[Coworking] Re: Local Government and Coworking
Contact Blake Burris at CoHabitat in Shreveport (or Dallas.) The Shreveport space has local government and economic development involvement. And if you find the magic sauce pass it on. :-) Cheers! Todd O'Neill On Nov 30, 10:11 am, BrianR anon...@gmail.com wrote: Which coworking spaces have worked successfully with local government to get a space going? I have worked with my town. Just wondering who else has done the same. ex. received loans, grants, free rent, etc. I'm talking to my County government about more assistance and need other examples to share with them. Hopefully we can make a list of relationship precedence to benefit all. Thanks! -Brian Carrboro Creative Coworkingwww.carrborocoworking.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Mark Your Calendar - Coworking Unconference at SXSW!
Yea! Like Kirtus, I'm happy to help. I'm on the ground in San Antonio. I approached Link Coworking to act as host but their involved in another SXSW event. Are we confined to Austin? We can offer C4 Workspace to host. We can hold 40-50 people in 'Camp mode. We'd be good for one main area in our community space and one smaller breakout in our conference room. We're just 75 minutes down the highway from Austin. We're in the arts district of San Antonio just south of downtown. If it counts we have Boston Brewing as one of our members so forsty beverages usually aren't a problem. To be frank, San Antonio could use a boost. We're quite good at getting media coverage for our events. A CoworkCamp would fit with our current strategy to establish C4 Workplace as the place to go when people (government, business leaders, chambers, etc.) need information or advice on new ways to work. As Austin has 8 spaces today, San Antonio has 1 (us.) Not crying about it but this city could use a look at the impact of coworking is having around the world. That's my pitch. Anyway, count me in no matter what! I spoke with Jacob about this a few months ago. I've wanted to have a CoworkCamp since I organized a Catalysts lunch at SXSW 2008. The movement is maturing to a place where some structured F2F exchange and learning is in order. I'm happy to be the Texas contact for the event. Anna, thanks for getting the ball rolling. let me know what we can do to help. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Last ditch effort to survive
I would love to hear suggestions on making a coworking space sustainable. But before that discussion starts I would like to understand more about the economics, politics, technical literacy and social culture of the general population (including gender, age, education, etc. demographics) as it is represented in the surrounding community, neighborhood, municipality, region, etc. Community seems to be the accepted secret sauce for coworking space success. But having a group of people coalesce around the concept of coworking is more than having regular Jellys or an already established core group of people. I think it is important to understand WHY a group of people connects to a coworking space idea. And that would seem to stem from who those people are, as part of the surrounding community as well as the influence of the surrounding community on them. For example, is the surrounding community already about community in other forms like sports clubs, pub regulars, etc. Is the community progressive in thought, technology or business? Does a critical mass of younger, socially interested (if not socially active) exist who are looking for a professional community to belong to? Is the community very homogenous or very diverse? Does a particular ethnic culture exist that is open to coworking or that is not interested in coworking? Is it all about a charismatic person or a great business plan or both? Does the spaces physical size, arrangement, feng shui or whatever matter? For all you graduate students out there how about a study on coworking space profiles that teases out the demographics, econographics, socialgraphics, etc. of spaces? I have lots of biases. I've written this here before. San Antonio is the largest Hispanic minority majority (a white foisted oxymoron) city in Texas (65% Hispanic). We have few other minorities; we're about 3% African American for example. There are a core group of Democrats that run the city which is arguably majority Republican. We have many more than one church that hold more than 5,000 people at a service. We have a 17% poverty rate. We have the second highest teen pregnancy rate in the state. We have about a 50% literacy rate. We have probably the largest military presence of any urban area. There are about 2 million people in this 9th largest city in the United States. Business success until recently was bringing a new call center jobs to town bias /. Personal success is measured in a regular paycheck, a house, a new car and your kids haven't been arrestedbias /. It would safe