and consulting on their own.
The debate on how to define a coworking space is an intense one. We know
there  are  “variations  on  a  theme”  when  it  comes  to  the  concept  of
coworking, so  we  decided to  take a flexible  approach and  cast the widest
net  possible  when  choosing  and  interviewing  the  different  shared  and
collaborative spaces available. The 19 coworking spaces we talked to range
from  more  community-oriented  spaces  like  Gangplank that  balk  at
charging  members  (membership  plans  don’t  exist  there)  and  opt  for
“social  capital”  as  its  currency,  to  spaces  with  more  structured
environments  for  established  organizations  like Affinity  Laband
ThinkSpace.  Some  spaces  featured  here  offer  welding  tables  and  laser
cutters instead of your usual desks and copiers (TechShop), and some have
multiple locations (The Hub, NextSpace, and pariSoma). You’ll also  hear
from the most visible coworking advocates out there today, including Indy
Hall’s  Alex  Hillman,  Gangplank’s  Derek  Neighbors  and  Jade  Meskill,
Cohere’s Angel Kwiatkowski, and others.
Why This Book is Different
To  our knowledge, this book is one of the first of its kind written from the
perspective  of  the  very people  who  stand  to  benefit  from  coworking—
small businesses  and organizations  looking for better ways  to  work. Like
many of  you, we’re  researching  our options  of  where  to  work,  love  our
independence, but also tire of working in a vacuum— and, of course, can’t
afford  to  break the bank. These considerations  have shaped  our focus  in
writing this book. Second, from what we’ve seen, the available publications
out there are somewhat limited, generally written by individual spaces that
focus  exclusively on their own membership pool (for a list of  additional
publications  on  coworking,  see  “Where  can  I  find  out  more  about
coworking?” in the FAQsection).
In  contrast,  the  stories  and  insights  here  are  sourced  from  across  the
coworking  spectrum of  members  working  in  some  of  the  more  famous
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spaces  in  the  coworking  circuit and  those  working in quirky,  less  wellknown  spaces.  We  offer  a  lively cross-section  of  members  and  former
members, founders  and  space  reps  pulled  from the  variety of  coworking
spaces and shared offices across the country.
Couched  in this  wonderful diversity, you’ll see how much coworking is  a
part of their inspiring stories, regardless  of their location, background, or
size. Coworking is so  much more than a backdrop, and for many people,
it’s the driving force behind critical business decisions and breakthroughs.
Writing this book has been a fulfilling project and one we hope will add to
the dialogue on the shifting state of work today, of which coworking is very
much a game-changing catalyst. Our hope is  that after reading this book,
you’ll be better able to consider your options, and find out if coworking is
really right for you.
Acknowledgments
When  we  launched  this  project  in  early  2011,  we  didn’t  realize  how
daunting a task it would be to collect and shape the stories from coworkers
and coworking advocates around the country.
First,  our heartfelt  thanks  go  to  the  people  who  are  making  coworking
happen every single  day.  Your stories  of  collaboration  and  “accelerated
serendipity” are  truly an  inspiration. Getting  to  know  you—  coworking
members  and advocates  alike— we felt a strong kinship. We all share the
same  aspirations  for our work. We all share  the same  powerful  goals  to
make  our  passions  a  reality. Your  insights  and  straight  talk  on
entrepreneurship and living one’s passions are lessons we’ll take to heart.
In the spirit of  coworking, the  editorial  production of  this  book was  the
result of  the collaborative  efforts  of  our in-house  editorial  staff  and  two
wonderful people in particular. We tip our hats to them. Roll credits!
Rheea  Hermoso-Prudente provided  extensive  research,  writing, and
editing  assistance  throughout  this  book.  From our  experience  working
with freelance editors, Rheea is in a class of her own, with a great eye for
detail  and  tone.  She  is  an  established  freelance  writer  and  editor,
contributing  articles  for Entrepreneurand Smart  Parenting magazines
and working in their Special Publishing department. Rheea also manages
the editorial content for Lucerne Luxe, a luxury watch magazine. She also
writes for her popular parenting blog, Rainy Days and Mom Days.
