I'm hoping to try the co-working vacation this year to see for myself if I'm still as productive in a new city or country without being distracted by wanting to explore this new place I'm in. I think having a space where other freelancers and startups are working would make it easier to get up do some work around like minded people and still enjoy a new place.
It's a different twist on traveling that doesn't bind you to trying to see as much as you can in the 3 weeks you have off a year. You can really get to know a city or country if you stay there for longer. I don't really want a work life balance, I want it more intertwined so that I can do my work while living my life and co-working might just give me a chance to do so. Joel at Buffer was right about not wanting to have a deferred live plan where we work to then enjoy life.(1) I think with today's technology and forward thinking bosses and company's its possible to do great work wherever we are.
I still need to test this out and see if I am actually productive. This fall I spent a week in Vancouver and a week in Fernie and was really productive even in a new environment. I think the co-working spaces around the world will just make it that much easier for me to do longer trips. I'll have the reliable internet and quite space if needed to do good work without worrying about the wifi at coffeeshops and worrying about my gear being stolen if I get up and use the bathroom.
Serious question, what is a "co-working vacation"? If you are working surely your employer doesn't expect you to use your vacation time.
I have been remote working full-time for over 3 years while my wife and I have traveled around and do not blur my work and my vacations so I find the term "co-working vacation" puzzling.
I agree putting the word vacation in there just confuses things.
I would often add vacations on after business trips. I was on the east coast if I go give a seminar in Colorado then I take a week vacation after than and then return. You could call that a working vacation but it is more confusing than anything. It is traveling for work, doing work, then talking a vacation, then returning home.
In the article my guess is some people might have a vacation planned and then they work out a deal to work remotely for a week. In that case wrapping work into a vacation. Which is fine if that is what someone wants to do, in my option. Take a week for vacation (perhaps in Northern California) then work for a week there, then perhaps a week in Oregon. Then back to work in Boston.
Certainly if you are working all day to call that a vacation is not the right word. That is working remotely.
It seems to me the article is really talking about short term digital nomads. And there are some interesting ideas along these lines. There are people that organize a group of software developers and designers to work in a nice location where they can be social together and have people to share work with and find collaborations. In my experience the people that join are essentially working for themselves or perhaps they and their partner go together. There really isn't a reason someone from some big company couldn't work there too. It is just usually the big companies don't take to odd arrangements like this would be.
It has all the aspects of a vacation except for the vacation part. Working from an enjoyable location does not make it a vacation.
It's remote work, not vacation. The ability to remote from various locations part or all of the year may be an interesting job perk, but if it burns vacation days you're just getting shafted.
If I'm doing remote work in Paris instead of upstate NY, I'm going to probably feel like it's at least partially a vacation as I'm going to be walking the Seine in the evenings and visiting landmarks on the weekend.
There's more than one aspect to a vacation. Many people specifically take vacation so that they can travel. The end goal isn't necessarily time not working, it's experiencing new things in new places.
Never said there was only one way to spend your vacations.
> Many people specifically take vacation so that they can travel.
So?
> The end goal isn't necessarily time not working
The point of vacation very much to have time off. What you do with that time off is up to you (possibly up to working at an other job), but if it's not time off it's not vacation.
> it's experiencing new things in new places.
And if you can negotiate to do that without taking vacations more power to you, but again vacation is time off.
How about a working-vacation, where your company pays you to go to a place you always wanted to go.. you work during regular hours, and enjoy the people,food,sites and other amenities the rest of the time.
> I don't really want a work life balance, I want it more intertwined so that I can do my work while living my life and co-working might just give me a chance to do so.
The latter part of that sentence seems like an apt description of a work/life balance to me.
It's a different twist on traveling that doesn't bind you to trying to see as much as you can in the 3 weeks you have off a year. You can really get to know a city or country if you stay there for longer. I don't really want a work life balance, I want it more intertwined so that I can do my work while living my life and co-working might just give me a chance to do so. Joel at Buffer was right about not wanting to have a deferred live plan where we work to then enjoy life.(1) I think with today's technology and forward thinking bosses and company's its possible to do great work wherever we are.
I still need to test this out and see if I am actually productive. This fall I spent a week in Vancouver and a week in Fernie and was really productive even in a new environment. I think the co-working spaces around the world will just make it that much easier for me to do longer trips. I'll have the reliable internet and quite space if needed to do good work without worrying about the wifi at coffeeshops and worrying about my gear being stolen if I get up and use the bathroom.
1. http://joel.is/why-we-go-on-international-retreats-3-times-a...