OfficeBlogNotes

We need your help

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:59:00 -0400

The Office in Media, Inc is down but not admitting defeat. We committed a major faux pas in not having the resources to sign up people before we actually opened our doors, and opening anyway. Yes, we jumped, but we had faith. We still have faith. We know we have a good enterprise here and our goal is to dramatically increase our customer base 1000x in 3 months. Oh, and we will do it. We have added a new person to our team and new products including virtual office services.

But we need help to keep going for those 3 months. We are seeking investors, advisors and entrepreneurs - and most of all friends - to assist us in the spirit of community and coworking with donations and helping to spread the word. Donaters will have their own entry in our wall of fame, a promotional blurb on our site and our undying thanks for all eternity. No FailWhales! Every little bit helps. If you are willing to help out, please email lisat at itstheoffice.com for paypal or google checkout information.

Trust me.. this is the hardest post that I have had to write. Not many of you know me but I do not ask for help until I have to.

I may be able to do it for you some day and I will..

Thank you for reading and best to all..

Lisa

Great News!

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:28:59 -0400

We are now offering Virtual Office Services to those that need them. The Office in Media has acquired the domain name ‘mediapa.us’, and is now offering domain forwarding to the subdomain of your choice - i.s. mybusinessin.mediapa.us. Also, email forwarding from youraddress@mediapa.us is another option. Exciting stuff.

We can also offer OneCalls Mobile Manager service where you have the control to have one number that your customers use - and is routed to you, wherever you may be. The number can be local or toll-free.

In addition, a custom Web Byte consisting of 2 pages about your business, site submission, postal mail reception and hold-for-pickup service are additional services.

This is great news for The Office in Media as it fills a large gap.

The Social Stigmata of Batman

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:51:00 -0400

Craig and I went to see Dark Knight yesterday. Although I was interested in Heath Ledger’s performance, it wasn’t the only reason. It was hot. 98 degrees hot and sitting in stadium seating at the Regal Cinema sounded a hell of a lot better then sitting at home aiming fans that only had enough cooling power to keep the sweat from dripping off you. [Spoiler below]

Now, my only problem with this movie happened early on. Batman’s voice. It was a pissed-off/I can’t breath because my suit’s too tight/growling that seemed to be in control only allowing 4 or 5 words to be snarled from open teeth before a labored breath had to be taken. Ok.. Why? God Only Knows.. but lets think about this. I will come back to it.

More so then any other movie in recent memory was the deep exploration of the human condition. The assumptions that we make based on what is seen.

Example. The Joker strands 2 ferrys out of Gotham; filled wall to wall with panicked people. One ferry has normal everyday citizens, the other a large group of prisoners. Below deck on each ship are barrels of fuel and explosives - and a present. A Detonator to blow up the other Ferry. The Joker admonishes them to blow up the other ship because they will get you first.
The citizens hold a vote. They say: those prisoners; they had their chance, they made their choice.. and you know they will kill us first. Out of the 500 packed on this ferry the vote to blow the other ferry up passed by a resounding 2/3rds.

Back on the prisoners ferry; confusion reigns. Everyone is arguing over to kill or should we wait to be killed. Suddenly this huge black prisoner gets up and confronts the Ferry captain. He takes the detonator and says.. “i’m gonna do what you shoulda done” and tosses it out the window into the dark water.

Similar actions play out aboard the other ferry - except this time played out by a middle age protagonist-type business man. What was interesting here is the defeat in his eyes when he put the detonator down. He didn’t have the balls to play God. And just as well. And of course the Joker has a 3rd detonator.. but I digress a bit.

Batman’s voice - what was behind that. Pain from watching his parents die? Asthma that only afflicts him when the suit goes on? or.. as I suspect.. Mr. Director wanted to separate Bruce Wayne and Batman as two separate people. perhaps. Maybe. Hard to tell. But since this movie was very heavy on the social dymanic.. I suspect so…

—

And just a side note.. Heath Ledger’s performance was incredible. He was the Joker and he was very. very. scary.. psycho-scary.

