A Remote Work Manifesto Signatory’s $200/Month Reality Check
The Confession
I’m a signatory of the Manifesto for Online Collaboration. I’ve spent years evangelizing remote work, championing “people and relationships over technology and tools.” I’m the CTO and co-founder of a 100% remote company.
And now I pay $200/month to… not work remotely.
Let me explain.
The Great Shift: From Hyperconnected to Isolated
Through January 2020, I was living the ultimate connected professional life – 40 weeks of travel out of 52, keynoting conferences, coaching clients across the country. My social life was conference hallways and client offices. Then Covid hit, and like everyone else, I went home.
But unlike everyone else, I went from extreme connectivity to extreme isolation. No more conference friends, no more client face-time, no more serendipitous coffee conversations.
Here’s the thing, though – I’m not complaining about staying home. All that time I saved from not traveling? I put it into becoming a pianist again and launching my music project, Sótano Épico (awesome covers of epic songs – I arrange metal/punk/rock songs for piano and voice). I’ve released an album, 2 EPs, and a bunch of singles. Remote work gave me the space to pursue what drives my heart instead of commuting.
When I co-founded Alli Connect in 2022, we were 100% remote by design. We had a magical summer working side-by-side at TechStars Boston, then back to our home offices. The manifesto says “blended forms of engagement” – we had Zoom, Slack, Code With Me, and more. We were living the dream!
Except I was slowly going blue.
The Mexico City Wake-Up Call
Spring 2024: My wife Molly noticed I was getting increasingly isolated and suggested a month in Mexico City. Game changer.
The owner of the coffee place at Mercado 89 in Coyoacán became a fast friend. I’d buy coffee and pastry, read his newspaper, we’d chat, he’d introduce me to musicians and artists who were regulars. It was the human buzz I’d been missing.
I realized: Remote work had solved the technology problem, but I’d accidentally engineered out the human serendipity.
The Coworking Goldilocks Experiment
Back in Boston, I decided to experiment with local coworking spaces. Three bears, three different experiences:
- Bear #1: Too Unfriendly: Narrow old building on Boylston Street. Front desk woman barely looked up, no smile, explained the space without leaving her seat. Public area so quiet I felt like typing would be too loud. Lifeless.
- Bear #2: Too Far: Gorgeous downtown location near the waterfront, glass courtyard, perfect coffee (I’m particular about my 4-5 oz Americano). But 40 extra minutes round-trip through city traffic. Beautiful, but unsustainable.
- Bear #3: Just Right: WeWork at 501 Boylston Street. Handsome old building, friendly staff who made me feel special, black ID card that works worldwide (ooh!). Short walk to the Public Garden. Perfect buzz of people working around me.
And here’s the kicker: 2/3 of the people there were on video calls with their remote colleagues. I wasn’t alone in wanting a social work setting even though my team is remote.
The $200/Month Mental Health Expense
Yes, it costs me about $40/day plus $9 round-trip transit. That’s roughly $200/month for my once-a-week office habit.
But I’m framing it as a health expense. If I need to see a doctor or buy medicine, there’s a copayment. This is my mental health copayment. The cost is noticeable, but so is the benefit.
My team is probably happier with me – I’d been a bit blue and unsmily, just-the-facts. I’m friendly again. I feel more creative and energized.
Plus, I get to feel like a grown-up again: getting dressed for work, taking public transit with other grown-ups to my grown-up workplace. I hadn’t done that in 5 years!
The Manifesto Paradox
Here’s what I’ve learned: The Manifesto for Online Collaboration isn’t wrong. Remote work IS great. “People and relationships over technology and tools” – absolutely. “Fun over formality” – yes!
But maybe we threw the baby out with the bathwater.
Yesterday’s major social interaction at WeWork: “Oh no, is there water in the coffee machine?” “Yep, I’m just experimenting with espresso plus hot water instead of pressing the Americano button – I like less water.” “Oh yeah, I get that, I usually customize mine too.”
Woohoo! Spontaneous interaction! And you know what? It mattered.
The Conscious Addition
Remote work solved the problems of commuting, office politics, expensive downtown real estate. But in optimizing for efficiency, some of us accidentally optimized out the human moments that feed our souls.
The future isn’t pure remote OR pure office. It’s conscious choice. It’s people like me (and apparently 2/3 of my WeWork companions) creating our own hybrid solutions.
So yes, I pay for the privilege of going to work. Because “people and relationships over technology and tools” sometimes means being in the same room as other people, even if they’re not your people. (Or maybe they are my people.)
Even if all you share is a conversation about coffee.
For My Fellow Remote Workers
If you’re feeling isolated, try this: Get out of the house. Go to a place where others are working. Live!
It doesn’t have to be expensive coworking. Try a coffee shop, library, university space. The key is being around other humans who are also doing human things.
The manifesto says, “iteration that leads to positive change over one-and-done approaches.” This is my iteration. What’s yours?
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Richard Kasperowski is CTO and co-founder of Alli Connect, author of High-Performance Teams, and yes, still a proud signatory of the Manifesto for Online Collaboration. You can reach him at https://kasperowski.com/contact-me, and he promises to respond from either his home office or his very expensive coworking space.
