When working on your own, does not mean working alone
Going into business on your own means that you opted for independence, freedom and autonomy. But independent contractors, freelancers and entrepreneurs often have to deal with loneliness and isolation ; a social burden as well as a professional one.
Coworking was born from the independent’s thirst for interaction.
Try to picture a place where these self-employed individuals would work side by side but for clients of their own ; try to picture a stimulating environment with no hierarchy, no competition, no politics. Places of these types exist : coworking spaces.
Pooling and sharing ressources : past experience
Coworking existed long before the term was even coined : the practice of people sharing a mutual work space didn’t come out of the blue. In the Arts community for instance, a form of what gets closest to coworking practices can be found.
The Artistic workshops that arose in the 19th century had many similarities with our modern coworking spaces where networks of individuals pool resources and share ideas to fuel creativity. La Ruche (The Beehive) founded in Paris in 1902 by Alfred Boucher is a good example of this. Only a handful of individuals outside mainstream practices were concerned. Now, coworking is out in the open.
The origin of coworking
Brad Neuberg is often considered to have pioneered coworking practices. In 2005, he created the Hat Factory in San Francisco. Earlier initiatives like Affinity Lab in Washington are also landmarks in the history of coworking.
Coworking originates from the digital world. The new information and communications technology (ICT) spawned a new model of work organization. The same individuals who kicked off the ICT revolution also developed a series of collaborative practices. They initiated the Barcamp and the Jelly meetings and opened the first coworking spaces where, today, a breath of this open-source culture still breathes in.
The work world revolution
Coworking may be a longstanding practice, we can’t miss on the fact that something new is happening. The technological revolution that we aforementioned brings along changes in habits. A deep cultural revolution is underway, and coworking is only one cog in the machine.
This new way of working fundamentally questions the old theories of work organization. Work now operates by flexible aggregation of skills, able to fit and refit to the needs and projects. Faster, lighter and more agile than the heavy and hierarchized structure of traditional companies. Work is not longer a place, it is what one’s does.
Coworking : the future at work…
Mobility and flexibility are no longer the sole preserve of a small group of individuals aspiring to a life outside the norm, but rather are elements of a societal movement.
The free marketplace of ideas, the balance between private life/professional life are the values/aspirations shared by a new generation are no longer the ideals of a handful of individuals resisting to mainstream lifestyles.
In a coworking space, members have complementary skills/ are like-minded and enter into all sorts of interactions. Moreover, the main skillsets that you find in a traditional company are also represented in a coworking space, allowing a wide range of human resources to be channeled through the different members in a smooth, natural and fulfilling way.
A booming global phenomenon
As we are writing this article down, approximatively 1000 coworking spaces are open in the world. They grow into a network stretching up well beyond borders, amplifying a phenomenon whose organization is well on march. Many coworking spaces deliver a coworking visa to their members. Subscribers can therefore work for free in any coworking space in the world where this visa system has been implemented.
Pulling gently the strings of these coworking projects are often open-minded and interesting individuals willing to help you develop your activities abroad. Thus, you are given access to resources that international corporations used to keep close to their chest. You are free to be mobile on a worldwide scale.
To stay in touch with coworking latest news, please feel free to visit Deskmag, the Global Coworking Blog, Coworking Initiatives (repertory of coworking spaces in France), or the coworking wiki.