Well done Heath. God Rest Your Soul.

affect apr arm background based beer buddy business city client consider course coworking...

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 19:20:19 -0400

affect apr arm background based beer buddy business city client consider course coworking cubicles discussion don fireworks form geekieboy goal going gone health l8r lawyers life lives lonely lot media needs networking offered pa people preferable provide reach servergod serves single social space sun thank think took wed working wow created at TagCrowd.com

Good news!

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:58:39 -0400

I had a shot in the arm today. A good shot. I was offered cubicles and filing cabinets for free! That is one financial worry off my back and I can allocate more resources for furniture. Things are starting to come together..

Ok, this is worth watching every second of. 2008 TED prize...

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 14:27:00 -0400

Ok, this is worth watching every second of. 2008 TED prize winner David Eggers’ brilliance in reaching out to students by creating a collaborative environment is inspiring and extremely funny. Welcome to Once Upon a School…

Nothing illustrates the new resurgence of community better then...

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 10:00:00 -0400

Nothing illustrates the new resurgence of community better then what happened yesterday in Philadelphia. Over 12,000 volunteers took to the city streets to act upon the brilliant idea of Mayor Nutter - with the goal in mind to gather up one million pounds of trash.

I was there helping to represent Indyhall, and it was absolutely amazing. Normally silent streetwalkers thanked you every step of the way. Of course none of these thanks were needed. It was a job you could feel good about. Each of us need to make sure that we don’t forget to do our part, even in this time of national uncertainty.

Coworking Challenges

Sat, 05 Apr 2008 08:38:00 -0400

A lot of discussion on the coworking groups are centered lately on business. More specifically the interchange of funds between coworker and co-owner. It’s a fine line we have to draw - but there are a few factors that are in play here.

First of all, we have to consider client needs. Our aim has to provide an environment that serves multiple needs. We have our sales professional. His goal is sales. He needs a local base of operations that serves form and function.

We have our computer professional. He needs the quiet space to focus and preferable people around that compliment and contribute to his projects.

We have a home based worker. She has finally come to the conclusion that working alone has a detrimental affect on her business. Also, she has no ability to leave her job because it is at home. One’s home is their sanctuary; our refuge from the storm of life’s challenges.

There are other markets we must consider and that has to be based on demographics. For instance, my space will be in Media, PA. Media is a very creative pro art, pro fair trade town. One thing they do have due to the proximity of the county courthouse is lawyers. Lots and lots of lawyers. Yet another potential client. Lawyers need conference space, a locking file cabinet, preferable an onsite notary and a legal size copier.

So, as you can see - barring the danger of trying to please too many people - there is a certain amount of flexibility that we must have to successfully run a coworking establishment. The charges for this service must be commensurate with the geographical area and, of course, service provided, but not be so high as to prevent the up and coming small business owner to take full advantage of the services offered and be able to increase their profitability.

I will keep going with this.. email me with comments!

APRIL 3RD IS GOOD PEOPLE DAY! #GPD08

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:04:00 -0400

APRIL 3RD IS GOOD PEOPLE DAY! #GPD08

Interest in The Office of Media PA

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 19:01:00 -0400

Interest in The Office of Media PA: If you are local to Media, PA - please fill out this form!!

New Work City! Coworking in Manhattan!

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 17:47:08 -0400

New Work City! Coworking in Manhattan!: This teaser site rocks. I love it!

Gary Vaynerchuk’s thank you. A message that we should all...

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 17:40:05 -0400

Gary Vaynerchuk’s thank you. A message that we should all take to heart, don’t forget the people who take interest, who take time out of their lives to listen to what you have to say. I am posting this as a thank you to Gary for his inspiration and good will.

Social Networking 101 in Media PA

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:44:00 -0400

Social Networking 101 in Media PA:

Come to our meetup!

