Vol/53 No/2 2014
APRIL/MAY The Linguist 13
FEATURES
Hence, our rooms look modern and
professional but with bright colours in the door
frames so that the space does not look like a
standard business centre. We embellished
'problem areas' with photographic wallpaper
and wall tattoos. A dead-end corridor was
converted into a cosy breakout area, and we
covered the windows of the server room with
a picture of an airplane wing which,
combined with the noise of the ventilation
system, gives the illusion that you are looking
out of the window of a plane.
We paid close attention to my research
findings. As noise is known to be a problem,
we fixed noise isolation panels under the
ceiling, and we bought screens for some of
the tables because the survey indicated that
some people prefer to be shielded when they
want to concentrate. We cross-referenced my
data with the prices charged by existing
coworking spaces in the Ruhr region to
calculate how much revenue our coworking
space, Work Inn, could generate and
checked whether we would earn enough
income after expenses.
An important 'self-insurance' that many
coworking spaces neglect are the terms and
conditions. We took extra care when we
created ours, because they not only protect
the coworking community from disruptive
customers (who can be banned), but also
provide us with security against criminal
prosecution if a customer uses our internet
access for illegal activities.
Today, my primary tasks are community
management and marketing. According to my
research, the best advertisement is word of
mouth, but for such an unfamiliar concept it is
important to take part in as many networking
events as possible to explain what Work Inn
offers. We also organise a range of events,
including an art exhibition, talks, networking
breakfasts and workshops. Additionally, we
informed the regional media about coworking
and convinced a newspaper, radio station and
TV channel to report on the concept using
Work Inn as an example. We use social media
and our own website (www.workinn.de), as
well as advertising in print media and online.
Work Inn opened on 6 January, with a
cost-free test period for the first three weeks,
and we have already learnt a lot about what
opening and running a coworking space
involves. It is quite difficult to explain the
concept in Germany because there is no
German word for 'coworking', and none of
the possible translations express the idea fully
or have the same positive connotations. We
settled on flexibles Büro, but I often use the
English term and describe it as 'like an office
sharing community (Bürogemeinschaft) but
not as boring as it sounds'.
The process has been relatively pain-free,
but we have discovered that it is difficult to
Distractions can
lead to synergies:
someone else's problem
might be a job
opportunity for you
Averages from translators survey USA Germany UK
Annual income £25,272 £28,103 £31,000
Monthly membership 24/7 access (per year) £1,383 (5.5%) £2,109 (7.5%) £1,848 (6%)
Pay-as-you-go, 3 days/week (per year) £1,826 (7%) £1,854 (6.5%) £3,168 (10%)
COWORKERS' AVERAGE YEARLY COSTS & INCOME
COLLABORATION
Dörte and Tim with their coworkers in
the background; and Tim leads a
workshop
at Work Inn
control who takes part in events – especially
those with free food. When two men who
were not exactly our target group began
coming to successive free dinners, we
stopped advertising upcoming networking
evenings during events. Our guest list soon
consisted of potential customers again.
Following three months of preparations
and the initial trial period, Work Inn now has
a small group of members – making coffee
breaks and communal breakfasts very
enjoyable. I would love to have some
translators in our space. And maybe, soon, I
will have time to start my own career as a
translator – in my perfect workplace.
Notes
1 Spinuzzi, C, 202, 'Working Alone Together:
Coworking as emergent collaborative activity' in
Journal of Business and Technical
Communication, 26(4), pp.399-439
(http://jbt.sagepub.com/content/26/4/399); and
Umberson, D & Montez, J K, 2010, 'Social
Relationships and Health: A flashpoint for health
policy in Journal of Health and Social Behavior,
51, pp. 54-66
2 deskmag, 2012, '2nd Annual Global Coworking
Survey (www.deskwanted.com/static/Deskmag
-Global-Coworking-Survey-slides-lowres.pdf)
3 House, J S, 2001, 'Social Isolation Kills, But
How and Why?' in Psychosomatic Medicine,
par. 8 (www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/
content/63/2/273.full)
4 Kraft, U, 2005, 'Unleashing Creativity' in
Scientific American Mind, pp.16-23
(www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=
unleashing-creativity&page=5); and McGilchrist, I,
2009, The Master and his Emissary. The Divided
Brain and the making of the Western world,
London, TJ International Ltd, p.42