to say we have a manana (mon-yana) culture. We are a shorter travel distance to Mexico (2 hours) than we are to the rest of the United States (1 day). C4 Workspace is known in the business community. Once people work here they come back. We have a very small core group of in-the-space coworkers and a large group of community pushers. We are hanging on by the skin of our teeth. So is it culture, community, business acumen or what that explains our situation? I don't think it's a pat answer of it's all of those things or it's all about community or did you have a strong community to start with?. It would be great if we could get some information about how, why, what and where that enable spaces to succeed and sustain or thrive or not. I think it would help the current and next generation of space catalysts. Hang in there Jody and Mike! Cheers! Regards -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Coworking Orange County
Coworking Fullerton. I think the owner is Marieke. Todd On Sep 22, 11:01 pm, Abner Charles abner.char...@gmail.com wrote: Anyone know of any space in Orange County? -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Intro - Jason from Minneapolis
Jason Check out Conjunctured in Austin and Cohabitat in Dallas. Dusty Reagan at Conjuntured and the guys at CoHabitat are great and can answer questions. Conjunctured is in a small, one story house but the flow seems to work. They filled up pretty fast because of the physical size. I haven't been to CoHabitat in Dallas but I know they have a two story house. One potential issue with a house may be physical accessibility for wheelchairs and bathrooms. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace San Antonio Texas -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Who is in charge of your coworking space?
Stephanie We're in the same boat here. Three of us funded our space and two of us work here full time. My office for my business, DoingMedia LLC is here. The other partner working in the space full time is also my wife. She acts as a kind of concierge. Between us we've had some push pull on how the space operates. I'm for let everyone do as they will in an adult manner. She is more in management mode; she spent a long time as a retail store manager. That customer service background is perfect for a coworking space but the managing part is not so hot. We are still in the mode of having people asking us for permission. So, when they ask I just tell them to go ahead, use your judgement, play well with others, etc. The rules in the kitchen are if you make it dirty then make it clean, if you rearrange it then rearrange it back, etc. But since my wife is more interested in running it like a business and not a community our members DON'T step up to do things, caretake, etc. because they don't have to. (My wife is great but she has said herself that she may not be a good fit for a coworking space.) We will soon have a member/regulars meeting to talk about how things work and how things need to work. I would suggest that you explicitly tell people to STOP asking you permission to do things. Then if somebody does something out of bounds you talk to them and start to set some norms. But now set the norm to be wild, wild west. Sort of like keeping your blog wide open to commenting and then adding moderation when the need arises. That's my $.02. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Thoughts on driving awareness of coworking
Hey Mark Have enjoyed your replies. Here's on of my own. At C4 Workspace we have two sign-in sheets, one for walk-ins/visitors and another for Daily Desk users. We have an 8.5x11 Plexi sign behind the sign-in clipboards that says Sign In Please! and just below that Check in Too!. On our tables we have smaller 4x6 plexis with our network password and Don't Forget to Check In! with the Foursquare, Gowalla, Whrrl and Yelp logos below it. (We also have a Google Places QR code poster in our window. I don't think anyone has used it. Not even sure how to find out.) We get more check-ins at events than we do at day to day coworking. We keep track of our social graph using Socialoomph and Google alerts. We get much buzz before events for the music coalition that works out of our space than any other. Our Facebook, Twitter (some fed from FB) and blog posts get RT'd a little bit. And we get Tweets and check-ins form our more social media savvy members. That has all helped with awareness. We get a small but regular stream of people who have heard about us through SM. Our Facebook page is our strongest SM platform with a little over 500 Fans/Likes. That is probably because my partner/wife keeps an eye on it throughout the day and statuses regularly. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Introduction
