Future of Work consortium

Our friend Amy Zuckerman, who founded Hidden-Tech in Western Massachusetts, is on to her next gig, and she's started up a new blog to chronicle her adventures and experiences ("Living The Virtual American Dream").

Welcome to the Blogosphere, Amy!

I heartily recommend that you read Amy's opening posts - her second one, "Let's Begin at the Beginning," describes her transition into becoming an independent entrepreneur. We all hear the statistics about how many people are abandoning corporate life and striking out on the their own, but somehow the up close and personal stories bring home the reality so much better.

Here's just a bit of Amy's story:

It started in the summer of 1986 when I was unhappily employed at a newspaper then undergoing a grueling buyout. I was in my early 30s and already had a decade or more of work experience under my belt.

I knew I had lots of untapped skills, or transferable skills . . . I could gather, sort, write and edit information at high speeds and with a high-level of accuracy. And I could assist in making a product every day; sometimes more than once a day. . .

But sitting in a newsroom at 7 a.m. with auditors hovering over my desk while I rewrote the morning paper wasn't what I considered fulfilling, let alone for OK pay. Then there was the issue of advancement. In the corporate world you advance because someone has a use for you, or you're lucky to be recognized. I was doing fine on the job, but I knew this wasn't a place that would stretch me. There had to be a better way.

Visit "Living the Virtual American Dream" for the whole story.