Networking events – we’ve all probably attended one or if not, have been invited to at some point of our life. It’s one of those initially promising gatherings that are undeniably awkward in nature. Most attendees would dress up and make the effort of going in the hopes that they’ll meet new contacts that could be of help later on in their career. Yet truthfully speaking, these same individuals would end up in a corner, drinking and chatting with someone they already knew.

One would assume that introverts would probably despise such events but much to the surprise of everyone, even extroverts carry indifferent views towards them. It’s not just reserved peers who come home feeling that they’ve wasted their time, outgoing attendees would often wonder why they never made the most of their day at these events.

Keynote speaker and best-selling author David Burkus reassures professionals that there’s nothing wrong with them. The event itself is the one that’s actually failing.

After reviewing dozens of studies on networking events in preparation for his book Friend of a Friend” Understanding the Hidden Networks That Can Transform Your Life and Your Career”, Burkus wrote in a Harvard Business Review article that there’s an overall implication that the aforementioned gatherings don’t actually live up to their name. A majority of us resorts to staying inside of our own comfort zones – talking to colleagues present or people we deem similar to us – in situations that require us to meet new people. The idea of networking events is doomed by its very design alone.

A notable study conducted by two Columbia Business School professors presented that even the well-intentioned professionals fail to meet enough new people to justify the affectivity of system. It became clear to them that our comfort zones can be a little too inviting.

So how do we avoid the magnetic pull of staying inside our bubble? Simply, stop trying.

Weird as it seems, one of the best strategies is to actually stop trying to meet new people.

If we want to make new connections with diverse individuals, we must shift our focus from the relationship itself to activities that you can participate in. Sociologist and network scientist Brian Uzzi says that meaningful networks aren’t made through casual interactions. Rather, they thrive in high-stake activities that allows people to connect in deeper ways.

The one flaw with networking events is that it carries no other goal than to get people into conversations. Without a bigger purpose, there’s little to no incentive for individuals to move beyond activities that make them comfortable.

The higher the stakes, the more we push further to meet and connect with more diverse groups.

The well-known movement of shared offices and coworking spaces stands as living proof that spontaneous interactions create better connections.

Priding itself in authentic communities, its open layout have allowed members to casually interact and socialize with one another. Its gathering events allows them to form deeper connections than those that root from networking events.

Talk to us today and we’ll help you build stronger relationships while having fun!

Famous NBA player Stephen Curry triumphs roots from hard work and passion, but there’s another component present behind his success story; courage – the daring acts of taking new risks every game.

Curry has built his career around taking three pointers from crazy distances – shots that not a lot of mundane players would take. Defenders tend to dismiss these long-distanced shots because of the low likelihood of the ball actually making it to the basket, but the basketball star worked and worked until the chances weren’t unlikely for him.

The game that Curry built for himself is a classic example of braving competitive risks. Instead of going head-to-head against other players in the scarce area right under the ring, he would set himself in a place where others wouldn’t even dare to think of going for” 30 feet away from the basket. He developed a distinctive strength of making long-distance shots.

And though it seems like the aforementioned game plan can only be applied in sports, experts suggest that the same disruptive strategy can be implemented in business. Look for a gap, something that isn’t being done, something that nobody else is doing it. See if it would be beneficial for you to learn how to be good at it.

If you’re having second thoughts on your career or feel that your skills have gone rusty, then maybe it’s high time that you shake up your career path. These precarious moves are what keeps a career from stagnating.

It’s a high-percentage move that if done well, offers great possibilities of success, rapid acceleration, and hyper-growth. A majority of us have become aware of the importance of market risks when it comes to starting a business, but not a lot of us know that the same unprecedented moves are what fuels individual growth. Businesses can only create disruption in the market if it starts from those behind its operations.

People often fail implementing these risks because they don’t know what it looks like when applied to their own careers, so here are a few ideas that you can use to accelerate your career:

Etsy’s general counsel, Sarah Feingold, landed her job by convincing the organization’s founder that they need her as an in-house counsel. She took interest of offering up her services because of her side job as a jeweler on Etsy. Mixing her artistic talent and passion for law, she managed to land a role that didn’t exist yet.

It’s not hard to find stories of career sprouting from an individual’s love for a certain activity or skill. Visit your local coworking space and there you would see a handful of freelancers creating a living out of their hobbies.

Find something you’re good at and start from there.

Don’t let the discipline written on your diploma stop you from exploring. Truth is, a majority of today’s in demand jobs requires a wide range of skills – some of which was never taught in college during our early years. Each individual carries a set of skills that can contribute to several jobs. It’s up to us to get out of our box and look for opportunities in places we’ve never dared to.

One good example of this is the collaborative culture built within coworking spaces. The interdisciplinary environment that these shared offices have made it possible for its members to corroborate with one another and help each other find new opportunities outside their domains.

The successful collaborations made within its diverse community is proof that challenging the status quo can actually produce great results.