Allen I would encourage you (heck I would drive you there myself if I lived in the area) to start talking to the incubator right away. You have started a small coworking community, they need a community to get started and they have SPACE. You have a lot to bring to the table. It may not seem so but even your short experience is better than their total lack thereof. This would be a great way to get a rich coworking space/experience going in Blacksburg. The coworkers coming into the space may get inspired by and have an opportunity to move their business up to the incubator, as well as have access to all the physical infrastructure already established. And the incubator gets a farm team of coworkers that they can access as well as the professional skills that those coworkers bring into the space. This is win-win all around. Somewhat OT: has any coworking catalyst or guru contacted the National Business Incubation Association (http://www.nbia.org/)? I had some dealings with them to do production more than 10 years ago. Could be a good partnership. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace On Aug 13, 10:56 am, Allen Fuller allenjful...@gmail.com wrote: Hello everyone my name is Allen, I have been lurking here a while and talked with a few of you on twitter but I have not officially introduced myself to the group (I did ask a question about insurance last year under my old email address). I am a freelance photographer and whatever else my clients need in Blacksburg VA. For the last 5 weeks I have been working with a local coffee shop owner to run Jelly like events I have been calling Blacksburg Coworking (blog athttp://blacksburgcoworking.com). Yesterday we had our 10th event and celebrated by giving away free iced coffee or tea to anyone who came and telling them a little about coworking and the little community we are starting. Attendance has been varying but discussion seems to be increasing. It has also been a great learning experience for me. A local business incubator is looking to open a coworking space in Blacksburg in October. Originally they indicated it was a membership level option of businesses receiving their incubation services but lately they seem to be indicating they are going to make it a more public offering. I am still trying to learn more about their vision and space, but regardless it is a pretty exciting time here in Blacksburg for Coworking. Thank you for all of the insight and ideas you have shared here that have been an inspiration to me. I look forward to continuing to be a part of the group as more spaces open and as the future of coworking in Blacksburg becomes more clear. Have a great weekend, Allen -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Feedback Requested: Coworking Across America
San Antonio is ready for you! Come on down and spend some time at C4 Workspace and then scoot up the road to Austin with Cnjunctured, Texas Coworking, Cospace, Link and more, then to Dallas for Cohabitat, Company : Dallas, etc. We in Texas THINK we have more spaces than any other state in the union. It's probably the whole We Do Things Big in Texas thang. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst / Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio, Texas c4workspace.com On Jun 14, 11:54 am, Angel fccowork...@gmail.com wrote: Hi Everyone, One of Cohere's coworkers (Beth) is going to embark on a year long RV trip to test out being a truly location-independent freelancer on August 1. She'll be using the wiki Coworking Visa information to locate participating coworking spaces around the USA. We're looking for coworking space owners/managers that are VERY interested in having her come work from your space for 1-3 days while she's in the area. Her professional blogging skills will come in handy-- Beth will be blogging about her independence and how each coworking space exhibits the Coworking Values of Sustainability, Communication, Openness and Collaboration. We'd like to hear your thoughts on this project: What do you think? Is your space interested in participating? Do you think her blog posts should live on the existing Coworking Blog? What else should she/we keep in mind as we plan out this project? Thanks!--Angel Follow her @gonecoworking on Twitter -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Anyone got statistics?
We're trying to make a proposal to our economic dev group and other small business centers. They are numbers people. I thought I remembered hearing a stat like coworking had 60% growth in 2009 with a total of 200 spaces open. Did I dream this? Was I in a drunken stupor at SXSWi? Or is it...true? Let me know what you know or point me toward a good source. Thanks! Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: What ever happend with the coworking.com money? Next Steps for Coworking.com contributors.
Alex It finally got through my thick skull. Makes a lot of sense. Hope to be able to contribute. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: What ever happend with the coworking.com money? Next Steps for Coworking.com contributors.