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Charlene Davisassisted us in our field research— contacting and talking
to dozens of coworking space members across the country, managing time
zones  and  juggling schedules.  Charlene  is  also  an experienced  freelance
writer (The Write Essentials), writing on topics related to startup ventures,
e-commerce, retail, and food. Her feature articles have been published in
Entrepreneurand Her  Magazine(New Zealand), as well as in
WashingtonPost.com, and MSNBC.com. She  has  published  several books
with Entrepreneur Press.
Finally,  we  would  like  to  thank  our  families  and  friends  for  their
unflappable  support  and  confidence  in  our  venture  and  in  this  book
project.
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ONE:  Sharing  How  We  Work  and
Thinking Outside the Space
GOODBYE, office.  Goodbye,  kitchen  table.  Goodbye,  Starbucks  coffee
counter. For small  businesses  and  organizations,  as  well as  indie  workers  and
freelancers, coworking is  developing into  a real viable  option for getting things
done. In the past, when identifying places  to  work, independent workers, small
businesses, and organizations  often had to choose between several scenarios, all
with their attendant advantages and disadvantages: working from home; working
from a coffee shop, library, or other public venue; or leasing an executive suite or
other commercial space.
Well, enter coworking. At its most basic level, coworking is the phenomenon of
workers coming together in a shared or collaborative workspace for one or more
of  these  reasons:  to  reduce  costs  by having shared  facilities  and  equipment,  to
access a community of fellow entrepreneurs, and to seek out collaboration within
and  across  fields.  In  fact,  coworking  makes  the  traditional  office  set-up  seem
downright  antiquated  and  quaint,  something  that  belongs  more  in  a museum
exhibit and is sorely out of touch with today’s creative and dynamic workforce.
Coworking spaces  offer an exciting alternative for people  longing to  escape the
confines  of  their cubicle walls, the  isolation and distractions of working solo  at
home, or the  inconveniences of public venues. The benefits  and cost-savings  in
productivity  and  overall  happiness  and  well-being  that  can  be  reaped  from
coworking  are  also  potentially  huge.  Enthusiasm  and  creativity  become
contagious and multiply when you diversify your work environment with people
from  different  fields  or  backgrounds.  At  coworking  spaces,  the  chances  of
“accelerated serendipity”
2
occurring—  those  “Eureka!” moments  that take  place
during the most unexpected turns—  are greater than in any other environment.
Members  pass  each  other  during  the  day,  conversations  get  going,  and
miraculously idea-fusion  happens  with  everyone  benefitting  from  the  shared
thinking and brainstorming.
So what gives coworking its traction and charm for thousands of workers around
the world?
The Making of the Coworking ‘Perfect Storm’
There are several social and economic trends that are making coworking an ideal
option for independent workers, small businesses, and  organizations.  All these
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factors  and  opportunities  have  come  together  in  what  experts  like  to  call  a
“perfect storm” for the growing fascination with coworking:
#1 Shift Toward a ‘Sharing Economy’
#2 Home  is  Where  the  Work  is:  Rise  of  the  Telecommuter  and  Home-based
Businesses
#3 Digital Workers on the Cloud
#4 Where Good Ideas Come From: Working with Others
#1 Shift Toward a ‘Sharing Economy’
Coworking  is  at the  heart of  the  new trend  toward  sharing  and  “collaborative
consumption”. Those who  grew up with the children’s show Sesame Street may
remember  the  episode  with  the  Geefle  and  the  Gonk  who  wanted  to  eat
nectarines  growing  on  a  tree.  The  Gonk  was  too  short  to  reach the  fruit;  the
Geefle  could  reach  them,  but  couldn’t  bend  his  arms  to  feed  himself.  So  they
decided  that the Geefle would  pick the fruit and the Gonk would  feed him half.
