You know that co-worker who’s always there when you come in in the morning and also when you leave at night? Maybe their work ethic isn’t as amazing as you think. Maybe they don’t even work there, and are squatting in the office as a free place to sleep, eat, work out, bathe, and work on launching their own tech startup.

He got in the building as part of an incubator program hosted at the AOL campus in Palo Alto, Calif. When the program ended, his badge kept working. So unlike his colleagues who headed back to college, he stuck around to work on launching his company, ClassConnect. Without a job or funding, he set out to live on less than $30 a month.

The secrets to office squatting, which you should NEVER EVER do:

• Work more than 12 hours a day. Everyone around you will admire your work ethic.
• Find a comfy couch that isn’t visible from security guards’ nightly rounds.
• Get up early and spend the first part of your day at the gym. Blend in with all of the fitness-conscious people who come in early to work out.

Of course, this wouldn’t work as well at companies that don’t provide amenities like a gym and a laundromat to employees.

After he was thrown out, he continued to crash on friends’ couches. But not on AOL’s.

Meet the tireless entrepreneur who squatted at AOL [CNET]

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