OK, I'm completely thick or missed the strand of the thread. If the domain is already paid for from the previous donations (Thanks everyone!) what is this pledge for? What will it be paying for? And then all the other question ad infinitum: Where will it be banked? Who decides what it will be spent on?, etc. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace.com On Apr 18, 8:51 am, Alex Hillman dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com wrote: Thanks Will. :) On Sunday, April 18, 2010, Will Bennis, Locus Workspace wmben...@gmail.com wrote: Hi Alex (and Jacob and whoever else was instrumental in this behind the scenes): Just want to put in another positive note for what you have accomplished with this. From a mostly lurker perspective it has run incredibly smoothly (the earlier back-and-forth notwithstanding, which as you said seems healthy and unavoidable with this scale of a community). The amount of time you (all) had to put into this to make sure it worked is, I'm sure, much more than comes across to most of us who are going about our own attention-consuming projects and not directly involved beyond the (important) critical feedback and financial contribution stage. Summary: Iincredible job! Thanks! Best, Will On Apr 17, 8:09 pm, Alex Hillman dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com wrote: I'll have a webform live on Monday, which I'll post to the list, which will allow you to pledge your personal maximum. Whatever makes you comfortable, and does not jeopardize your business, your kids' health, or your ability to eat or sleep in comfort. *Seriously.* Once we have all of the pledges, we'll take the highest number within every pledge's threshold that achieves the goal and initiate the fund raise. Example? Sure!! I say I'll put in $100 You say you'll put in $75 Susie says she'll put in $60 John says he'll put in $42 In this spread, the maximum everyone would be accountable for is the lowest contribution, so we'd have $42 x 4, or $168. This model *favors participation* rather than high dollar amounts, on purpose!! Get it? GOOD!! :) -Alex /ah indyhall.org coworking in philadelphia On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 11:03 AM, Arne Hulstein arne.hulst...@gmail.comwrote: Cool stuff Alex. I was still thinking along the lines of the thousands you named in the blogpost you mentioned. Thanks for your clarification. I'll stop talking funds now. ;-) And I loved your second mail. It is all about people. Lets enjoy that and make the most of it. How do you think we can move forward? Arne On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 7:35 PM, Alex Hillman dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com wrote: OH JEEZ I left out the most important amendment to the model: Funds will be accepted from, and thanks will be provided to: people. NO businesses, ONLY individuals. If a business wants to contribute, it will need a single human being's name associated with it in order to receive public thanks. But why, Alex!? This will reduce the expectations that this is a sponsorship, and that any one coworking space has a competitive business advantage over another coworking space...now and in the future. That is not the point of this acquisition. The point is to associate the word coworking with the core values of coworking, and point to the primary resources currently available for people interested in coworking. This shift is largely inspired by the SpreadFirefox campaign from 2005, one component of which included a large-scale fund raise from LOTS of sources, but the very visible New York Times advertisement that was run with a portion of those funds included the names of individual micro-contributors rather than the corporate macro-contributors. We do something different here: we run businesses, and focus on people. After the results of the last round of discussion, I think it is absolutely critical that this revised fund raise reflects that. -Alex /ah indyhall.org coworking in philadelphia On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 10:26 AM, Alex Hillman dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com wrote: Some more clarifications: If you are new and haven't already read this post, I recommend you do so. The former owners of coworking.com have been paid, in full, their asking price. The kind of money we're talking about raising from individuals this time around is not in the $250/$500/$1000 range like last time, because last time, we had a limited time window to achieve the goal. This time, there's a much more open window, so we could do something like 200 x $50 donations. Possibly even less if more people get involved. There is NO REASON to stress your financial situation, personally or your business. Again, not being able to contribute does not make you any less of a member of this community, and
[Coworking] Re: Have any coworking spaces out there had a Speed Networking Night yet? from CO-WORKA SYDNEY