Happy with the way things worked out, they decided  to keep  the system. “Let’s
call  it  cooperation,”  says  the  Gonk.  “No,”  pipes  up  the  Geefle.  “Let’s  call  it
Shirley!”
3
Sharing—  be  it  goods,  time,  expertise,  or  even  responsibilities  to  acquire
nectarines— isn’t anything new. These days, it just goes by names more highbrow
than  “Shirley”.  And  it’s  changing  the  way we  spend,  interact,  work,  and  live.
Welcome to the new sharing economy.
Your Car, My Couch— A New Way We Share
Admittedly, sharing may not be a virtue one readily owns up to. But chances are,
you have a Facebook account, and you’ve uploaded pictures of your newest baby
— human or otherwise— told your friends what you had for breakfast and posted
a link for one of  your current causes on your wall. What is that, if  not sharing?
And  it’s  that online  sharing that’s  making it  easier for people  to  share  offline,
experts at Latitude Researchhave found.
4
Just what do people share offline? Almost anything. If you have a spare room, for
example, you can allow a weary traveler to crash in it for a few nights, either for
free  (CouchSurfing)  or  for  a  fee  (AirBnb,  Crashpadder).  Cars  can  also  be
borrowed  or shared  (ZipCar, RelayRides).  Rooms  and  zooms  are  not the  only
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things up for sharing these days; skills, time, garden space, power tools, clothes,
and other “stuff” are also swapped, bartered, shared, or given away. It’s all part of
a rising culture and economy around a trend called “collaborative consumption”.
According to  researchers, the  mindset of collaborative consumption veers away
from owning something to having easy access to it.
5
It’s akin to say, being able to
drive  a car when you need  to, without the  actual burden of  ownership, such as
paying  for  maintenance  and  insurance.  The  growing  trend  of  prioritizing
experiences over material possessions and achieving a work-life balance has also
shifted our focus away from ownership. In fact, Lisa Gansky, author of The Mesh:
Why  the  Future  of  Business  is  Sharing,  predicts  that  saving  money will  be
regarded as the norm, and that the simplification of our lives and getting off the
consumer treadmill will make people happier.
Collaborative consumption marketplaces are popping up everywhere: media, car
rental,  lodging,  staffing,  textbooks,  apparel,  custom graphic  design,  and  even
finance. And they are big.
Take Groupon’s success. Harnessed  on the power of collaborative consumption,
Groupon  grew  into  a  collective  buying  phenomenon  based  around  “tipping
points” or participant thresholds  (the  deal is only “on” if enough people  buy)—
uniting buyers  and  sellers  in a collaborative  fashion,  saving  customers  money,
and generating revenue for many participating businesses. For local businesses,
Groupon  turned  traditional  advertising  methods  upside  down  by  letting
merchants pay only for real results— when a customer comes in and actually buys
a  product  or pays  for  a  service.  Like  many businesses,  Groupon  is  riding the
collaborative consumption wave. In November 2010, Groupon defiantly ducked a
$6 billion buyout offer from Google, opting to  stay independent and continue to
raise its  own valuation through venture investments.
6
 Many insiders  have  said
that Groupon’s quirky, social media-fueled style built on the creative backs of its
sales  and  editorial  forces—  a  decidedly  people-oriented,  collaborative  work
environment— would have clashed with the corporate culture at Google.
ThredUp  is  another  innovative  business  that  has  banked  on  trends  in
collaborative  consumption.  The  company  created  a  peer-to-peer  platform
reminiscent of eBay by which parents could exchange boxes of kids clothing with
other parents. Its tagline, “Clothes Don’t Grow, Kids Do”, automated online what
parents  had  done  for ages  within  their  circle  of  family and  friends—  swap  or
donate clothes  outgrown by their kids. ThredUp  established  a one-to-one swap
system that manages  the  process  between strangers. Parents  have  two  options
when they go online: shop for a box of “preloved kids  clothes and toys” or list a
box of donated clothes and toys. ThredUp provides free  boxes  over the mail for
parents  who  become members, and donors  get a postage  paid  label when they
send their goods and free pick-up by the U.S. Postal Service. Families shop online
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to  see the offerings like any online store, select a box, and pay for the shipping
and  handling plus  a $5 fee; the  contents  themselves  are actually free. Recycled
clothes  and  sharing  have  saved  families  over  $200,000.  By  hooking  into
collaborative consumption trends and connecting people, ThredUp made inroads
into a secondhand market that is notoriously fragmented and inaccessible.
