My name is Mike LaRosa. Since 2013 I’ve been obsessed with coworking and remote work. Starting today, I’m the “new guy” at BoardingArea!
Back in 2012, I successfully escaped corporate America (quit my job) and began my own consulting business. A year and a half later, it felt like I was always the road, working for clients such as Google, Smithsonian Enterprises and LivingSocial. With a distributed team and constant travel, I struggled to work out of noisy cafes or hotel lobbies in search for space to be productive.
Until I discovered coworking.
Far more than just workspace, power outlets and WiFi, coworking provides a sense of community, productivity and better work/life balance. Since 2013, I’ve researched and studied an array of shared workspaces, visiting over 500 locations in 31 countries. Today I’m living a dream: consulting on coworking for companies such as Wyndham, Marriott, JLL, The Second City and the governments of Barbados and Mexico.
Drawn to the world of travel loyalty, points and miles thanks to all my time spent on the road, I’m the Executive Producer (and occassional guest) of Miles To Go – Travel Tips, News & Reviews You Can’t Afford to Miss and NowBoarding (both BoardingArea podcasts).
Travel + Coworking = 🌈🦄💕
BoardingArea was developed by the same people who founded some of the most popular business travel and frequent flyer websites on the Internet including InsideFlyer, FlyerTalk, SeatExpert, and other pioneer travel websites.
BoardingArea’s goal is to provide frequent travelers with the information needed to make the most of their travel.
Home to some of the best travel blogs, podcasts and knowledge in the world, BoardingArea is far more than a publishing platform. It’s a community of people from all walks of life who collaborate with each other on a common interest: travel.
Speaking of community and collaboration, those just so happen to be two of the Five Core Values of Coworking. That’s why today, in the spirit of those Core Values, I’m thrilled to introduce two communities that have played such a role in my life!
How Coworking Saved My Life
Single handedly, Coworking Saved My Life. How, exactly? Well, funny you should ask. I shared my story with 500 fellow digital nomads at Nomad Summit back in 2018!
Coworking has provided me with blessings and opportunity far beyond anything I could ever give back or pay forward.
One of the things I cherish the most is the blessing of friendship. Im so grateful to have people I can call friends, colleagues and partners whom I get to work, play, celebrate and collaborate with. That wouldn’t have been possible had it not been for another community: BoardingArea.
Accelerated Serendipity, Introductions, Collisions & Fate
I met Ed Pizza, blogger at Pizza in Motion (here on BoardingArea) and at The Points Guy, where else?! BUT AT A COWORKING SPACE. I had an inkling we’d be fast friends about 5 minutes from first introduction:
I’d been traveling almost 100% of the time since the Fall of 2015. I was dancing a fine line of digital nomad and road warrior and was clueless about travel loyalty, points and miles. A few conversations with Ed (who for over a decade had been traveling 100+ nights a year) and I was hooked.
Slashing travel expenses while maximizing how I earn points and miles on everyday spend has been a game changer. It’s allowed me to better invest in growing my businesses while also making memories the world around I otherwise wouldn’t been able to afford.
For those of you that already have mastered the world of points and miles, but are looking for ways to be more productive on the road, I welcome you to explore and utilize coworking spaces near you!
So, there you have it. This is just the beginning of some amazing things to come. I’m just grateful to have the opportunity to connect these two communities.
What to Expect from Coworkaholic
Our mission at Coworkaholic: help remote workers, digital nomads and road warriors alike. You can work Wherever, Whenever or However…just do it TOGETHER!
You’ll always be able to count on us to provide content focused on:
- Reviews of coworking spaces, lounges, flights and hotels
- Recommendations on great reads and gear for working whilst on the go
- Strategies for maximizing how you earn loyalty points and miles
- Flight sales, awesome events and tools to grow personally or professionally
- Remote friendly destinations and trips
Thanks to all our friends and fans who have been cheering us on since we started in 2015. Thanks also to everyone on the House of Miles team for overseeing site migration, admin setup, etc. Thanks to fellow BoardingArea bloggers who have shown me such a warm welcome. To Ed Pizza for his guidance as we pivoted the site early last year. To my parents for their never ending support and always believing in this journey of mine. And finally, to BoardingArea founder Randy Peterson for this opportunity.
If you’d like to work with us, we always welcome contributions. Got something to share or an idea for us? Drop us a line!
Thats all for now – here’s to an amazing 2019 and beyond!
Stay Calm & Cowork On,
The post Hi. My name is Mike. And I’m a Coworkaholic. was first published on Coworkaholic.