Hi I'm Trevor - Coworking space newbie - Coworking

Message from discussion Hi I'm Trevor - Coworking space newbie

Dave Troy

More options Feb 25 2009, 11:44 am

From: Dave Troy <davet...@gmail.com>

Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2009 08:44:03 -0800 (PST)

Local: Wed, Feb 25 2009 11:44 am

Subject: Re: Hi I'm Trevor - Coworking space newbie

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Susan, Alex -

Another way to think about this discussion is that one must conduct
research prior to writing a business plan.

If Trevor were to sit down and write a business plan now, what would
he write, exactly? With what raw data and information would he
populate this template? Would the product be anything other than
speculation?

By contrast, if he makes some effort to hold some regular Jelly
sessions, talks to his stakeholders about what locations, venues, and
values would drive the proposed coworking community, he would actually
have something substantive, true, and verifiable to talk about in his
business plan.

The argument against taking action without having a business plan is
that one will squander resources and fly rudderless; however,
conducting the research of having Jelly sessions costs only time and
can help verify whether his concept will work. In effect, the first
and only step of his business plan right now ought to be to conduct
market research.

That all said, as an experienced entrepreneur and angel investor, I
can attest to the fact that there is a time and a place for full-blown
business plans, and coworking as a business is simple and
straightforward enough that if you follow the simple step 1 of
assessing sufficient demand, the rest truly will fall into place. The
beauty of the coworking model is that unlike most businesses, it
doesn't need to generate a profit stream, so as a result, the planning
necessary beyond the hard work of community building is comparably
limited.

However, your mileage and community may vary; and as Alex said,
because your community DOES have its own DNA, you need to take the
time to understand it by conducting rigorous research in the form of
Jellies, camps, and tweetups. Otherwise, you're truly flying blind.

Dave

On Feb 25, 10:59 am, Alex Hillman <dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> Susan,
> Your point that every market is different is exactly the point I'm making:
> not that you should go in unplanned, but a traditional business plan
> template isn't going to properly serve a venture like this in my opinion.

> The plan you described: *bullet points & flexible goals*, and I'll even go
> so far as to define a *mantra* or set of *core values,* is going to help you
> have the check points for making decisions along the way.

> Planning is extremely important, and running your coworking space like a
> business is important for your sustainability.

> Just be ready for that plan to change once new people enter the mix :)

> -Alex

> --
> -----
> --
> -----
> Alex Hillman
> im always developing something
> digital: a...@weknowhtml.com
> helpful:www.unstick.me
> visual:www.dangerouslyawesome.com
> local:www.indyhall.org

> On Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 10:46 AM, Susan Potter <

> su...@acropolisproperties.com> wrote:
> > While I completely agree with Alex that walking in to a bank with financial
> > statements that show revenue already coming in is far better than going into
> > a bank with an idea, a business plan should be used a tool by business
> > owners. I am not sure about Alex's business/startup experiences, but as
> > someone who has started a number of ventures from scratch I have found
> > having a basic business plan (just in bullet point format for my own and
> > partner reference) to be very beneficial, especially when you have partners.
> > You might be able to "wing it" by chance or because you have the right
> > connections, but if you don't have connections on your side, basic
> > preparation is key no matter what business you want to start.

> > There isn't just one exact model for a coworking space or any business idea
> > out there, there are multiple and every situation will likely be different.
> > I am not suggestion you violate the notion that a coworking space is about
> > the people - not at all.

> > Each market (in this case physical location and target audience) has
> > slightly different needs (i.e. in larger cities people might be
> > willing to travel 20 miles to a coworking space - in a small college town
> > that would NEVER fly without anything *very* different about the offering, I
> > don't know what though?). Also while the target markets for all coworking
> > spaces might seem to be the exact same in every location, I don't think that
> > is true. For example, I know in some areas there are large numbers of tech
> > freelancers (e.g. SF bay area and Raleigh-Durham both places I have lived
> > and worked in before - not to mention Boston, DC metro, etc), whereas in
> > other areas the types of freelancers will be less tech more professionally
> > oriented (e.g. architects, lawyers, designers, etc.). Having a plan to
> > target the specific target audiences that are relevant to your area is
> > definitely a good idea. It helps you think through things like "who do I
> > really want to attract to my space to make it a better experience for all
> > involved", which creates a better overall ambiance and will be the backbone
> > of your longer-term success.

> > Home grown spaces can work, in fact, many on this list have proved it can
> > work. However, that does not mean planning and preparation don't go a long
> > way too. I use business plans as a tool for organizing my thoughts and
> > addressing potential pitfalls before they show up. Since leaving the bay
> > area I have steered away from VCs and only occasionally sought loans from
> > banks or private investors, but I now always "write" a business plan if for
> > no one else than for myself. If you are using a business plan this way it
> > doesn't need to suck the soul out of a venture.

> > Best,
> > Susan
> > --
> > Susan Potter
> > Collective Turf Coworking
> > Urbana, IL USA

> > On Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 9:19 AM, Alex Hillman <
> > dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com> wrote:

> >> Trevor,
> >> Stop right there:
> >> You don't need a business plan just yet, you need some people. Those
> >> people will be your business plan.

> >> Yes, you could walk into a bank with a 10 page document explaining how and
> >> what you are going to do with their money...or you could walk in with signed
> >> checks from 10 paying members and say "see, they're already willing to pay
> >> for it".

> >> Developing the community before you think "business plan" is critical,
> >> because your business plan is likely to NOT jive with the people you're
> >> ultimately trying to reach.

> >> There are some great recent posts about community development roadmaps,
> >> and I have one that's a little more abstract that I crafted after seeing
> >> MILK at the end of last year:

> >>http://www.dangerouslyawesome.com/2008/12/22/a-roadmap-for-community-...

> >> Good luck!

> >> -Alex
> >> --
> >> -----
> >> --
> >> -----
> >> Alex Hillman
> >> im always developing something
> >> digital: a...@weknowhtml.com
> >> helpful:www.unstick.me
> >> visual:www.dangerouslyawesome.com
> >> local:www.indyhall.org

> >> On Tue, Feb 24, 2009 at 4:58 PM, Trevor <trevord...@gmail.com> wrote:

> >>> Hi everyone,

> >>> My name is Trevor I live in Mississauga, Ontario which is very close
> >>> to Toronto for those of you who aren't familiar with the area. I'm
> >>> relatively new to the concept of coworking but I'm so excited that
> >>> this exists. I have been thinking about creating my own space and I
> >>> would like to start preparing a business plan. I don't really know how
> >>> to get started writing a business plan are there any good templates to
> >>> use? Can anyone suggest a good starting place?

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