The_Art_Of_Gathering.pdf

thoughtful, considered exclusion is vital to any gathering, because over-inclusion is a symptom of deeper problems—above all, a confusion about why you are gathering and a lack of commitment to your purpose and your guests.

You will have begun to gather with purpose when you learn to exclude with purpose. When you learn to close doors.

Gathering—the conscious bringing together of people for a reason—shapes the way we think, feel, and make sense of our world.

If everyone is invited, no one is invited—in the sense of being truly held by the group. By closing the door, you create the room.

Why do we gather? We gather to solve problems we can’t solve on our own. We gather to celebrate, to mourn, and to mark transitions. We gather to make decisions. We gather because we need one another. We gather to show strength. We gather to honor and acknowledge. We gather to build companies and schools and neighborhoods. We gather to welcome, and

they figured out the larger purpose of why they wanted to gather: they wanted to solve the community’s problems—together.

You will have begun to gather with purpose when you learn to exclude with purpose. When you learn to close doors.