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What's your first thought when you wake up on Monday morning?

Do you dread the arduous commute to work? Does the thought of another day in a cubicle make you want to scream?

For many, work is a thing that must be endured. Sure we all have dreams about doing what we love, but when you depend on that thing to put food on your table, it often morphs into a chore instead.

Is this decline into monotony inevitable? The global coworking community says 'no'. In fact, one of the main ideas behind this new workstyle is that personal interests can be incorporated into one's work rather than filtered out.

Unlike a traditional work environment, in which you're expected to spend every "on the clock" minute improving the bottom line, coworking spaces encourage socialization and, more importantly, collaboration. By getting to know one another on a persona level, coworkers are able to bounce ideas off each other, share expertise, join forces on projects, refer business to one another and even join to create new companies.

In this Voices of Coworking video, members of coworking facilities discuss why they cowork, the benefits, and where they see this new style of work going in the future.

Of course, coworking is easiest when you're an independent professional or small business owner. But even if you're employed by a traditional company, there are still ways to take advantage of the collaborative nature of coworking spaces.

With the economy in peril, many companies are interested in strategies that will save them money without sacrificing productivity, like telecommuting. A 2010 study by Brigham Young University found that telecommuters are able to balance work and family life better than office workers, even when working overtime.

The study, which analyzed data from 24,436 IBM employees in 75 countries, also supports the common coworking claim that the flexibility to work in more than one environment actually increases productivity. 

If you'd like to see the results for yourself, check out my post on "How To Convince Your Boss To Let You Cowork."

Want to learn more about coworking? Check out the Shareable resources below:

What Coworking Brings To The Community Table

How Coworking Fits Into The Future Of Work

Coworking And The Sharing Economy