[ChainsawSurgery]

> I've made life long friends with some of my clients. That, more than anything else on this list, has made consulting special to me.

Hah, I had the exact opposite experience freelancing straight out of college, and this was why I stopped and sought full-time employment.

Most of the people I was interacting with (clients, etc) were significantly older than me, and it was brutally isolating after awhile. Even barring the age barrier, there was always a definitive client/vendor line that seemed to prevent any meaningful relationship from developing.

I even tried a coworking space, but it was never quite the same for me since people were there to work mostly, and it's not like you were ever going to work together aside from some rare cases.

I did it for about a year and then resolved never to do it as a full-time thing ever again. The freedom attracted me, but (for me at least) the isolation was overwhelming.

Disclaimer: blah blah blah, my own experience and not yours necessarily, etc.

[ohashi]

It always saddens me to read about coworking spaces like that. I think it's probably rare and takes a lot of effort, but coworking that builds real and lasting relationships does exist. It's not common and I think your experience is the norm, which is what disappoints me about this 'coworking revolution.'