Why We Share More Today
Trust is a key element in this kind of sharing economy. After all, how can you let a
stranger drive off in your car, sleep in your house, or ask for your old clothes  if
you didn’t somehow trust that you’d  get your car back  in one piece, won’t get
clobbered in your own bed, and won’t get a boxful of rags in return? Trust levels
are  also  a good  indicator of  quality of  life. Studies  show that high social  trust
usually correlates with low crime rates and good economic performance.
7
In the past decades, from 1976 to  2008, the General Social Survey showed that
the level of trust had eroded: Americans largely didn’t trust each other. However,
since  the  advent of  social  media networks  like  Facebook  and  Twitter, and  the
proliferation  of  mobile  technology,  people  have  had  more  opportunities  to
interact  and  create  reciprocal  relationships  that  are  re-building  trust,  albeit
online.
eBay is a model of online trust. You send money to people you don’t know, expect
them to  ship  you goods, which you haven’t actually seen, in the  condition that
they  promised.  eBay  founder  Pierre  Omidyar  believes  that  most  people  are
honest,  and  that  by  creating  a  transparent  market  that  encourages  honest
dealings and is protected by safeguards through a rating system and verifications,
doing business with strangers online becomes easier.
8
The  feedback system used  on eBay—  buyers  and  sellers  give  each other points
and  reviews  after  each  transaction—  has  fostered  good  behavior  all  around.
People know that the rating they have will determine whether people will transact
with them in the future— buyers  want to  buy from sellers  with positive ratings,
and sellers may not even entertain bids from buyers with low ratings. In the new
sharing  economy,  money  isn’t  the  only  thing  that  talks.  Your  “reputation
capital”—  the summary of what other people think about your actions  in a given
community— also says a lot about you, experts agree.
9
This newfound  trust in people— or at least in the people we do  business with—
would not have been possible  without progress  in technology. Rachel Botsman,
author of What’s  Mine  is Yours:  The  Rise  of  Collaborative  Consumption,  has
written about how technologies, particularly social networking sites and  mobile
phone advancements, have transformed the usual business and social practices of
bartering, sharing, renting, and trading.
10
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This increase in connectivity and focus on trust could also reflect a return to the
belief  that community is  important. Lisa Gansky, author of The Mesh, has  also
discussed  how  dislocated  individuals  are  seeking  community  and  personal
interaction  in  droves.  The  communities  formed  today  may  not  be  of  the
traditional  neighbors-playing-bingo-at-the-church-social  or  families-gatheringfor-the-weekly-weekend-barbecue  type.  But  with  each  Tweet,  each  Facebook
status  update,  with  each  reply to  questions  posed  on the  Starbucks  or  Apple
forums, with each contact we add to LinkedIn, we feed our “social self— the part
of  us  that  seeks  connection  and  belonging,”  says  social  psychologist  Marilynn
Brewer of Ohio State University.11
The shift in community patterns, from autonomy to  connectedness, also  reflects
changes  in  values.  The  so-called  Millennial  Generation  (ages  18-29)  is  more
environmentally aware and more socially conscious. According to a Pew Research
Center  study,  Millennials  prefer  a  simpler  lifestyle,  veering  away  from  the
rampant  materialism that  they perceive  bilked  earlier  generations.  Instead  of
buying individual cars, for example, more choose to  share bikes or cars, or use
mass transit.12
People  are  also  increasingly choosing  a  sustainable  lifestyle,  as  opposed  to  a
convenient  or  extravagant  one.  Three  in  five  people  share  or  would  share
products or services simply because it’s better for the environment, according to a
Latitude  Research report.
