Baby Steps Co-Working + Community
December 30 2025 to February 13 2026
A 7-week program with four 2-hour co-working sessions per week, live community calls, and weekly emails to gently guide you as you take baby steps forward on what you’ve been putting off.
7 Weeks of co-working and community to make progress on what matters to you.
Baby Steps is for folks who are looking for a container and community to start showing up or keep showing up for their creativity, projects, or everyday tasks through the deep winter. December 30th to February 13th. Holidays included.
Baby Steps 7-week co-working program includes:
Four (4) co-working sessions per week, Tuesday - Friday
Four co-working sessions per week, Tuesday - Friday 9 am -11 am Eastern
Each session includes a breath exercise and then 1 hour and 50 minutes of heads-down time to work on whatever you want to in the company of others; led by Holly
Weekly email with reflections & practices on topics related to creativity, motivation, burnout, & building habits
Each week you’ll receive a short email written by me (Holly) dedicated to a theme for the week that offers reflections and optional exercises
Topics may include: Burnout, resistance, wintering, nervous system management, finding passion for our work and art in These Times, more
Five (5) live community calls
Five community calls to create connection, share challenges, reflect on weekly themes, and ask questions; led by Holly. All calls 2pm Eastern. No call on January 18th.
A bunch of other people doing the same thing
Be less lonely! Get motivated working alongside others! Share things if you want! (Active participation not required/shy people welcome)
take a little baby step forward
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take a little baby step forward 〰️
How it works/what you get
Four 2-hour weekly co-working sessions (8 hours per week; 54 hours total). Tuesday - Friday, 9 am to 11 am ET (check your time here). These optional sessions include breathwork at the beginning, check-ins (verbal, chat) and check-outs (verbal, chat). These are dedicated times to work on projects or tasks you tend to put off in the company of other people doing the same. Folks work on a variety of things: establishing new routines; filing back taxes; writing book proposals or manuscripts; or just showing up to some place regularly while they do their job or every day tasks.
Five 75-minute community sessions with Holly. We’ll come together five times for live calls where we share what we’re working on or with, and connect with each other. Holly will open each call with a short breath exercise, answer questions/provide guidance, encourage participation in sharing what we’re working on and struggling with, and provide some reflections on weekly themes.
Weekly themes. You’ll receive a weekly email with a short reflection and optional exercise/practice for working with creativity and productivity, showing up, and building habits during the shortest days of the year. Possible topics we’ll lightly explore include: resistance vs. burnout, ‘downcycling’/’wintering’ and long transitions, working with our nervous systems, re-igniting or maintaining passion for our art or work In This Climate; meaning making, purpose, and apathy.
Things you could do in 54 hours:
work on a creative project
learn a new skill or craft
your regular job but with strangers watching you
commit to that yoga practice
apply for a writing residency
make a DIY writing or art residency
practice showing up at the same time
create a morning routine
finish a book proposal
your everyday to-dos
set up health insurance
clean out your garage
finally read Infinite Jest
50 hours of meditation
get a jump on your taxes
research your next project
softly re-enter working after time away
train your pet to do something
plan your spring garden
learn a new language
make new internet friends
{insert what you’ve been putting off here}
Cost, other
Scholarship
$125
This tier is reserved for people who truly cannot afford the full price due to significant financial hardship (if paying the full price would affect your ability to meet basic needs); limited number available.
Suggested
$225
Suggested price
Resource Sharer
$295
Price for those in a position to support community access. Each purchase at this price point creates an additional Scholarship spot to the existing 20 spots
There are three price points: Suggested, $225 (this is the price); Resource Sharer, $295 (this price point supports community access; for those in a position to share who wish to do so; Scholarship, $125 (this is less than cost, for those who cannot afford because of significant financial hardship; please be mindful of using, there are a limited number of these (a good rule of thumb: this is for you if paying the full price would affect your ability to meet basic needs)
There are a limited number of total spaces
All sales final (you have a 48-hour grace period if you change your mind)
If you have any questions about whether or not this is for you, email contact@hollywhitaker.com
Your host
Hello! I’m Holly Whitaker, author of: Quit Like a Woman; 30 Days to a New Relationship with Alcohol; and the forthcoming How to Relapse (Tin House/Zando). I publish the Recovering newsletter on Substack.
I’ve been self-employed, leading Zoom calls, coaching, and teaching online classes since 2015. I created and built a digital/educational behavior-change program used by thousands, and a practical guide to quit drinking that’s been read by over half a million people and is recommended by leading recovery centers and institutions (Mayo Clinic, Weill Cornell, Center for Motivation and Change, for example). That is: creating structures for change and connection, like this program, is my jam!
I’m also a person who has struggled deeply the past five years with motivation, procrastination, creativity, purpose, meaning, apathy, organization, and showing up regularly.
