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  • ๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Public libraries are the new WeWork

๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Public libraries are the new WeWork

PLUS Colombia for digital nomads, Seth Godin's thoughts on remote work, transformations of work we'll see this decade, and a remote worker gets spied on by her boss

Hey Insiders, hope you had an amazing weekend and are ready to kick some ass this week!

We have tons of interesting things to discuss today so letโ€™s get into itโ€ฆ

Todayโ€™s email is a 4min 36sec read:

  • ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ด Colombia for digital nomads

  • ๐Ÿ‘€ Remote worker was spied on by her boss

  • ๐Ÿฆ‹ Transformations of work weโ€™ll see this decade

  • ๐Ÿ™Œ Seth Godinโ€™s thoughts on remote work

But first, many of you love to work from cafes and coworking spaces, but the future of work may be in a place weโ€™re all much more familiar withโ€ฆ libraries ๐Ÿ‘‡

๐Ÿ”ฌ DEEP DIVE

The New WeWork: Your Local Library

โ€œShush has left the building,โ€ says Gregor Smart from the Boston Public Library

Around the US public libraries are experiencing a rebirth thanks to the post-COVID remote work boom, and for good reason.

Coworking spaces have long been the darling of remote workers and digital nomads, but they tend to be located in city centers while many remote workers relocated to suburbs during the pandemic.

WeWork canโ€™t realistically open a coworking location in every small town or suburb in America, but luckily most of them already have a public library.

The image of libraries as quiet and stuffed with old dusty books is an aged concept.

Libraries above all are community centers and have always responded to the needs of their communitiesโ€ฆ

During COVID lockdowns, for example, some libraries offered โ€œdrive up internetโ€ so if you didnโ€™t have access to the internet at home, you could sit in your car in the parking lot and get online.

Today many libraries have conference rooms, podcast studios, or in the case of the Boston Public Library - a maker space equipped with 3D printers and computers with CAD software and green screen rooms.

And libraries have one big advantage over coworking spaces, theyโ€™re free.

As remote work continues to expand across the US workforce, expect libraries to follow suitโ€ฆ

If they can get rid of the โ€œno food or drinkโ€ rules and open cafes, libraries will truly be unstoppable.

Do you think your public library is "remote work ready"?

Tell us a bit more about your public library. Do you think it could be the coworking space your community needs?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

๐Ÿ’ฌ FAV TWEET

Thinking about checking out ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ด Medellin, Colombia?

Check out this awesome breakdown by friend of RI, Chris Cerra

๐Ÿšจ WORD ON THE WEB

๐Ÿจ London based hotel launches new subscription housing option aimed at digital nomads

  • Sea Containers, located in Londonโ€™s Southbank, has launched The Commuter Club aimed at remote workers, freelancers, and digital nomads who spend time in London on a regular basis

  • Prices start at ยฃ1,550 per month for 60 nights per year with the top package clocking in at ยฃ 2,700 per month for 120 nights per year.

  • Members receive additional perks like a 15% discount at the hotel restaurants, and a dedicated โ€œtrunkโ€ to store items while youโ€™re away.

๐Ÿ‘€ Remote worker says she was spied on by her boss through webcam and reprimanded for leaving her desk to have lunch

  • Michae Jay works remotely for Klarna, a Swedish fintech company

  • Jay walked away from her computer in the middle of the day to make lunch and upon returning found that she had been locked out of her work account for being away from work

  • Her employer had recorded her in the kitchen through her computer webcam

๐Ÿฆ‹ The 4 major transformations of work we can expect this decade

  1. Flexible working - employees are showing that above they want control over their schedules

  2. Work relations - we are seeing a rise in fractional employment which could become far more of a norm this decade

  3. Content of work - recent research points to AI unlocking human capability at work, instead of killing jobs

  4. Organization - connected to point #2, as work becomes more fractional the way we organize teams will change towards more agile, participative ways of working

ย ๐Ÿ™Œ Seth Godin is a big fan of remote work

  • โ€œHuman interaction is critical, but the office isnโ€™t actually the most effective way to create that.โ€œ says the business & marketing guru in a new blog post

  • He goes on to talk about how it takes a different type of management skills to create the conditions for effective remote work, but when done well, itโ€™s incredibly powerful

  • โ€œThe method,โ€œ he says, โ€œis not to count keystrokes or other false proxies of productivity.โ€ ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘

๐Ÿ“† UPCOMING EVENTS:

May 24-28: Vivel [๐Ÿ“ย Multiple Locations, Turkey] - networking meets music at this one-of-a-kind conference for location-independent professionals

May 28th-June 3: Nomad Cruise 11 [๐Ÿ“ Mediterranean Sea] - The original conference at sea is back! Join 250 digital nomads on board a cruise ship in the Med to discuss remote work, business, and personal growth

May 28-June 4: Porto Santo Nomad Fest [๐Ÿ“ Porto Santo, Portugal] - A festival celebrating the digital nomad community, on a beautiful island off the coast of Madeira. Limited attendance.

June 16-19: Camp Indie [๐Ÿ“ Kent, Connecticut] - adult summer camp & conference for digital nomads & those living an unconventional life

June 21-25: Remotion Festival [๐Ÿ“Burgas, Bulgaria] - A festival for remote workers, freelancers, & digital nomads highlighting the Burgas area as a hub for smart living

June 25-July 2: Bansko Nomad Fest [๐Ÿ“ Bansko, Bulgaria] - for digital nomads, freelancers, and founders in the mountains of Bulgaria

๐ŸŽ’ GEAR

Peak Designs X Logitech: Gaming On The Go

Peak Designs, a favorite brand of photo & bag nerds, has teamed up with Logitech to produce the ultimate backpack for those looking to game on the go.

The limited series backpack opens up fully for easy access and has dedicated space for a gaming keyboard, mouse, headphones, and everything else you need to kick some ass in CoD from a coffee shop

โšก๏ธ WEโ€™RE POWERED BY NOAD

Your home (and your rent) is no longer a reason not to explore the world.

Noad is a give-to-get home sharing community that enables remote professionals to work from anywhere for $10 per night. On Noad, your home is a valuable travel asset that opens doors everywhere.

Think of Noad as a members-only Airbnb for remote professionals, except with reliable workstations and far cheaper.

Use code REMOTEINSIDER at sign up for immediate access!

๐ŸŒ WFA JOBS:

Looking for a job thatโ€™s not just remote, but that you can work from anywhere in the world? Weโ€™ve done the heavy lifting for you. Check out these awesome WFA positions ๐Ÿ‘‡

Thanks for spending a few minutes of your day with us, weโ€™d love to hear from you!

Please take a second and let us know what you like about the newsletter and if there is anything you think we can do better ๐Ÿ‘‡

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See you all on Wednesday, Cheers ๐Ÿป

Todayโ€™s email was written by Mitko Karshovski