13
 Increased  coverage  and  visibility of  environmental
issues have also made people more conscious of buying and disposing of goods.
This  shift to  a sharing mentality isn’t all altruism though. The  global recession
has left a deep impact on people’s consumer habits. In the same Latitude report,
researchers found that “saving money” and  being “good for society” tie in at 67
percent  as  reasons  why people  share  or  would  consider sharing.
14
 The  global
recession  forced  people  to  rethink  what  is  valuable  to  them,  and  many are
choosing practicality over consumerism.
So given that people arewilling to share and that it makes economic sense— just
what would they share?
Naturally, media and information top the list. Transportation also offers sharing
opportunities  (in  the  form  of  car,  bike,  and  boat  sharing,  for  example).
Infrequently used, high-priced items such as power tools also present themselves
as  ideal  products  to  be  shared. And  finally,  physical spaces:  a place  to  stay at
when traveling and a place to store stuff is a valuable commodity— as is a place to
work and be creative.
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#2 Home is  Where  the Work is:  Rise  of the  Telecommuter
and Home-based Businesses
If  you’re  home  on  a Monday morning  dressed  in your sweats  or in  your PJs,
sending e-mail to  a client, and there’s no one to  see you—  are you working? The
philosophical implication aside, the answer for the 20 to  30 million U.S.-based
telecommuters is a resounding “Yes”.
15
Companies  are  realizing  that  employees  don’t  have  to  be  physically in  their
workplace to do their jobs; they don’t even have to be in the same time zone.
Even
traditional,  large  businesses  are  recognizing  that  centralized,  management
structures  need to  become more flexible to meet the needs of its employees, say
experts.
16
Dwayne Spradlin of InnoCentive, Inc. has described how organizations
have to move away from rote and static procedures to more flexible ones to better
organize  and  optimize  infrastructure  and  human  resources.  Younger workers,
especially the  Millennial generation, have  a fundamentally different view about
work and  career fulfillment.17
Many of  them are interested  in moving laterally,
not  vertically in  companies,  and  to  take  on  different  roles.  They are  projectfocused and thrive in environments of constant churn and change.
More baby boomers, women, parents, and Generation Y-ers are also  shifting to
home-based  work  arrangements  or  are  opting  for  telecommuting  options,
because it makes it easier to achieve the work-life balance objectives they have set
for themselves. They are, for example, able to participate in family activities while
still  keeping on top  of  their work. All this  is  made  possible  by the  capabilities,
accessibility, and affordability of available tools and technology.
18
Even the government is recognizing the shift from physical to  online spaces  for
workers.  In  December  2010,  the  U.S.  government  passed  the  Telework
Enhancement  Act,  which  requires  federal  agencies  to  establish  teleworking
policies and support systems that allow qualified employees to work from home.
The amount that companies can save by allowing offsite work is astounding— up
to $10,000 per employee annually, in terms of reduced utilities and costs in real
estate,  office  supplies,  security,  maintenance,  equipment  and  the  like,  and  in
terms  of  increased  worker  productivity—  making  telecommuting  even  more
attractive. The Telework Research Network calculates  that telecommuting could
save as much as $650 billion dollars a year overall.
19
The environmental impact is
also  considerable.  Telecommuting  reduces  the  dependence  on fossil  fuels  and
lessens  the  production  of  greenhouse  gases—  issues  that  are  growing  in
importance.
The  flexibility of  telecommuting also  holds  great  appeal:  of  the  72 percent  of
employees that would favor a job with flexible work arrangements over another
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without, 37 percent specified telecommuting as a factor.20
“What employees of all
age groups  want is  the flexibility to determine for themselves where, when, and
how they work,” says Kate Lister, the principal researcher at Telework Research
Network.21
 This  also  rings  true  for  independent  and  self-employed  workers.
