Older posts
Older posts
The Business of Independence
July 4, 2008
A few weeks back I wrote up a piece exploring the question: To what extent can/should coworking be conceptualized and managed as a business? My view- that the business-ization of coworking is an inevitability and the sooner we recognize this the more sustainable the movement part of coworking will be- proved to be rather controversial.
Apparently, [...]
Bootstrapping the Music
June 21, 2008
I'm just returning from an inspiring Crowded House show at Sherwood Forest, Nottingham. I've seen Neil Finn and Tim Finn countless times, and I never tire of it. Tonight was no exception. The band is strong and vital, even as most of them thrive into their 50s.
Yet what I'm thinking about as I debrief from the [...]
The Memes of Entrepreneurship
May 15, 2008
Among many other things, the story of coworking is a story of entrepreneurship. While it may be as much about community and the gathering of urban tribes, there is an awesome amount of entrepreneurship going on too.
This may contribute to what will be a slow and awkward courtship between mainstream corporates and the independents that [...]
Westside Studio, a Co-Company
May 1, 2008
In the research for our book we are constantly looking out for emerging business models that might help guide independents and entrepreneurs by example. One really intriguing and promising model that has recently come online is Conjunctured, the Austin-based co-company. Conjunctured was founded on the idea that participants can remain self-employed within their individual businesses, but can be brought [...]
Build or Sell
April 27, 2008
Reading some Google history.
Meanwhile Sergey set up a business office, and the two began calling on potential partners who might want to license a search technology better than any then available. Despite the dotcom fever of the day, they had little interest in building a company of their own around the technology they had developed. [...]
Talent Is
April 15, 2008
What is talent? A simple question to be sure, but answers to this question vary widely.
For many (old school) managers, talent still refers to fresh crops of MBAs graduating from top B-schools, you know, the same schools that make Business Week's annual list every year. But what, exactly, is it that makes these graduates talented?
They are very [...]
Outsource Yourself
March 19, 2008
When business took to outsourcing I realized there was an opportunity to improve my take.
Outsourcing deals work best when both sides focus on the value improvement (rather than the supplier's cost) during negotiation. This is, in fact, Rule #1 of negotiation because it forces both parties to think hard about operational issues like service [...]
The ‘Liberal Arts’ are Now Wired
March 13, 2008
Not too long ago, I was having drinks with some high roller high society types when the subject of 'college' came up. I was asked what my major was in college and graduate school. When I said anthropology, the dickhead who asked the question busted out laughing. Loudly. To him it [...]
Manage This!
March 11, 2008
Debriefing and offloading after a whirlwind at SXSW. Some of the most intelligent, creative, productive, and compassionate people on the planet. Period! Full Stop!
Throw in some Burning Man tribal experience and you begin to get a picture of a parallel world where work and life integrate seamlessly, and the (horrible) compromises that Milk Toast used to [...]
Note to Self… Bangkok, On the Luck of Seven, In Good Company, Seed, and Swag
March 3, 2008
John Berns put together a BarCamp in Bangkok. Now he's musing on a coworking space or a Jelly in Bangkok. His post captures the vision and the spirit of coworking with an honest candor that makes me recall my first introduction to the idea. I sent him an e-mail in hope of watching this [...]