Creating risk-embracing moves helps generate innovation within teams, firms and even industries. Ask yourself if there is an unmet need or unoccupied niche that you can fulfill with your skills. This is your new opportunity, so be brave and take it.

Talk to us today and we’ll help you conquer your fear of taking the long shot.

The tension in today’s global market is getting more and more intense as the years go by. Companies and organizations all around the world are doing their best to tap maximum efficiency amongst their employees. Research teams are being organized to study and conduct experiments in curing burn out.

In spite of all the efforts being made by organizations all around the world to improve today’s work environment even more, there’s a rampant phenomenon that’s slowly diminishing the talents of this generation’s labor force.

Workplace incivility is on the rise and not only will it affect information sharing and teamwork, it could create lasting damages that organizations should worry about. The buildup of rude actions that leave employees feeling disrespected – intentionally ignored, undermined by coworkers, or belittled by leaders – contributes to employee burnout.

According to a research conducted over the past few years amongst thousands of workers around the world, nearly half of participants from the year 1998 said that they experienced unruly treatment at least once a month. The aforementioned figure then rose to 55 percent during the year 2011 and 62 percent come 2016.

In reality, it is impossible to pin down the cause to one factor. Some have said that existing workplace relationships may slowly be fraying as less people come in to the office and more are transitioning to shared offices. Some have pointed it to be influenced by one’s genetic makeup while some said that it could be the growing narcissism of the younger generation. The globalization of the majority of today’s industries has been suspected to create cultural clashes and today’s technology has also contributed a fair amount of communication gaps and misunderstandings.

Whatever maybe the underlying causes for this phenomenon, the damage incivility creates to an enterprise’s budget rises as the employee stress levels increase

The magnitude of damage that workplace incivility can inflict depends on its degree but the wide reach of its negative effects remain the same. It creates impact to workplace performance, employee turnover, customer experience and collaboration.

Almost everyone who experiences toxic treatment performs worse than those who don’t. Research also indicates that forty-seven percent of those who experienced poor behavior amongst their colleagues admitted to decreasing the time they spent at work and thirty-eight said that they intentionally reduced the quality of their work. Sixty-six percent reported the observation that their performance declined and seventy-eight said that their commitment to their employers have decreased.

Several losses have gone undetected the moment employees leave the company. The trend of professionals who quit their corporate jobs due to awful working environment is becoming a common occurrence and they don’t typically admit as to why. As a result, turnover costs add up quickly.

A pressing damage that it creates involves the potential of employees. Engagement, teamwork, knowledge sharing and innovation wane among those who are half-heartedly working

It also creates an impact to customer experience. Consumers are less likely to interact with businesses they perceive to be uncivil – be it that the rude approach is directed to them or other employees.

Experts have come up with several ways to reduce the alarming rate of incivility within organizations, but the most crucial first step that companies should take is improving your environment and culture.

Curating an environment that encourages open communication and constructive criticism can influence a team’s culture. One example of how workplace environment and culture influence a person’s behavior is the well-acclaimed shared offices, coworking spaces.

Taking pride in its community and thriving environment, startups, freelancers and even large corporations enjoy the autonomy it gives them. From when and where they work down to how they interact, professionals have complete control of their work day. Moreover, its supportive community promotes collaboration and meaningful conversations. Incivility is almost non-existent within its walls as each members learn how to understand one another despite their differences.

Civility is paramount to success.  When a team of talented individuals are all motivated to work with one another towards reaching one goal, there is almost nothing that they can’t do.

Be part of a community that encourages you and your team to become closer and talk to us today!

Though fairly well received by the great majority, coworking spaces still have non-believers. To some, they view open plan offices as productivity killers. Despite of the claims that it was designed to improve efficiency, the distractions found in almost every space – noise, chatter, phones ringing, loud chats, coughs and even sniffles – contributes to a halfhearted day at work.

Some have slammed the movement for “sabotaging” employees’ ability to stay focused. According to a certain study, office workers lose 28% of their time because of interruptions. But still, shared offices and coworking spaces continue to grow rapidly. Experts from Deskmag have already predicted that 1.7 million people would have joined coworking by the end of 2018.

The fact still remains, its benefits are clear yet at the same time, they still have their fair share of disadvantages. And for members, the commonly complained noise is a small price to pay for the immeasurable assets they gain from the providers. Moreover, it seemed like a majority of them have found a classic work around the issue – the utilization of headphones or earphones.

Headphones or earphones have now become the walls of coworking spaces. Allowing members to block out background noise, it’s becoming a common occurrence among shared offices around the world throughout a work day as employees tackle tasks or projects that require great concentration and focus.

In the UK, community assistants and managers say that an estimated 50% of subscribers use headphones regularly – typically listening to music as they work on their respective assignments. Not only are they doing this to cancel the distractive noise around them, the act of listening to music itself helps them concentrate.

