The person who wrote this asked me to stay anonymous, but this story was too good to keep to myself.

A few weeks ago, [we] opened a coworking space.

…the story started three years ago with “me” talking to people in this community, taking people to lunch, hosting gathering of creatives at my house and finally “I” brought together 10 people willing to pay money every month to have a coworking space in this little town. I looked for spaces, “we” picked a spot. I signed the lease, “we” moved in. I built us desks to work on, “we” picked the arrangement of the office, I picked my desk last. “We” were happy with the arrangement of the office.

That’s the truth of how this was formed or is forming. This is the story I tell myself & my close friends. The story I tell others contains no “I’s”, it’s only filled with “we”. This isn’t “my” space, it’s “our” space. It’s been a lesson in humility, an exercise of putting [myself] last, focusing on others. For me this doesn’t come naturally.

We’ve been in this space for 30 days. “We” are happy, “I” am happy.

For anyone else in the early stages of forming a coworking space, I hope this is inspiration enough for you to start with the people, and put them first in every decision you make.

The payoff can show itself in as little as 30 days after opening – but I can assure you that it won’t stop paying off, even years later.