Despite  generally  working  longer,  earning  less,  and  stressing  out  more,
independents  score  higher on the  job  satisfaction scale  because they value  the
autonomy and flexibility that working out of a formal office setting gives  them.
22
In  an  interview  with The  San  Francisco  Chronicle,  Om  Malik,  founder  of
GigaOm, has said, “There is nothing more [liberating] than being a web worker…
There is no boss. You work for yourself… It’s the future.”23
Kristen Eide, community manager of ThinkSpacein Redmond, WA, tells us that
the trend of telecommuting is  becoming more appealing and has  impacted their
space  membership.  “I  know  some  companies  are  going  virtual  with  their
employees, and coworking can be a great solution for virtual workers who cannot
or would rather not work out of the home. I  think that trend will continue for a
while.”  Their  space  hosts  240  member  companies,  many  of  which  are
telecommuters from larger companies such as CPA and law firms.
Both  companies  and  workers  reap  the  benefits.  Jim  Graham,  co-founder  of
Satellite Telework Centers, a coworking space that specifically targets this market
for remote workers and telecommuters, tells us, “We’ve been able to demonstrate
that we can house an employee for about half what it costs to  support them at a
corporate headquarters. Employees are happier because they’re working closer to
home  and  they  find  they’re  more  productive  because  they’re  away from  the
interruptions that come from working at the main office, and they don’t have the
distractions or sense of isolation that often comes from working from home.”
#3 Digital Workers on the Cloud
In the aftermath of the first Industrial Revolution, we saw the rise of the efficient
factory systems  and  then later the  cubicle farms. We  know the  scenario  all too
well. White collar workers congregated in confined spaces, working side-by-side
at  identical  desks.  Management  hovered  from  corner  offices,  supervising  and
orchestrating  the  steady  hum  of  production.  Many  used  to  believe  that  a
command-and-control structure was needed to get work done.
Today, living in an  information and  computing age,  where  much of  our  work
resides  on  the  cloud  and  businesses  outsource  work–  is  this  closed  system
relevant anymore? The old  system worked largely because  personal computing
was  expensive  or  inadequate,  Internet connections  and  web  access  weren’t  so
pervasive, and moving and dispersing information was difficult (hence, the need
for physical meetings for collaboration and team briefings).
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Technology is  redefining  the  borders  of  the  spaces  where  we  work.  We  have
laptops,  iPads,  and  smartphones.  The  information  and  tools  we  need  to  work
exist in digital form– as apps that function on mobile devices anywhere. Meetings
and  briefings  are less  centralized  and can be  more  efficient over chat or Skype
with little  need  for face-to-face  time. We  don’t necessarily need the  traditional
office structure to connect with our colleagues and be productive.
Daniel Pink, author of Free Agent Nation, has written about how infrastructure
that has  evolved—  from laptops  and smartphones to  Starbucks and other coffee
shops  that  offer  Wi-Fi—  has  increased  the  number  of  independent  workers.
Information  age  jobs  lend  themselves  naturally  to  web  working  and
telecommuting.  Technical  professionals  such  as  software  developers  and
architects, web and mobile app developers, and technical consultants top the list.
People  from  creative  fields  such  as  writing,  graphic  and  web  design,  and
photography also  telecommute.  Lawyers,  salespeople,  accountants,  and  other
professionals are starting to break out of the confines of the office, too.
And  of  course,  independent  homepreneurs, solopreneurs,  and  startups—  there
are about 10-15 million of them, though not all work at or from home— comprise
the rest of  the telecommuters.
24
The  decline in lifetime job security has  shifted
the  balance  towards  self-employment.  After all,  if  you can’t  depend  on  a  big
corporation  like  General  Motors  for your future, why not  depend  on  yourself
instead?  Besides,  bagging  a  full-time,  full-benefit  job  will  be  difficult  in  the
coming decade, many experts  say.
25
Companies  are  not only letting people go,
hiring has  also  slowed down, as they depend on technology, outsourcing, and a
leaner workforce to get the same jobs done.
