The world is slowly catching on to the realisation that work shouldn’t be measured by the number of emails sent or time spent at the office. Us web guys are paid for the decisions we make and ideas we create, not for the number of words we write, emails we read or hours we burn at our desks.
Timothy Ferriss, Markus Frind and other successful entrepreneurs who live more than they work have proven the concept of outsourcing the operation of a business and going bedouin. However, web professionals still need to work together to create experiences and build sites, so for globe-trotting web workers the question is not about outsourcing, but collaborating.
How can agencies, collectives and studios become decentralised?
Sharing ideas
Evolve mind maps with Mind42 or MindMeister. Co-author documents using Google Documents or Buzzword. Develop stories and use cases together using PBwiki. Share larger documents and spare your inbox with Omnidrive. Need to actually talk to each other? Skype is the obvious choice, but Yuuguu lets you share applications too.
Getting creative
Taking collective feedback on design has always been tricky. Until now. Possibly the killer app for de-centralised web design, ConceptShare allows online collaboration on design by way of contextual comments, markup and a full history of discussion. If you’re already using the popular collaboration tool Campfire, see how the 37signals team uses Campfire to manage design enhancements.
Making it happen
Undoubtedly the biggest challenge for agencies, collectives and studios is managing delivery of work on time. Strong project management (that’s with people, not tools) is critical to the process, but once the process is nailed there is no doubt the quality of work will increase.
By having a network of freelancers, contractors and employees trotting the globe, basing themselves in creative communities and finding endless inspiration through people, places and culture, work will become an output of creative expression rather than an input for generating an income.
Decentralising will promote the passion most of us feel only when returning from a brief sojourn to Buenos Aires or a stopover in Berlin. Imagine maintaining the love endlessly, such that you’re always inspired, learning and wanting to innovate through your work. Remote working does just that, and I want to feel it. I want my team members and business partners to feel it. I want my work to benefit from it.
So I’m doing something about it. In mid February I’ll be presenting a one-way ticket at Sydney International Airport, and will depart with a backpack, a mate and a MacBook Pro to embark on somewhat of a global tour for a number of years. I’ll be working remotely for a few of my clients, using the above-mentioned tools to work in the most effective ways possible from abroad. I know my work and productivity will benefit from the environments I’ll be based in. I know I’ll be inspired and will be working for the love of it all. I can’t wait for it to start. How many times have you said that about working?
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Great piece Andy – Good luck on your global tour mate! Keep us posted.
You’re right – not many people can say that about work.
“work will become an output of creative expression rather than an input for generating an income.”
Precisely work is now fast becoming an avenue for creative ideas instead of just pencil pushing monotonous form of work.
Very useful, I have recently discovered the majority of these tools myself, needing specific tools for specific tasks. One I would add into the mix is http://klok.mcgraphix.com/klok/index.htm which I am using to track the time I spend on projects, allowing me to predict more accurately.
Hope you are having a wild time.
Nice tip Brian, I’m now using Klok to track all of my retainers and time-sensitive projects.
Great find, thanks for sharing… and yeah, the trip is going very well!
Heya – I use Rescue time (http://www.rescuetime.com/) which is awesome.
Hope the travels are going well Andy.
J.
Awesome app Jim! Such a good idea and so intelligently implemented. Glad you shared it with us.
The travels are fantastic mate, but I’m way behind on updating Flickr!
Andy,
Increasingly, iPhones are seeming essential for the global freelancer. I am about to go on a three month trip through Brazil and Argentina, and wanted to buy one of the new iPhones as a kind-of computer replacement. However, with the new iPhones, they lock you into a two year contract with AT+T, which ostensibly wouldn’t work in Latin America, at least without absolutely crazy monthly charges!
That said, how did you go about getting your iPhone set up in Costa Rica?
Thanks!
Alec
Yeah, iPhones and other wifi-enabled becoming almost essential… certainly very handy. As for Costa Rica, over there I was just using my iPhone for email and wifi, I wasn’t using any calls… so all was good. Highly recommend getting one.
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