Discussion on Social Networking
How can each of us use it to promote our individual ‘brand’.
Feedback on content of this meeting and what’s on the agenda for next time

Progressions from Web 2.0

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 23:02:00 -0400

So why did I post all those diagrams by Marc Cantor? Well The Social Networking Progression of course. Let’s have some background.

The usage of the internet has gone from Web 1.0 - The Single user to Single Website - to Web2.0 - the use of inter-connected social networking blogs, wikis, miniblogs, photoblogs, podcasts and RSS feeds. This illustrates the resurgence and realization that the human need for interaction and cooperative function has never gone away.

We are starting to realize that living life as a single entity wrapped up in the stresses of our miserable little lives with the weight of the world on our shoulders is having hugely negative affect on our mental and physical health.

A lot of you reading this are going to realize where the next stepping stone is. Yep, that’s right, ladies and gentlemen, coworking. We have reached a point where the stopping point of virtually surrounding ourselves with our online buddies has made us even more lonely.

Case in Point:

[geekieboy] yo dude, thx for helping me with this.. sorry it took so long solving that issue, you know how txt is.

[servergod] np dude, was gr8 working w/you

[geekieboy] yeah wow.. that took it out of me.. I need a beer. Catch U l8r!

* geekieboy has left chat

[servergod] wow, beer sounds great. Yeah.. umm l8r.

Ouch.

We have lonely stares and neck strain from cubicles caused by passing visitors to our lonely Cubetown.

We have Tech Entrepreneur Guy on his laptop drinking his 5th uberlatte in the Wedon’tgiveoutnofreewifi BurntCoffee R Us trying to talk on his cell phone to a potential client while shrill toddlers demand a cuppa choc’late milk in the background.

I think you get my point.

So the next step? Coworking. Your own social network within an arms reach. Productivity skyrockets. Your health improves. You have little stress. There are fireworks! Most of your peers now have faces, not Buddy Icons.

Ok, I think I exaggerated with the whole fireworks thing. But this progression is not limited to one town or one city or even one country. This is worldwide and there is a coworking center in most of the major cities. Exciting stuff, don’t you think?

From Marc Canter http://marc.blogs.it/

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 22:28:39 -0400

From Marc Canter

http://marc.blogs.it/

From Marc Canter http://marc.blogs.it/

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 22:23:52 -0400

From Marc Canter

http://marc.blogs.it/

Photo

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 22:09:40 -0400

Gorgeous jewelry on Etsy

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 09:31:00 -0400

Gorgeous jewelry on Etsy: Janet Kofoed creates unique pieces in silver, gold, and semiprecious stones. The daughter of a military officer and NASA engineer, her work displays the influences of the many countries where she has lived, as well as her love of nature and science. She studied jewelry making at the Smithsonian Institution, and has been making fine handcrafted jewelry for more than twenty years.

Legacy is greater than Currency by Gary Vaynerchuk Awesome...

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:57:00 -0400

Legacy is greater than Currency by Gary Vaynerchuk

Awesome stuff!

New World/Moving Circus

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 09:34:00 -0400

No Office

Originally posted by Loic Le Meur! Incredible!

-no boss (self employed)
-no Country (world citizen)
-no race (does not matter)
-no diploma (who cares)
-no hierarchy (OK, not much hierarchy)
-no political party (!!!, we care more about people than parties)
-no tie, no suit: casual all the time
-no monopoly, no center, everything decentralized
-no religion (not has important as it was before)
-no mariage (not needed to live together)
-in sync: no email, no phone, just IM, twitter, social software…
-no off-line:Gmail Google apps rather than MS Office
-no distance: it does not matter where you are
-no mass media: they are here but do not matter as much as before
-no fear of embarrassment or of failure: the “always beta” culture
-icons: Hans Rosling, Sergey Brin, Lary Page
-book: The World if Flat from Thomas Friedman
-entrepreneurial or self employed
-ideas over systems
-sharing ideas instead of keeping them secret (authority and power
change from people protecting information to people sharing it)
-ethics: environment, …
-global citizen