Independents who freelance with several clients are no longer bound by location
restrictions.  They  work  for  anyone  (global  outlook),  anywhere  (local  source)
through virtual  channels, such as  e-mail,  Skype,  and  virtual  networking.  With
easy connectivity and tools on hand, independents and employees can now work
anytime, anywhere, and in any way that they choose.
David  Bollier,  author  of The  Future  of  Work:  What  it  Means  for  Businesses,
Markets and Governments, has said, “Digitization has changed the economics of
creating and distributing products, services and content across a growing number
of categories.”
26
Technology has essentially amplified worker performance— and
changed  the  game  for both employees  and  independents.  With the  rise  of  the
cloud, more people  will have  access  to  computing power and will leap  over the
obstacles  of  infrastructure  and  connectivity to  start  focusing  on  what  really
matters  in  business:  innovation  and  creativity—  the  things  that  improve  and
enhance services.
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It might  have  been  a tough pill  to  swallow  initially,  but  many companies  are
catching on  to  these  flexible  work  arrangements  with  the  assurance  that  their
employees  are working out of  professional venues  and  have  access  to  facilities
with the  right  technology to  make  virtual  working possible. Satellite  Telework
Centers co-founder Jim Graham tells  us  how two  of their members  working as
remote employees  of larger companies  use the coworking space effectively. “We
have one member whose  company is  based  in San Diego. He  brought in a Flip
camera and  filmed  the  facility and  his  cubicle  to  prove  to  his  bosses  that he’s
actually working in a professional office environment. We have another member
who  works  for a huge  telecommunications  company and spends her day giving
Webex-based trainings to sales teams all over the world.”
#4 Where Good Ideas Come From: Working with Others
At the same time, there is also a realization that people are more productive on a
results-output basis, rather than on a time-clock basis, which has led to new work
arrangements like flextime  and has  even encouraged  workers  to  pursue private
projects. Giving smart and creative people the space and time to  pursue a wacky
idea overturns the industrial workplace model.
At Google, employees are given a creative license to  devote up to  20 percent of
their working hours  to  personal projects. Many of  Google’s  flagship  products—
Gmail  and  Google  News—  were  dreamt  up  and  developed  during  these
downtimes  and  before  employees  punched  out.  Google  has  since  deployed
“grouplets” for initiatives  that cover broader changes  through the organization.
One remarkable story of a successful Google grouplet involved getting engineers
to  write their own testing code to reduce the incidence of bugs in software code.
The  problem was  how to  push the  idea across  a large  organization like Google
and get buy-in at a level enough to make a difference. The intrepid grouplet came
up  with a campaign based  on  posting episodes  discussing new and  interesting
testing techniques on the bathroom stalls. “Testing on the Toilet” spread fast and
garnered  both  rants  and  raves.  Soon,  people  were  hungry for  more,  and  the
campaign ultimately developed  enough inertia to  become  a de factopart of the
coding culture. They moved out of the restrooms and into the mainstream.
This  represents  the power and  culture of  sharing in the workplace. Something
that started  as  an idea among a small group  became viral. Bharat Mediratta, a
software engineer at Google, told The  New York Timesin an interview, “These
grouplets  have  practically  no  budget,  and  they  have  no  decision-making
authority. What they have is a bunch of people who are committed to an idea and
willing to work to convince the rest of the company to adopt it.”27
According to a recent New York University Stern Business School study, sharing
information about work tasks  with colleagues  and  even members  outside  your
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immediate work circle, pulls employees together, builds  relationships, and  even
increases  productivity over  time.
28
 They even  found  that  giving  employees  a
communication forum such as blogging increased productivity after about seven
weeks.  The  mechanics  of  sharing commentary on  both work-related  and  nonwork related matters had a profound effect. The study further found evidence of
“migration  from  blogs  to  real  life.”
