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Building Community: Part Three – Nurturing Community

It would be great if there were a ready-made community that you could join. However, this opportunity is not always available.  So, how do you start a community?   

Using the Power of Woo 

For many of us, this can be tough work. However, there are wonderful people who are natural gatherers.  In terms of StrengthsFinder, they have this talent called Woo—winning others over.  They naturally gather and connect with people around them, enabling them to move forward in a shared experience and commitment.   

One of the most powerful ways to start a community is to find another person with Woo.  Encourage and support them in starting the community with you.   

Often, these individuals are very good at gathering people but could be better at organising, nurturing, or other community-building aspects.   

A Case Study 

My wife and I are currently involved in an exciting initiative.  We have engaged with an extraordinary person who has fantastic Woo power.  We are working with her to help start a new community.  She is excellent at powerfully engaging someone at a first meeting and drawing them into something.   

But we come in to form and sustain something longer term.  We support the activity, create more structure around what they’re joining, and establish clarity about what the community is for and how we will operate it.  On our own, we are not great at the initial gathering piece.  We don’t have the power of Woo.   

Shaping your Community 

If you start a community, I think it’s essential to spend some time considering what the community is for and the hallmarks of membership.  This doesn’t have to be a formal membership structure.  You’re not necessarily creating a club, society, or organisation.  However, as the person starting it, you must envision what you want to achieve as a community.  As you draw people in, you can share this vision, perhaps creating a manifesto about what you’re about.  This will help you understand the kinds of people you want to attract and those you need to be more interested in drawing in.   

Another excellent example of community building we’ve seen locally where we live is a couple who bought a house with a lot of land around it.  They decided they wanted to start a community farm.  What did that mean in practice?  It meant that, while they owned the land, they were very clear about what would be grown on it.  They drew other people in to participate.  But it wasn’t an allotment society where individuals were given a dedicated plot.  It was an opportunity for people to volunteer and help produce and harvest crops; in return, they had access to some produce.   

It was about drawing people together around a shared project.  The couple was clear that the farm would be organic, what they would grow, and what it meant to be committed enough to participate in the project and receive some of the produce.  They were also transparent about how the project would be funded.  They took on the responsibility of setting out a manifesto, or rules of the game, so people knew what you were joining.  However, they didn’t form a formal club or society.  It wasn’t an allotment society.   

Project-based or Capacity Building 

Another key consideration when starting a community is whether it will survive its initial purpose.  Many people build a community around some kind of action—you want something to change in your local area.  However, once that change is accomplished, the community sometimes survives beyond that, with relationships that are much more than the initial action.   

When we first moved to Moggerhanger Village, a group of villagers invited us to spend an evening in one of their homes.  They wanted to get to know us, introduce us to other villagers, and give us opportunities to participate in village life.  This was a village of 200-300 households, so it felt like you knew you had arrived!  They were very welcoming, offering us several opportunities to engage with the community.  Within this community, a small group had intentionally built a system to invite and welcome new residents.  It wasn’t a professional group but rather a committed community.   

Conclusion 

I hope these are some strategies you can consider as you build a community that supports you in your Portfolio Executive journey.  A community is so much more than just a network.  It could consist of four or five people or an international group working in a similar field.  But if you’re starting a community, be very clear about your intentions and what you’re inviting people to join.   

To find out more about our Portfolio Executive Community check out https://portfolioexecutive.biz/community or e-mail Charles-mclachlan@futureperfect.company

Charles McLachlan is the founder of FuturePerfect and on a mission to transform the future of work and business. The Portfolio Executive programme is a new initiative to help executives build a sustainable and impactful second-half-career. Creating an alternative future takes imagination, design, organisation and many other thinking skills. Charles is happy to lend them to you.