On Coworking and Companionship: Combating Loneliness in the Workplace

By Caitlin Rhodes-Karahadian

“Wow, this is really beautiful,” are usually the first words out of someone’s mouth when they walk into our free coworking space for the first time. Soon after, they want to know our origin story. Why are we doing this?

I usually explain that my husband and I moved to Cupertino in late 2023, and that our faith has wired us to see the world through a lens of asset-based community development. In other words: whenever we come into a community or neighborhood, we ask: what does this community already have, and how can we pair existing resources with what the community needs? I elaborate that we noticed upon moving to Cupertino that there are a lot of awesome people, but few places for adults to gather. (This usually triggers vigorous head nodding, or other forms of emphatic assent.) We talk about how we all like the convenience of not having to go into the office, and yet working from home can get really isolating. (Everyone resonates with the word “isolating”—it’s a more socially palatable way of admitting to someone you just met that you are lonely.) 

We comment on how coffee shops are packed on Monday and Friday afternoons when most people in Silicon Valley have the option of working from home, and while coffee shops are a good way to get out of the house, they aren’t really a springboard into community. At best, you manage to strike up a conversation with someone in line—but for most of the day, most people have headphones on and are clacking away at their keyboards. So we thought: we can do better than that. We can foster community. We have access to this existing church campus and the ability to create a space for people to gather.

We’ve had some version of this conversation close to a hundred times, and we’ve yet to meet anyone who feels like they’ve already achieved the community they want—all of us are searching for something more. We founded our coworking space on kingdom principles, chief among them that every person wants to be seen, known, and accepted. And so we have focused on cultivating a community where people know they will be greeted by name, and missed if they aren’t there. They know we will be genuinely interested in how they are doing, what they are working on, and what they like to do for fun.

You might not have access to a church campus like we do—or the community development grants or the elbow grease that made the renovation of the space possible. But you do have coworkers working next to you (or across the screen from you on Zoom) who are hungry to be seen and known. One person we know mentioned that none of his colleagues ask him what he does after work or in his spare time. No one shows interest in what interests him. His workplace is lonely.

It's easy to assume in the proficiency and professionalism of Silicon Valley that everyone has it all together, but that isn’t the case. One of our core values as a church plant is the importance of being the church as family, that God sets the lonely in families (Psalm 68:6) and that as the church, we are called to be that family. Loneliness is an epidemic that can only be countered in community. (After all, even solitude is enriched by the presence of another—God with us.)  Every heart echoes with the innate longing to be seen and known by God, for as Augustine is oft-quoted: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

But even when humankind was in perfect communion with God, God saw that it was not good for the first human to be alone (Genesis 2:18). So God created a companion and co-regent for the man, that the man and the woman might steward the Garden of Eden together (Genesis 1:26-28). Isn’t it interesting that the first humans, given to each other for companionship, were not just spouses but also coworkers and co-laborers? Why then do so many of us feel so lonely at work?

Sin, of course, not only fractured our relationship with God and our relationships with each other, but also our vocational purpose to steward and cultivate the flourishing of creation. For us to feel so lonely—especially at work and in our vocations—is a product of this fallen and fractured world. How then might Christ redeem our relationships with our colleagues, that we might experience delight in partnering together for a common purpose? 

As Christians, we are catalysts for God’s healing and renewal everywhere we go. The Holy Spirit, who lives in us, enters every space that we inhabit, whether that be a cubicle or a corner office. The very person and power who raised Jesus from the dead is with us in our workplaces, not only empowering us to live counter-culturally, but also to renew and redeem the culture. We can be the thermostats that change the temperature of our workplaces, rather than the thermometers that merely reflect it. What’s more, God has not only given us the antidote to the epidemic of loneliness, he has given us as the antidote.

By showing an interest in our colleagues, by asking them questions and actually listening to the answers, Christians can stand out in a world of noise. With our intentionality and attention, we can convey that their stories matter to us. By inviting colleagues to grab a bite for lunch, or to hang out outside of work, we can combat the loneliness that pervades our workplaces and our lives, and experience the richness of community God designed us to enjoy.

Rev. Caitlin Rhodes-Karahadian is an ordained pastor and FWT Advisory Council member. Caitlin is planting West Valley Neighborhood Church in Cupertino with her husband, Joel Karahadian.