Admittedly, those who work in open offices are more prone to distractions that those who are found in traditional workspaces. But some have found a way to balance both their need for acoustical focus and creative collaboration through them.

Headphones act as a layer of protection and is considered to be a universal way of saying ‘Don’t Disturb’. Today’s young professionals flock coworking spaces in the aim of becoming part of a community that would could help them conspire with other like-minded individuals while still carrying the need for uninterrupted work. By using earphones, they can easily fixate themselves to the task at hand.

In addition to this, it helps neutralize the overwhelming feeling of being in a busy room with tons of conversations happening all at once.

Despite of the claims that it’s a well-embraced norm in coworking spaces, its presences actually poses a much greater question: as it blocks out conversations, isn’t it defeating the greater cause of the movement – fostering collaboration and community?

Contributor for Harvard Business Review, Anne Kreamer, believe that it actually does.

She suggests that a lot can be missed out when you’re wearing headphones – such as, important details and the so called “collective high” experienced in these spaces that help build strong coworking community.

Kreamer adds that it’s a huge and real loss in terms of career development as you are missing the opportunity to create important relationships.

Regardless of how it somehow contradicts the main reason why the movement has grown into the global market that it is, members and community managers have accepted it into the culture. If you take a general look at work environments, it’s almost impossible to stop someone who doesn’t have their headphones in.

After that all that is said and done, it all boils down to the fact that each and every one of us have our way of working and in spite of all the distractions, coworking spaces gives us that freedom of going through our own pace – something that we cannot easily find in traditional offices.

There’s a prominent trend that can be observed within the offices of companies across several industries. The same aforementioned inclination has been seen in office space providers – from your traditional private offices to the neophytes of the coworking movement.

Gone are the days when costing and high-end specifications were the main focus of both developers and designers in built environments – today, each and every one’s frame of mind is leaning into the imposition of humanistic environments.

It doesn’t really sound as surprising, frankly – with each one of us spending 90 percent of our time indoors, it’s only fitting that we spend ample time in studying the wellness of our developments. Several research and studies have shown that ‘healthier’ offices boost human productivity. From improved views, well-designed artificial lighting, increase use of daylight down to good air quality – each of the said factor contributes to the betterment of tenants.

And thought we only spend the remaining 10 percent of our time outdoors, it still carries a significant influence to what we think feel about our daily lives. The structures surrounding a built environment is as equally important as its indoor counterpart.

In lieu of discussing the kinds of materials to be used in constructing and the finishes that makes buildings aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, experts suggest that both employers and workspace providers take enough time to understand the aspects of urban spaces that has a direct effect in the physical and mental well-being of its occupants.

In order to achieve progressive and productive offices, one should consciously curate them for people. Arising from the fundamental ideology that future urban living starts by creating environment-friendly, active and engaged spaces, our real estate industry has the capacity to address today’s modern challenges such as sustainability and the fortification of a sense of community and identity.

Organizations, experts and leaders of today’s industry has come to the realization that the one-size fits all approach we have grown accustom of, no longer works.

Susan Szenasy, editor of the architectural design journal, Metropoli Magazine, said in a panel last year that they have observed a grassroots movement leaning towards the comprisal of human skill and talent in creating strategies for the workplace. There is no black and white distinction on which one between fully open layouts and traditional private offices works well. Nor is there a definite ratio in combining both of them – making it more detrimental for us to go with a human centric approach.

Global design company IDEO came up with a framework known as “Design Thinking” and has been praised to be a good starting point for built environments and in creating people first headquarters. Though there are other structures present, its simplicity accentuated the concept among others. It gives both businesses and designers a look at designs from the point of view of its end user.

IDEO’s concept requires you to go through a thinking process that undergoes three stages – each one containing a set of questions that serves as guidelines in designing a human-centered office.

Its first stage, inspiration, suggests observing the current landscape of the workplace. It is important to play close attention to what the end users would embrace – what works for them and what doesn’t. Draw inspiration from other organizations or even try checking out the current trends.

Visit serviced offices such as the widely popular coworking spaces and physically observe the work and cultural aspects of the phenomena that employee surveys simply can’t measure.

Ideation – the second stage – asks you to keep an open mind in generating as many ideas as possible. What layouts or designs can help aid employee productivity and happiness based on what we have observed earlier. Look at each of their distinctive pros and cons for your employees or members. Will open layouts be beneficial? Should you designate a recreational area? Keeping your occupants in mind will help you rule out ideas until you are left with one that you can implement and test.

Lastly, Implementation is its third stage. Test layouts on smaller scales ort teams and create prototype models to get feedback from your employees. By the time that you reach full implementation stage, you will now have a better idea of what they want and what works well for your business.

One example of this would be signing up a specific team to a coworking space and giving them ample time to try out its open layout and wide array of work areas. Observe this for a week and continually get feedback from them until you find the appropriate built environments for your employees.