Wow! A-mazing idea. We've had two Pink Slip Mixers but I love the more generic Speed Networking idea. Pink Slip Mixers were for un- and under- employed people to meet up with employers and recruiters. We did a card game style ice breaker. Everyone got 5 cards and then had to trade cards with others to come up with the best hand won a door prize - often a couple day passes to the space. Everyone was charged $10-15 to get in. We made no money but covered expenses. Andrew - we're trying speed networking as soon as I can get it together and on the calendar. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace San Antonio TX On Apr 12, 9:10 pm, and...@co-worka ad...@co-worka.com.au wrote: Hi all We are having a Speed networking Night at CO-WORKA in Sydney. This will be a great opportunity for us to sing the praises of our coworking space to many local businesses and great for them to meet some new contacts. I would appreciate any tips on running a networking event from our coworking space Many thanks Andre.co-worka.com.au and...@co-worka.com.au 02 9981 1511 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Improving the Google Group
I realize you don't want stuff cluttering your In Box but... The only ways I have found to keep up with the discussion here is: 1. RSS feed of each post to my Google reader and 2. Set Email option with Digest and then create a filter in my email program to place messages from the group in a folder. I shut off the RSS feed: there was just too much discussion to keep up with. The Email Digest works great! In Gmail I have it set to one of my primary folders. It tells me how many digest messages I have. I can go in and peruse (like I did tonight) and read it (and reply/comment) when I can. The key to your success in joining the group is to participate in the discussion. One of these two methods should work for you. Cheers! Todd O'Neill C4 Workspace San Antonio, TX On Mar 29, 5:22 pm, Eastlake r...@shamrockdesign.com wrote: Well, I'm a bit of a rookie here, so take this with a grain of salt, but here's where my impression comes from: First, I chose not to get emails from the group ... the last thing I need are more emails that I have to wade through. So I come to the group site to check things out when I want to, but otherwise leave everything there. That being said, this thread got 11 responses the same day it was posted, and then 7 more the next day. That was Feb. 9 and Feb. 10. Since then, there was only one more post on Feb. 16 until I (and you) posted to it today. So, you have to admit, after two days of a lot of interest, it appears now that this post is old news and I just wasn't sure if the topic was now dead or not. For all I know, someone else may have started a new thread that relates to the topic, but I wouldn't have seen that thread. My experience with forums is that you don't lose these kinds of conversations this way ... a new post puts the thread back at the top, and there's an organized way to look through topics, which is a great way to research. This seems particularly helpful to new people (like myself) so we can get up to speed much quicker, and participate in a more relevant way. If I can read up on beginner topics, then I don't have to ask the same questions everyone before me asked. If I want to spend more time researching anything more in depth, I can get up to speed with everyone else so far on the topic within a day or two (or maybe even just an hour or two). Also, when I recently posted some questions, I only got one posted response, and now my thread has been pushed down to irrelevancy ... very quickly, it seems. I appreciate and respect that this discussion format through email allows people more of an instant conversation with eachother on a topic, but I just wish it were categorized and organized a little better so each thread would remain relevant longer and I could more easily find and read what I want to. Again, I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds on the issue, as I am still a newbie to the group and to coworking in general ... On Mar 29, 11:37 am, Hassan Schroeder hassan.schroe...@gmail.com wrote: On Mon, Mar 29, 2010 at 12:26 PM, Eastlake r...@shamrockdesign.com wrote: Can we give google any feedback requesting that they add a forum feature to their group functions? I'm surprised they don't offer it already ... Has this discussion gone anywhere since Feb. 16 that I'm unaware of? Just curious -- why would you think there was activity on this thread that doesn't appear in the group message listing? -- Hassan Schroeder hassan.schroe...@gmail.com twitter: @hassan -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Space Manager Question
My wife Debbie acts as Space Manager and she takes no salary. I have another business (that I operate out of the space) so I do some space work. We have success bringing in what we call a Coworking Managers. We trade a desk for someone who is looking to get their business off the ground. We lost our first to Rackspace and our second and third started to day. They're doing a workshare kind of think. She is a single mom GIS nerd who relocated and he is a twenty something aspiring filmmaker and writer. We're not super busy bit it gives us more time to get out and do more personal networking, community building and old-timey marketing. Hope that helps! Todd Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio TX On Mar 21, 8:03 am, ourspacefortwa...@gmail.com ourspacefortwa...@gmail.com wrote: I am interested in obtaining a statistic regarding how many Coworking Space Managers/Founders provide them with a salary. As for myself, I have other resources of income, however I am looking to utilize a small salary as seed money for a few other businesses I am looking at launching. Sincerely, Jodi Dean, Founder OurSpace, LLCwww.ourspacefw.com 825 S. Barr St. Fort Wayne, IN 46802 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Wiki home page (mockup)
