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As one of calinet6's said co-workers who recently relocated from Boston to Myrtle Beach, SC - I feel obligated to reply. Like the OP - I also grew up in the mi

by LogicX 14y ago

As one of calinet6's said co-workers who recently relocated from Boston to Myrtle Beach, SC - I feel obligated to reply. Like the OP - I also grew up in the middle of nowhere, PA. I previously worked remotely for companies during college, and I've been surprised by how much I'm enjoying the co-worker experience here -- just a different one. Nearly every day I go to CoworkMYR (www.coworkmyr.com), and we're excited about building a tech culture here, and touting the benefits of lower cost of living, and all MB has to offer. I agree with OP and calinet6: People have a lot to do with your happiness. I've met more neighbors, made new friends, and had more in-depth interactions with them in 4 weeks here than in 6 years in Boston. That blows me away. I think its part environment, and part busy: Most people in Boston are there to get education, get started with careers, etc: They're extremely focused on that, and not so much on friends, relationships, etc. Another huge benefit of leveraging the cost of living towards happiness is that we've realized my wife doesn't need to work full-time. She's pursuing other interests, she just got a job teaching. Her happiness has increased so much! (Her metric for this was that I've caught her giggling in her sleep numerous times here, as opposed to worrying sleep talk in Boston). TL; DR: I agree with OP on the values of working for a good company remotely and having more control and flexibility over your time and life. I invite calinet6 to come visit and give it a try ;)

calinet6 14y ago
Thanks man :) We will definitely visit and I'm looking forward to seeing the coworking spot and checking out life down there. You know I'm a huge believer in coworking, and I think it's for similar reasons—you meet people and generate ideas and relationships that are also valuable. I just think it's also a great thing to be coworking with your own coworkers, or at least that it shouldn't be discounted as unimportant in the general case. For us, it's a shift that we're really working at, and we're getting better at it by the week. Just because I say I would be hesitant to start a company with remote workers or bring people on remotely doesn't mean it's not applicable to the current situation, or at a later stage. Even with a different company I'm sure it would be a more difficult and more complex decision than I anticipate. I still think it would be great to all be working in the same room, but at the same time, it's great to have everyone happy and living the life they want to live, and it's a small price to pay. That is truly of unmeasurable importance and I couldn't be happier for you for following your dreams.
j2bax 14y ago
Being someone that may soon be in a remote working situation, I'd be very interested to hear what tools you (and others) find crucial for your day to day remote communications. I am not an engineer, but in more of a producer role so personal communication is a large part of my day to day work. I'm wondering if I can get anywhere near the level of communication that I've grown accustomed to, working onsite. I'm obviously familiar with Skype/iChat, Basecamp, Campfire (we use these tools extensively even though we are in the same office)... Just wondering if there is anything else that helps more than these tools, or if its just a matter of being very diligent with them.

by LogicX 14y ago

calinet6 14y ago

Thanks man :) We will definitely visit and I'm looking forward to seeing the coworking spot and checking out life down there. You know I'm a huge believer in coworking, and I think it's for similar reasons—you meet people and generate ideas and relationships that are also valuable. I just think it's also a great thing to be coworking with your own coworkers, or at least that it shouldn't be discounted as unimportant in the general case. For us, it's a shift that we're really working at, and we're getting better at it by the week. Just because I say I would be hesitant to start a company with remote workers or bring people on remotely doesn't mean it's not applicable to the current situation, or at a later stage. Even with a different company I'm sure it would be a more difficult and more complex decision than I anticipate. I still think it would be great to all be working in the same room, but at the same time, it's great to have everyone happy and living the life they want to live, and it's a small price to pay. That is truly of unmeasurable importance and I couldn't be happier for you for following your dreams.

j2bax 14y ago

Being someone that may soon be in a remote working situation, I'd be very interested to hear what tools you (and others) find crucial for your day to day remote communications. I am not an engineer, but in more of a producer role so personal communication is a large part of my day to day work. I'm wondering if I can get anywhere near the level of communication that I've grown accustomed to, working onsite. I'm obviously familiar with Skype/iChat, Basecamp, Campfire (we use these tools extensively even though we are in the same office)... Just wondering if there is anything else that helps more than these tools, or if its just a matter of being very diligent with them.