Building Thriving Communities

We were having a blast. It was a laugh riot one moment and the very next was a high-volume argument about US politics, branch into why USD is a preferential currency, its gold reserves, Nixon’s intervention due to a lack of it, switch to some Woke topics with children of today and deeds of the past and present…. There was a constant switch between uncontrollable laughter, pearls of wisdom, amazing stories of incredible subjects, ridiculous innuendos, and hilarious one-liners. Everyone was having a wonderful time thoroughly enjoying each other’s company while beer flowed freely in our watering hole. The entire evening was cathartic, memorable we thrived as a close-knit group and when it ended we were already looking forward to the next meet-up.?

Am sure this is a common experience most of us have with our friends circle or apartment communities or even at work. The mere thought of these meet-ups brings a smile and a glance at your watch to know when the next meet-up is.

I want more. I would love to spend more time with this group.

Why is that? How does one describe this group? What characteristics define it? And most importantly how do you create a Tribe, a Community?

It isn’t easy. That’s the simple answer.

But let us give it a shot. To begin with, identify key and necessary traits

Traits....!

1.??????Beer … hmm.. maybe not the right forum or maybe not the right group to introduce this trait. But wait! Let’s examine the context of why beer came up. A comfort environment, a shared interest, a common liking and a happy place (with happy hours) is definitely something that has a pull effect. In a corporate setting, this needn’t be the meet-up environment but it could be the place to hang-out after a community meet-up at work. It is important that the community has elements of fun and relaxation, where people let their hair down, feel relaxed and comfortable. Let's rename it to Environment.

2.??????Shared Passion / Interests – It is important that there is a common interest that is drives everyone. You don’t need to be good at it but you definitely want to be good at it. Desire to learn regardless of how good you are, desire to create new applications and a desire to collaborate / contribute are important fundamentals. Selfish and selfless targets are totally acceptable. Example: a cycling club that meets at Vidyarthi Bhavan for Dosas.

3.??????Bonding Rituals – The success of communities is heavily dependent on how well everyone bonds. It doesn’t happen magically and there is good amount of work to be done to facilitate bonding. The bonding process typically requires 4 things – a bunch of interested parties, a topic / theme, a catalyst and a conducive environment. The catalyst is usually the driver and this person is one of the primary responsible to start the fire, trigger the enthusiasm and kickstart the party. There is a big problem if there is only one driver. Make sure the show goes on despite lack of any specific driver and others pitch in as needed. Else it’s a lost cause. Rituals could be a contest, a gamified version, an ideation competition, a live problem solving event, a celebrity participant,

4.??????Visibility and Popularity – Nothing is more tasty that being popular, having lot of people giving you likes and getting attention from the biggies. So it is important for the community to be given a stage, made popular in the organization and therefore create a pull effect. Everyone wants to be in the limelight. So why not give it to them. Create stories about the wonderful things being developed in the tribe, the crazy innovations happening out there, amazing feeling of accomplishments etc. etc. Good pull effect!

5.??????What is in it for me? - We talked about being selfish. It is important to pander to the needs of the community. How can i benefit? Will it add value to my resume? Will i grow? How will this knowledge help me with careers? These are questions that MUST be acknowledged and answered. There are many who do it for the joy of the topic and the fun of the theme but everyone would live to leverage something extra and this is an added pull. Give me more!

6.??????Develop Trust – The entire community works on a belief system that there is a shared passion, everyone is in it for the emotional state and well being that it offers and is a happy place to be in. Therefore it is important to amplify that belief, enhance the trust and sustain it through successful execution. A lot many objectives are achieved when mutual trust is developed.

In summary, a community is easy to build but a thriving community needs sustained effort, collaborative efforts and creative efforts. The road is long and winding but the returns are rewarding and immensely gratifying.

Build a Community. Create a Tribe. Feed it. Nourish it. Watch it Grow