A COMMUNITY IS WHERE HEARTS CONVENE
It’s fascinating what you see when you sit back and observe. Today I treated myself to a HEMA breakfast before my yearly appointment with my oncologist. Yes, for the past 3 years, meetings with the oncologist is a source of tension. But I am re-framing that to be a source of clarity. So instead of a dreaded meeting, it’s a meeting to get me more grounded in my health and in my body.
While waiting for this appointment, I sat and observed the going ons around me. HEMA is one of our favorite places as a family. It’s part of our family culture to have a monthly breakfast and then head on the library for the kids to borrow a pile of books. It’s a great hang- out for friends and families to come together and it’s so fascinating to see this close hand. I even took a photo of an Indonesian family with three generations present!
Not only was it a joy but it was also an honor to witness how communities can come together in specially crafted spaces. Offering a space to convene, either physically or virtually is what I believe as crucial in creating communities- either communities of practice (learning communities) or communities of belonging . In Charles Vogl’s book, The Art of Community: Seven Principles of Belonging, he mentioned this as the 4th Principle- the temple, a place set aside to find our community.
As I dive deeper into community building and leadership, one important learning stays with me. Communities are built by design and it is the intentionality that we bring in and expand on that sets up temples- places where our communities live, convene and share.
Here are 4 easy ways to start building your community’s space.
- Build a space from a place of awareness. Think back to the communities you are in or have participated in, how did they set up their virtual or physical space? Look around you and in your neighborhood, how are people convening? How are people meeting, sharing and interacting? Building a community space goes back to first identifying what you would like to have for your community. It’s all about taking the time to notice the different places of interaction and to pay attention to what goes in there. Here are a few questions to explore when observing the communities around you: How are the spaces built? Who manages the community’s space? What makes the space special? How is the “flow” in the space? (in virtual spaces you can also plot in the usual member journey to know where they participate in and what they do once in the online community) How is the engagement in the community?
- Build a space with your members’ needs in mind. Do a deep dive into the community member’s persona and their life journey. Create an empathy map to help you visualize the pains, gains and needs.Most importantly, ask your community. Do surveys, interviews or focused group discussions to ask their ideas on how the community space could be. Be open to understanding what is “alive” in your members and how you can co-create the space.
- Build a space with shared purpose, values and advocacy. It is important to be clear with the purpose of the space. It is also crucial to make the shared values and shared advocacy known to the members. Create a space where the shared values are expressed, easily identifiable and are fully felt. Make it an environment where the call to action or the reason for convening is palpable.
- Build a temple with other community leaders. Creating an engaged community demands a lot of time, energy and resources. It is not for the faint of heart and can only be sustained by community leaders who embody the shared purpose, values and advocacy. Find your supporters. Identify who you can collaborate with to make your space thrive. Be open to selecting community ambassadors- these are members who firmly believe in the tenets of the community and are willing to be part of expanding it and making its vision and mission a reality.
Whoever created the HEMA breakfast deal is a community genius! It has created a safe space for families and friends to meet-up, enjoy a meal, and, like the case of our family, create traditions. A community is where hearts convene.
How about you, how are you creating community spaces?
P.S. Digging deeper on this topic so stay tuned! If you want a closer look into our activities and our work, join our online community.
