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Micah July 4th

Three Rules of Why Coworking Sucks

The hot topic lately has been the concept of coworking. The idea being that if you are a freelancer, or a small startup who cant afford office space, you can rent a desk or access to a conference room, so you can appear to be a “real” company.

What crap.

Here is why I think coworking sucks:

1) There are a million places to work that offer free wifi and a quiet place to work. Coffee shops, YOUR HOUSE and other places are readily available. The truth behind why most freelancers freelance is because they cant work with people. So spending some time in close proximity to other people, but not having to interact with them is probably sufficient for most freelancers.

2 ) In four years of having office space, with a conference room, I think we had 4 client visits. The truth is that clients would so much rather you visit them than the other way around. Its a pure ego play on your part to have clients visit you. Plus, dont you think that a client will notice that your “office” is full of random desks and people doing random things?

Ok, so you think you need an address that sounds corporate. Here is a secret, instead of having your address be 123 Easy Street, APT 1 – make it 123 East Street, SUITE 1. There you go, problem solved.

3) Its about the work you produce, not where you produce the work. The truth of the matter is that you should find a place that you can do the best work possible. If thats in a coffee shop, cool. If its in a library, great. If its on the toilet, have at it. Just focus on producing a top quality product, and you will find that most clients dont really care where you created it.

Of course, if I havent convinced you, find a local coworking spot. If in the Denver/Boulder metro, the nicest place I have seen, with all the appropriate bling is my friend Danny Newman’s id345 coworking space.

Have fun there, but you will never see me, as I cowork in my backyard. Let me know if you are in town, I will hook you up.

Popularity: 9% [?]

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  • I haven't co-worked before, but I see the appeal of it. I think it's strange to say that most freelancers work because they can't work with others, from my perspective, ability to get along with others is even more important as a freelancer because your clients are much more likely to walk away than for you to be fired... To me, though, the appeal of co-working is to be working in an environment where others are doing active and interesting stuff in related fields, to again have that sort of face to face camaraderie. Course, I haven't yet because it's easier and cheaper to work from home, but I would like to try it. :)
  • That's the theory, of course. The truth is that the people in a coworking space end up being pretty similar.

    And I didn't say that freelancers don't do client relations well, but generally, they don't do interpersonal relations well nor do they, generally, enjoy working in large groups or teams. Freelancing carries a bit of ego (no one can do this as well as me, or I don't need the help) which makes group dynamics difficult.
  • I totally agree with you all the way Micah, especially with your last point. I find out that I do my best work outside, on my deck even though there is a lot of noise from my neighbors AC units humming all the time. I find that, that is my sanctuary, that allows me to think clearly, be most creative and be most productive. The office is not really for me.
  • Tom, you are more than welcome to join me in my backyard anytime.

    Coworking is an attempt to recreate an office environment in a controlled way. But these are people who say "I can't work in an office." How can coworking help that? It can't.
  • I think you're full of crap. Talk to Alex Hillman of Indy Hall then come back and talk to me.
  • do you have a blog? who are you?
  • Also, you ignore the fact that "coworking" is more about community and collaboration. What you're referring to is renting "executive office space" which is not the same thing at all.
  • Well then, Mr. IKNOWITALL, pontificate. What I am talking about is
    coworking. and Coworking sucks.
  • Micah, let's play a word game.

    replace the buzzword "coworking" with "outsourced office space management for freelance and small business."

    that, you can sell.
  • Andrew I love it. Very funny. Coworking still sucks.
  • andrew_feinberg
    Micah, let's play a word game.

    replace the buzzword "coworking" with "outsourced office space management for freelance and small business."

