I'm glad Tony said everything i wanted to, so I didn't have to. Bottom line is, de-starfishing the starfish isn't going to work. Having a unified set of tools that are at our disposal, though...I imagine that would get a fair amount of use. Think of it just like the wiki and the blog and the google group...but for business services instead of communication. Everything is opt-in.
-- ----- -- ----- Alex Hillman im always developing something digital: [EMAIL PROTECTED] visual: www.dangerouslyawesome.com local: www.indyhall.org On Thu, Oct 9, 2008 at 10:49 AM, Tony Bacigalupo <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote: > Hi Karen, > > There are a lot of great and diverse ideas here; for the moment I'm going > to think on a big-picture level and try to provide a counterbalance which I > hope will help define how best to proceed. > > * Puts on Starfish hat * > > (This hat is really uncomfortable and pointy) > > Okay, so as many of us well know, the Coworking movement is a starfish > organization, which is to say, it's a decentralized entity of people who > share a belief in a central concept. > > Ori Brafman & Rod Becksrom's book, *The Starfish and the Spider*, does a > fantastic job detailing why such organizations are so powerful. > > Perhaps my favorite chapter, though, is the one that describes how to > *kill* a starfish. I don't have a copy of the book on me, but I'll try to > get the gist of it here. > > One way that they described was "Turn the starfish into a spider." That is, > centralize that which was once decentralized. The chapter detailed the story > of a starfish movement that was wildly successful, and very innocently and > with the best intentions established a central fund to help more people > interested in the movement get on their feet. > > The problem? The central fund was a huge success. Millions of dollars > poured in, and this fund ended up needing a huge staff of people to figure > out who gets what amounts of money. > > The constituents were less empowered, and hierarchies formed, and the > strengths and flexibilities that the organization once had were lost. > > * Takes off starfish hat * > > Okay, so that being said, does that mean we do nothing? No. But it means we > act carefully and responsibly so as to ensure we maintain the accessibility > and flexibility of the movement. > > So how to proceed? I'm not sure exactly, but I'm forming an idea. > > I think the ideal goal would be to establish an entity which **services** > the Coworking movement, but is its own separate organization. This > organization does have the ability to have a central structure and a bank > account and so on, but does not have authority over the movement as a whole. > > > So, perhaps, the Cowork Network would identify a particular segment of the > Coworking movement that it chooses to service, and it could become a very > successful entity that services that segment while still maintaining the > movement on the whole. > > That's entirely doable, and I'm happy to help however I can in fleshing > that out... because finding a way to help provide a lot of the resources you > suggested would be fantastic. I think there will be many successful > companies & organizations which will service the people who have adopted the > concept of coworking, and now is a great time to start forming them. > > Karen, I think we're in for a really good discussion today, and hopefully > by the end of it we'll have a much better idea of where to go next. Thanks > for stirring it up! > > Best, > Tony > New Work City > > > > > > On Thu, Oct 9, 2008 at 6:52 AM, Karen Origlio <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote: > >> >> Over the past few weeks I've met/emailed several group members to >> discuss the idea of creating a non-profit organization to support >> coworking space owners and members. >> >> The idea is to have an organization whose mission is to help spaces >> start and sustain themselves, and link them together. Imagine a >> knowledge base of information and resources for a space catalyst, or >> collaborating with members in other locations via video conferencing >> or finding the specific expertise you need for your latest project >> through a member directory... Coworking will be an industry, not just >> a movement. >> >> This organization can also assist the independent worker and >> entrepreneurial spirit found in so many members...I'd love to connect >> members with affordable and much-needed medical or disability >> insurance... >> >> There seems to be some interest in this idea. What do YOU think? Good >> idea? Let's discuss. >> >> If yes, I see two next steps: >> >> 1. Form a Board of Advisors to define the mission and vision of the >> organization and contribute their expertise and knowledge. Not sure of >> the time commitment needed - probably minimal - perhaps an hour >> conference call in the next few weeks. >> >> 2. Define a list of projects for the Cowork Network and help identify >> people to assist. >> >> Would love to hear your opinions pro or con, on list or off. >> >> Thanks, >> Karen Origlio >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