Aaron I'm all up for a joint IA effort. Let's talk/skype next week sometime to outline what we need to do. Might be interesting to try some kind of online card sort activity to get community input. Let me know what days and time will work. My schedule is pretty flexible during the week. You're in Milwaukee? Cheers Todd O'Neill -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Wiki home page (mockup)
Steven Great start. I like consolidating the locations. From an interaction design perspective I'll make the following assumptions. Audiences 1. people looking for spaces to work in 2. people looking for resources to start a space 3. people operating coworking spaces 4. general public, the press, etc. If those assumptions are correct then it seems the content hierarchy should be something like: 1. Locations 2. Resources a. getting started b. operating 3. About Personally, I've found the sort of location by region to be challenging in terms of finding a space. In fact, we had a visitor here at C4 Workspace while I was up at SXSW who was in town from DC. They really liked the space and wondered if there were any spaces in the DC area; he was from Bethesda. I pointed my wife at the wiki but she had a lot of trouble finding a space. DC is listed in the Eastern U.S. section and the page includes information on Montgomery County, Maryland and Northern Virginia. I think a state breakdown would be simpler to find things. And based on SEO principles the listing of locations by Coworking Blah blah blah. I'm wondering if the wiki is the best platform for the audiences I wrote above. Were are pretty limited in terms of navigation/way finding. And the big front page is really information dense even with trimming down the location info. Just some thoughts. Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio TX -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Wiki regorg?
I would be up for working up an IA for the wiki. I agree the wiki content should be user driven but with two different audiences; people that know what's on the wiki and those that don't; a little bit of categorizing can't help. The beats can still grow organically with a few boundaries. That being said, best practice for all wiki's is to have a gardener' who will pull the weeds, lay out new paths and fertilize when necessary. Wiki's become 1990s organic websites in no time without one. i have trimmed a few weeds my self, would be happy to help, but would like some co-gardener's to work with. Good to see some coworking peeps at SXSW. Wish I had more time to talk; was actually working there, not attending. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace c4workspace.com fb: c4workspacetw: c4workspace San Antonio, TX -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Clarification
I'm not clear about what the $10,000 is for. The domain is purchased. Renewal is $9.95 for next year. Are we paying someone to build a website? To mount a marketing campaign? Pay for events? This sounds like an exclusive membership organization (country club) in which those who can afford to join get a voice and those who can't have to trust explicitly that the can-joins will vote in the interest of the can't-joins. So how would that group expand? How would it sustain? If someone quits the group do they get their share refunded thus opening up a slot? I appreciate that there are good intentions from all involved. But this sounds counter-community. I appreciate that Alex (and Tony, et al) have been pioneers, catalysts, authorities and mentors of the movement. Thank you for all you've done. But we're all part of that movement and we all need to have an equal opportunity to guide it forward that is not limited by a cap on participation (100 people; $10,000). If we could all (generally) agree on two or three things we want to accomplish as a group/movement then we would know what each of us would be willing to spend money on. If a client came to you with $10,000 and asked What should I spend it on? your professional instincts would take over and you would ask What is the problem you're trying to solve? So why not bite the bullet and form a real organization (501c6 or c3) and get on with it? The international organizational issues will not be solved by us (as they have not been solved by other groups) in a short amount of time. They are not social issues but jurisdictional issues. Many of us are in Austin at SXSW. We have the technological know how to wire in many more. We can provide the opportunity for everyone who wishes to participate to do so. These are all great discussions but now we have to boil them down to some concrete action so we can move together as a movement. We will discuss, we will argue and will come to some consensus about the next steps. To jostle a metaphor - The tiger has left the barn and now we have to grab it by the tail. Cheers! Todd O'Neill Catalyst C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: coworking.com: the next generation
Sorry, getting to this late. Catching up. The Wrath of Khoworking. I'm done. Carry on. Todd C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Chris Heuer's Coworking Summit at SXSW
