I installed wordpress blog on the host for my new site coworkgso.com. I will stop using this one now and focus on the new site to keep everything consolidated.

The posts here have been imported to the new blog at coworkgso.com/blog.

Thanks

I registered the domain name CoWorkGSO.com today and started creating a site. Once I get that stable (too many choices!) I think I’ll have the ability to port this blog over there as well.

The survey will be hosted there as well. I have a lot going on outside of this effort, but I hope to have that ready in a few days. I’m thinking that I might have some cards printed up with the URL to the survey so I can pass them out, leave them in strategic locations, etc. to drive people to site.

I’m also hoping that I’ll be able to make the meeting of the Triad Developer’s Guild (http://www.triaddev.org/) to do a little networking. I’ve been on the invitee’s list for years (ever since it was PTUG) and haven’t gone… so maybe it’s time!

I started to create a survey today, based on one that I saw from Brian in Carborro.  Shot him a couple of questions about the effectiveness of the survey and ideas that he might have in marketing the survey itself. I’m planning on hitting the pavement in GSO, maybe at some happenings where the type of people who might use this space would be. A little investigation should reveal some possible avenues to persue.

Spent the afternoon at a downtown coffee shop today, something that I am trying to do once a week to see if I can get a feel of who is working there. There are a few people with laptops there, but a lot look like students (based on what I can see over their shoulders). As I was working on the survey there, I also started a draft of the vision statement, which I can then use for the 30 second “elevator speech”. Once I have that down, I will feel more comforatble talking to strangers about  the concept, instead of just annoying them randomly while they are trying to work.

I came across Action Greensboro’s 2004 report on attracting the creative class to the area. The report listed quite a few actions that were planned that I’m going to try to get a report card on. I am curious how well these plans panned out. I know that over the last couple of years, GSO was able to attract some large business but, in my view, those business rely on displaced manufacturing workers, not creative types. In fact, the 2007 Action Greensboro reports that the “state of the city is less than robust” and that a disproportionate amount of the labor force is in manufacturing jobs compared to cities with similar characteristics.

Does that translate into a falure of the plan to attract the creative types? Does that bode poorly for the success of a coworking space that, in my current vision, relies heavily on an active freelance creative community? If a coworking space is somewhere on the continuum with coffee shop on one end and executive suites on the other, can a space be created that will cater to a larger audience? And does that space lose its values by tring to cast too wide a net?

Made contact with a couple of helpful souls on the coworking google group. Nice that there are people who are willing to give it away.

I did a quick search for coworking in Asheville, NC after a Facebook chat with a colleauge who is out there this week, and there do not appear to be any coworking establishments there, but found a post or two of people who were interested. Aville may be have more of that creative class element that I am thinking is necessary to support not only the coworking business, but the values. Greensboro is still going to be my primary focus during my initial concept phase, but I will keep alternative locations in my mind, Asheville being especially attractive to me since, over the last year, I have returned there a couple times and have raised the possibility of relocating there. Even had a conversation last year with our HR director, trying to convince here that my job did not need to sit in Greensboro, since I have no direct reports there and most of the work I do is on the phone overseas.

It didn’t fly… no wonder I am attracted to this concept so much. Just another way to express my rebellion.

Time to do some inspiring reading about the trials and tribulations of Coworking pioneers.

Ok, so it’s not the most creative name. I think that it will probably come to me as I work through this process. Name’s have never been my forte.

My goal here is to use this blog to “think out loud” as I attempt to establish a coworking space in greensboro, NC.  At this point, it think that the concept is pretty novel for this city. I’ve been here for about 13 years now, but have only a cursory sense that there is a “Creative class” here. Not to say that it doesn’t exist. My concern about discovering that creative class revolves around the premise that I have about those people being the primary niche participants in a local cowork movement. I am considering who the target market is at this point and how broadly I can expect this concept to spread. Is it possible to create a space that fits young creative “milennials” (sorry for the label), professionals that a trying to minimize their commute, techies, coffee shop and home office refugees? Without “bridging the gap” is it realistic to think that a niche market could sustain the space for any length of time? There are already a few examples out there of coworking spaces that have failed, but the information on why is yet to be revealed. Hopefully retrospectives will be iminent.