    that, you can sell.
  • Yup. I co-work from home w/ kitty assistants to distract me and the ocean outside my big window. Oh, yes, I have the big corner office w/ a huge window, private full bath and kitchen. I love being able to control my environment, what goes on in it, and who has access. Tried the co-working thing. It was a disaster with a psycho, smelly, noisy, foul-mouthed asshole on the other side of the divider. No thank you!
  • 1. Not in every city. It's important for many people, myself included, to separate work areas from play areas. I find that I'm much more efficient somewhere that's not in the same physical area where I sleep... whether that's Starbucks or otherwise. You won't find any games on my MacBook for the very same reason.
    Secondly, not sure there's much truth in your "truth".
    2 - 3. Exactly.
  • The key point you are hitting on here is that no one solution works for everyone. You might think I'm biased since I run a coworking space in Seattle, but I know we are not for everyone. Even within the circle of folks that LOVE coworking each space has it's charms and detractors. We are simply an alternative and the folks that love us come in, and the folks that don't stay in their prospective back yards. Even better they invite us over sometime to drink a beer and meet the cats.

    Oh, and lksugarman, I totally ran into that guy in an Italian restaurant in NYC and vowed never to return to the city. I even avoid pasta all together just to make sure I don't run into him again. Glad to hear you are safe now!
  • Well said. I guess that what rankles me around the concept of
    coworking is that it is somehow a replacement for collaborative
    working (which the name suggests). The truth is most coworking spaces
    have become tables and chairs. Maybe a phone and fax, and a conference
    room or two.

    A true coworking space has a varied group of people that in working
    together are better than working apart.
  • What you describe is a business center. There are many definitions of "coworking" floating around but I assert the defining characteristic of a coworking space is one where it's about the people in the office not the equipment. We are a business, and we have all the stuff people need to do their jobs, but we are not in the stuff rental business. It's a difficult distinction to make, especially in a culture where everyone is focused on the stuff. We actually avoid the topic of defining coworking in words because seeing our space in person is the best way to feel what we are talking about. There are a lot of business centers around, and with all the press coworking has been getting many of them are jumping on the word. There are also many coworking spaces and you will know in an instant what kind of space you are in when you walk in the door and talk with the folks running the place.
  • > A true coworking space has a varied group of people that in working together are better than working apart.

    You nailed it! This is exactly the feature that attracts many people, whether they are coworking at a local Jelly or in a dedicated coworking space. And there are spectacular, concrete examples in play right now of the kind of collaborative work that can come out of this environment. It's worth noting that real estate does play a role -- this isn't virtual -- and in some markets (NYC, London) real estate plays a very important role.
  • Sure it's about ideas and creating and some people work better alone. It's also about solidarity. Often, like in Philadelphia, there are barriers and obstacles to free agency. CoWorking is a form of empowerment at the community, economic, and political level that isn't easily achieved alone with a blog and a backyard. Personally, the energy and ideas I've gotten from two CoWorking days with some really, really intelligent and creative people makes going it alone in my yard seem less than optimal. Some people don't need this, but it's nice to know it is there for people who do.
  • jeromeusa
    Hi. I'm almost afraid to throw in my 2 cents here, but I thought I'd try to let you know that there are more amped up coworking spaces out there, such as:
    http://www.BLANKSPACES.com/interact (also see http://www.flickr.com/photos/27479309@N03/)
    http://www.launchpadcoworking.com (opening in September)
    http://www.lebu.biz/

    The "collaborative" and "community" aspects really kick in two ways, at least for us at BLANKSPACES:
    1. We have a slew of events here, some hosted by us; others who rent our space to run their own events/mixers.
    2. People here are already HIRING each other. In this way, this is an undisputed scenario in which a variety of people work together better than apart.

    Jerome
  • Meg
    Freelancers aren't across-the-board bad at interpersonal relationships any more than people who work with a lot of other people in a group environment are across-the-board good at them. Creating your own position/offered skill set/business (which is what freelancing is) implies some ability to be independent, but that doesn't make you awkward by default.

    I know plenty of awkward people who work on teams, and plenty of "God's gift to the universe" people who work on teams, too.

    There's no standard profile for the ability to freelance other than your capacity to offer a particular product via contract within a negotiated schedule.
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