29
As workers developed ideas over
conversations  online, they tended  to  spill over into  conversations  offline. What
the study ultimately revealed was that connecting with people around us beyond
work— through casual conversation and interaction, such as  on company sports
teams and  during company-sponsored  volunteer projects—  prompts  us to  work
better as individuals.
Keith Sawyer, a professor of psychology and education at Washington University
in St. Louis, MO, has written widely on collaboration and innovation. In his study
of  jazz  performances, Keith Sawyer made  this  observation, “The group has  the
ideas, not the individual musicians.”
30
Some of  the most famous  products  were
born out of this moshpit of interaction— in contrast to the romantic idea of a lone
working genius  driving change. According to  Sawyer, more often than not, true
innovation emerges  from an improvised  process  and  draws  from trial-by-error
and many inputs, “with sparks gathering together over time, multiple dead ends,
and the reinterpretation of previous ideas.”
31
Unexpected  insights  emerge  from the  group  dynamic. If  increasing interaction
among different peer groups  within a single  company could  lead  to  promising
results, imagine  the  possibilities  for solopreneurs,  small  businesses,  and  indie
workers—  if  only  they  could  reach  similar  levels  of  peer  access  as  those
experienced by their bigger counterparts. It is this potential that coworking tries
to capture for its members.
***
Coworking’s  promise  for  today’s  creator,  thinker,  worker, and  employee  is  an
ambitious  one. It claims  to  help  us  harness  innovation, as  well  as  to  unite the
laptop-toting telecommuters  and independent businesses  and organizations  out
there into  a cohesive but fluid community. Such diverse communities under one
roof can create thriving places to work.
But is coworking just buzz, a novelty? Or, is it part of the greater zeitgeist of our
time, a profound shift in how we do things? Let’s dive in and see how coworking
started, where it is today—  and most importantly— how you can make the most
out of the coworking opportunities out there.
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19
We hope you enjoyed reading this excerpt! That was
just a quick peek. To find out more about coworking
and to buy the book, visit
www.CoworkingGuide.com.
Thanks!
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Working in the UnOffice: A Guide to Coworking for Indie Workers, Small Businesses, and Nonprofits – SAMPLE ONLY
Buy the book at www.CoworkingGuide.com.
NOTES:
Preface
1
“Coworking's steady growth: 820 spaces now active worldwide”, Deskmag, http://
www.deskmag.com/en/820-coworking-spaces-worldwide-statistics(accessed 6 June
2011).
ONE: Sharing How We Work and Thinking Outside the Space
2
The term ‘accelerated serendipity’ is used to describe one of the key benefits of coworking. It was reportedly
coined by Chris Messina and Tara Hunt, the original founders of Citizen Space in San Francisco, CA.
3
“The Geefle and the Gonk”, Sesame Street, http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=PUHOPEcJU3s(accessed 15 April 2011).
4
“The New Sharing Economy”, December 2010, Latitude Research report, http://i.swapt.in/
sharestudy(accessed 15 April 2011).
5
“The New Sharing Economy”, December 2010, Latitude Research report, http://i.swapt.in/
sharestudy(accessed 15 April 2011).
6
“Here's The Problem With Google Buying Groupon: A Massive Culture Clash”, 24 November 2010,
Business Insider, http://www.businessinsider.com/google-groupon-cultureclash-2010-11#ixzz1Be5QjrSk(accessed 15 April 2011).
7
“Learning to Trust Each Other, Online and Off”, 11 October 2010, Shareable blog: Work and Enterprise,
http://shareable.net/blog/learning-to-trust-online(accessed 15 April 2011).
8
“Rentalship is the New Ownership in the Networked Age”, 4 February 2011, Wired, http://
www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-02/04/rentalship-is-the-new-ownership
(accessed 15 April 2011).
9
The Reputation Economy”, November 2010, AFR Boss.
10
“The Everyday Entrepreneur”, Winter 2010, RSA Journal, http://www.thersa.org/fellowship/
journal/archive/winter-2010/features/the-everyday-entrepreneur(accessed 15 April
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