I started using co-working online to access body doubling (the practice of working in the presence of others to increase motivation, focus, and accountability), connection, and to help create structure while working on a long and difficult project.
I love holding this kind of space and sharing what I’ve learned (as a neurodiverse self-employed creative in long term recovery) with other sensitive souls who are trying to both pay their bills and make beautiful things during this weird, horrible, and emergent time in history.
I’ll be using the 54 hours together to work on my third book.
Other things about me include: I live in a rural location; I am an awkward introvert who loves winter now? and my favorite winter things are getting cozy, doing less, drinking warm drinks with oat milk, reading, working in bed, making fires, going to the community sauna, and doing hot pilates. Basically anything warm.
Let’s have a different kind of winter, together.
More details
What are dates and times of co-working sessions?
Co-working sessions are four days a week: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, from 6 am to 8am Pacific and 9 am to 11 am Eastern. There are 27 sessions total or 54 hours total. Check your time zone here.
What are dates and times of live community calls?
Live community sessions are Sundays at 2pm Eastern every Sunday during the course except January 18th. They last for 60 to 75 minutes. (The final session on February 13th will be one hour and fifteen minutes of co-working, and 45 of check out, final Q&A, celebrating.) Check time zone here.
Is this being held over the holidays?
Yes. I’ve purposely started this course on December 30 to provide space through traditionally hard weeks of the year. We’ll start co-working 12/30 (12/30, 12/31, 1/1/, and 1/2) and do light introductions; the first live community call is Sunday, January 4th, where we’ll officially kick-off with everyone.
How do I know which price point to choose?
This is suggested pricing. The actual, sustaining price of the program is $225. Scholarship price is $125 (below the cost of the program) and is for folks who would not otherwise be able to afford and for whom the full cost is completely out of reach/excludes participation. Resource Sharer means you are able to purchase your own spot + generously subsidize additional Scholarship participants (each Resource Sharer purchase increases existing Scholarship spots by 1).
What if I can’t start until after the New Year?
This is not an issue. We won’t have our first live community call until January 4th and we’ll officially kick off then; there’s no missing or catching up.
What is expected participation?
You can use as much or as little as you want. This is a space to co-work at the same time each day, and you are welcome to come after the start time and leave before it ends; you do not need to come every day (you might prefer Wed-Fri, or Tues, Thurs only). The Sunday calls offer an opportunity for participants to share, this is not required. You do not have to do anything that requires you to talk or share or participate in the kind of way you don’t want to. All offerings are optional.
Can I keep my camera off?
Yes! Although here is my plug for how great it is to see other people doing things! The point of this is body doubling and co-working, so camera on is encouraged, but also this is for YOU so you get to do what feels comfortable, and we’ll all support it.
Do I have to use my real name?
You’ll need to use the name that matches the name you registered under, and you’ll need to register under the name you use in real life (government or non-government; just the name you actually use); no aliases, usernames, fake names. First name and last initial are great. (If this is an issue, email contact@hollywhitaker.com). I’ll also be inviting folks to share pronouns, location, and what they are working on in their Zoom handle.
Is there a chat room or a way to connect more deeply with other participants?
This is a new offering. In order to keep the price point down and provide as many live sessions per week (5 total most weeks, 59 hours total), and to keep this really basic functioning and not overwhelming for participants, I’m not planning to create a chat room outside of live call times right now, which require moderation and lots of emotional labor. Chat will be enabled in Zoom during all calls. We’ll see how this goes and look for interesting ways to connect and create intimacy.
Is this refundable?
All Sales are final and non-refundable after 24 hours from purchase (if you change your mind 24 hours after purchase). This is because space is limited, and marketing is very hard in this climate; it costs creators when people take a spot they don’t end up using.
Do I need to create a login somewhere?
This is a simple set up meant to be bare bones/low maintenance. No login or additional software/apps required. We use Zoom; Email; and a Notion landing page.
Zoom for all our calls (you’ll need a Zoom account)
Email once a week to guide us plus links to everything you need for the week (you’ll need an email)
Daily reminder emails for sessions
Static page in Notion where you can access all the info sent via email; plus links and other resources (you’ll need a web browser like Chrome)
We may use a Google doc to share resources! IDK! (you’ll need a web browser like Chrome)
Is this a coaching or recovery program?
Baby Steps is not for emotional processing or addictions/recovery support. This is a practical program that is focused on creative practice, habit formation, productivity, and tangential subjects. This is not a place for heavy emotional processing or a support group/mutual aid, and Baby Steps is not intended to and does not provide any support for addictions, recovery, or sobriety, or general psychological or emotional support.
Holly is not acting as a coach and is not providing emotional support or coaching for addictions. Holly is a co-worker who is leading this program and holding space, enforcing community guidelines on calls, teaching some skill sharing and information about the themes advertised, and will be working on her own project (a book) through the end of the program.
Do you have a question not answered here? Email contact@hollywhitaker.com