Is anyone familiar with this? @chrisheuer: excited to announce we are going to host a CoWorking Summit during #SxSW at the Social Media Club House. I need help though! Who else in on organizing it? Todd C4 Workspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Chris Heuer's Coworking Summit at SXSW
I had mentioned (I think) the idea of doing a brief Coworking Camp on Saturday afternoon but got crickets in response. It seems we are at some kind of turning point. It would be a shame if the coworking movement splintered because of a lack of communication. We (all) are in need of some discussion around basic issues we ALL face and how we can ALL come together to further this great idea. See ya at SXSW! Cheers! Todd -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Implications of Coworking.com.. and mixing it up some
This is REALLY amazing. Congrats to Alex for putting it together and thanks to everyone who contributed. It's been alluded to but I think we, as a community, are firmly on our way to some sort of organization. I've heard lots of resistance to that idea including the hub-bub over the Federated Coworking session proposed for SXSW. Thanks Rachel for checking into co-op opportunities. I've been a president of an international association (and ran it for about 18 months when our executive director bailed) and it takes time and focus to do it right. Communications alone (move to ZoHo) is a challenge in itself. And managing finances, especially over international borders, is a special skill. There are some enlightened folks in the association management space (Maddie Grant is one) who might be open to guiding us. That's all to say that there is a lot to consider. Now, from the mixing it up department, some of you may know that the Texas spaces have gotten together to help throw a SXSW shindig. Well, that whole discussion evolved into the formation of the Texas Coworking Coalition. And last night Paul from Texas Coworking in Austin (on Sixth Street no less) purchased CoworkingCoalition.com. We have a sub domain of texas.coworkingcoalition.com set up and will have a site up by SXSW. The thought behind the domain was to generalize it so others could use it. That all came together in about 3 hours via out Texas Coworking Coalition Google group. I'll chalk all this activity up to Karma or the gods and goddesses or Fate or whatever but it seems this was all meant to be at this time. I say let's roll with it and see where it goes. I'd like to suggest that those of us attending SXSW that we get together on Saturday afternoon before the MeetUp for a little CoworkCamp activity to discuss this and all other kinds of good ideas. I'd suggest Texas Coworking as the location but I'll leave that to them. For whatever reason, it's time. I'm so glad to be here right now! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio Texas -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Coworking Annual Meeting???
I thought of a half day, SXSW CoworkCamp unconference when we went up to the Texas Coworking Coalition meeting (actually been mulling it since the summer.) I like the idea of a community driven event. We're too spread out to make a conference happen with out LOTS of structure. But organizing a Camp event with jobs farmed out could be doable. It could be web streamed for those who can't make it. Why not talk it out during SXSW with whoever is interested and whoever is in attendance? Cheers! Todd -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Interns for coworking
We did a semi-internship. Maybe more of an extern-ship. We were thinking of a coworking manager and a friend was striking out on his own. So we brought on our friend, Chris Godfrey. He did his own gigs but swapped out a FT desk for graphics work and general stewardship duties. Alas, we lost Chris to Rackspace a few weeks ago. Good for him, not so good for us. Rather than the traditional undergrad intern you might look for grad students or career changers as interns. Be aware that if they are doing it for credit you will have responsibility to report back on their performance. There may be paperwork involved. :-0 Good luck! Looking forward to hearing how it works! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio TX On Feb 5, 4:47 pm, jesse je...@citizenspace.us wrote: Hi Folks, Citizen Space wants to offer an internship. We need help with outreach, events, maintaining the space and participating/enhancing in the overall energy here. I just read some of the past posts in this group about intern experiences and also know that IndyHall, Parisoma and some other space have/have had interns Any tips or feedback as we move forward with this? Some questions: --One or two interns? Dynamism w/two? --Paid, college credit, and/or providing a desk? --Should the intern focus on coworking space projects should member projects also be part of the experience? --How has an intern been valuable for your space? --College intern or not? --Advertise through craiglsist, colleges, twitter, etc. --How long did your internship last for? --Anything else? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - jesse taggert-general manager citizen space 425 second st, suite 100, san francisco, ca 94107 je...@citizenspace.us 415-501-9155http://citizenspace.us twitter.com/citizenspace -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Re: Coworking Annual Meeting???
