Follow my six month experiment in going completely office-less. No, not telecommuting. I’ll still be going to the same building everyday, but with no real place to sit or to call my own. I’ll find out if being the corporate version of a Free Range Chicken is a good idea…or an epic fail.
#corporatehobo downside numero uno
Finding space to truly focus. It’s easy to find space to do bullshit (email etc). But true creation demands space. Must solve…
Battery life?
Being officeless means I run on battery all day which means a full discharge cycle everyday which means a new battery every year. Hmm…
One Month with no office…
I have now gone a full month with no desk or chair and not only have I survived - I have completely thrived with the change.
As someone who spends 70% of my time in meetings, not having a place to sit has mattered little. Time spent out of meetings is now a mindful decision; I don’t just automatically wander back to my office and slip back into bad habits (ie things that are work-adjacent but don’t really make a difference).
Instead, I have to constantly think about the task at hand and pick the right physical space to support that. It forces a degree of consideration that constantly has me making better choices. Harder? Yes, a bit. But worth it.
Ultimately, the pattern interrupt of not automatically going back to an office has a slight Zen effect of thoughtfulness and consideration. At the risk of being too meta for this little blog, it is a small but profound impact.
Next time: the secret to going paperless is to go officeless…
#CorporateHobo army might grow…
Someone just told me they are going to join the ranks of The Free!
“I’ve always wanted to do that.”
I am surprised how many people respond that way when I tell them about this experiment. You start talking with people and they open up about how they have wanted to try a different mode of work, maybe not exactly my version of corproratehobo-ness, but something different.
Something different. So many people just want to try something - anything - dfferent. They whisper it to me in hushed tones like their boss or spouse might be listening with disapproval. They want to change where they sit, what time they come in, what they drive, how they dress. Then the sad part: someone tries to talk them out of it. Always. We start talking about making change and the story takes a turn into a cul-de-sac: “then they talked me out of it”
I have learned in a small way how many people fear change. Ok, thats not revaltory, we all fear change. But it’s surprising how people fear when OTHER people want to make change. Even if that change has no really bearing on them. People seem want to talk each other out of meaningful change. That’s sad.
What’s the answer? I don’t know if I am that smart, but I do know the way to avoid getting talked out of things is to just do them without telling people. Don’t give people the chance to unwind your change. Of course, there are practical limits to that simplistic advice: we need to tell our spouses that we are quitting our jobs; we need to tell our coworkers that we are changing polciies that have a dramatic impact on them. But when the change is personal and principally impacts you and only you, then I encourage swifter motion.
First real time behind a desk in 4 weeks. Feels like a cage! Thanks for sharing, JW & CC
Sage: Identify what you are good at by paying attention to what people ask you to do http://t.co/scrQksN
Tools of the trade…
For me, any new endeavor is simply an exciting opportunity to buy new gear. However, this being an exercise in minimalism, I had to exercise restraint and stick with essentials:
- MacBook Air: This experiment would simply not work without this ninja throwing-star of a laptop. Size and weight are spectacular, yes. But it is the all-day battery life that is magical. 256 gigs of flash memory mean no spinning drive, no noise, no heat. This is my second Air; the first one was a novelty; this one is a mandate.
- HTC Inspire: Having content and functionality on the home screen - instead of just icons - is such a vastly better way than the iPhone.
- Jawbone Icon headset: I hate Bluetooth headsets. Deeply. They are the tech equivalent of pleated khakis. HOWEVER, with no land-line at work, I am using my mobile a lot now. A headset is a must for semi-paranoid tumor-avoidance.
- LaCie iamakey: Sam Grobart of the NY Times recently said to ditch USB thumb drives, made irrelevant by Dropbox et al. While he’s right (mostly), I have found it refreshingly easy while roaming the halls to just grab stuff from people via this artful little aluminum drive. It takes seconds and always works, while many people still fumble in the Cloud.
- Incase laptop sleeve: Despite my poor choice of white, this simple little sleeve has proven to be perfect. The outside pocket is big enough for a few pens, cards, etc. This has essentially become my office.
As much as I want to over-do the hardware, this is all I need. I’ll cover software in the future…
I am thinking of ACTUALLY dressing like a hobo while I do my #corporatehobo experiment at work. #GoodIdea
RT @Behance: Scott Belsky: How To Avoid The Idea Generation Trap :: http://t.co/M4F3wZE RT @the99percent