Uh, this sounds like a CoworkCamp is in the making. I get that many folks attend SXSW but do all 200 catalysts or founders attend? We need to be open to the idea that coworking is moving beyond the IT, Web, Design community. So we need a place for about 100 people in an affordable, cheap to fly to, warmish weather location. How about counter programming to SXSW and hold it in the early Fall? With Texas' coworking space growth in the past year I nominate the Republic as a suitable location. Dallas is easy to get to from anywhere. San Antonio is pretty nice in October! :-) Austin is... well, you know, wierd. I had bounced this idea around to the Texan spaces late last summer but got too busy to follow up. I was even thinking of a mini-camp on Saturday afternoon at SXSW prior to the Meetup. We could take the idea out for a test drive. NOW I'm getting juiced up for SXSW! See many of you soon! Todd O'Neill Catalyst/Partner C4 Workspace San Antonio Texas On Feb 4, 1:09 pm, CollegeMoneyMan collegemoney...@gmail.com wrote: I added something to a wiki agenda that would be helpful to those of us considering formally starting a co-working environment; namely marketing information understanding local demographics. My friends and I are eager to learn more about the marketing dimension of co- working. Regards JR On Feb 3, 9:30 pm, rachel young rac...@camaraderie.ca wrote: I think an annual coworking conference is a great idea, something dedicated to coworking, not tacked on to another event. Something where we could focus on coworking and community issues, meet each other, see one another's cities and spaces. I'm in! There would have to be a lot of value to it in order to bring these already busy and stretched folks our of their spaces for a few days, though, something that could leverage our buying power for, I dunno, office furniture or health care benefits or travel discounts or something. Something where we can not only have those providers/suppliers sponsor the event to offset costs, but to provide real value that would be worth traveling for. I've been involved in a few organisations that are spread across multiple timezones or parts of the world, and they have decided on location in similar fashions, which is basically that host cities post their proposals and the community votes on where it should be, perhaps one vote per coworking facility. We can build in assurance that it won't always be in the same cities or parts of the country all the time so that people in, say, the west coast don't alwyas have to travel to the east coast. (ie, establish general zones and ensure the annual event rotates between zones) Anyway, I think it is certainly worth exploring, and being an event planner I am all for it. I put your suggested starting topics onto a wiki page (http://coworking.pbworks.com/Coworking-Conference), which I think would be better to collaborate from there. I do think that this would take some time to plan out properly (and give folks some time to save up some money), so if you were thinking of escaping the winter conditions in the next few months, then perhaps sxswi is your better option for this year. r. -- rachel young rac...@camaraderie.ca (416) 801-0196 Find us in person: Camaraderie 102 Adelaide St E, 2nd Floor Find us online: camaraderie.ca/blog twitter.com/camaraderie http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/t/85443a86ec7592c2 Woodie Neiss wood...@gmail.com Jan 30 09:49AM -0500 Anyone want to get together for the first International Coworking Community Annual Meeting in ummm let’s say a warm, sunny place like Miami? Sort of a one day event where we could discuss best practices, set some protocols for future coworking locations and formally organize ourselves so that we can leverage our combined power? Suggested topics to discuss (feel free to edit/add to/delete/etc) 1) Keys to success a. pricing b. Serivices to offer 2) Managing the bottom line a. Financing the start up b. Negotiating lease agreements c. Managing monthly expenses 3) Marketing PR a. Building awareness b. How to generate more buzz c. The power of meet-ups d. Leveraging your chamber of commerce 4) Creative suggestions from some of our winning locations 5) How to formally organize ourselves into an International organization Perhaps we could all complete some surveys prior, and then present the results at the meeting as well? Regards, Woodie -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
