The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
The principles we will explore in detail are: 1. Boundary: The line between members and outsiders. 2. Initiation: The activities that mark a new member. 3. Rituals: The things we do that have meaning. 4. Temple: A place set aside to find our community. 5. Stories: What we share that allows others and ourselves to know our values. 6. Symbols: The th
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Visitor: May have concern for no one else, seeks novelty or fun experiences. Novice: Concern for individual self, seeks personal achievement and legitimacy. Member: Concern for one’s peer group, seeks success and respect for the group. Elder: Concern for everyone in the tribe everywhere, seeks the whole tribe’s success and respect. Principal elder:
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An exploration zone is important for visitors. This is how we protect insiders while giving outsiders a chance to participate, to learn more about our community, and to decide whether it’s right for them. We can encourage explorers by sharing some specified activities and areas, but not all. These are outer ring activities. Areas reserved for insid
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Communities are created when at least two people begin to feel concern for each other’s welfare.
Charles Vogl • The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
Strong communities teach members how to succeed in ways they cannot achieve on their own. The education comes from a body of knowledge and wisdom that members cannot access or manage on their own. So, in a strong community, members must know how to access the knowledge held by others. This can be informal (by hanging out with other members) or form
... See moreCharles Vogl • The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
The principles we will explore in detail are: 1. Boundary: The line between members and outsiders. 2. Initiation: The activities that mark a new member. 3. Rituals: The things we do that have meaning. 4. Temple: A place set aside to find our community. 5. Stories: What we share that allows others and ourselves to know our values. 6. Symbols: The th
... See moreCharles Vogl • The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
The research indicates that Americans today are seeking connection with others who share their values. But they’re not involved in communities that typically provide deep ongoing connection, membership, and life-honoring rituals. Best-selling author and marketing guru Seth Godin writes that people today want connection more than material things. He
... See moreCharles Vogl • The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
For a rapidly expanding community, it’s critical that prospective members are welcome to participate in community behavior before adopting common values.
Charles Vogl • The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
The critical lesson here is that prospective members must have a way to behave like the current community members (participate) before we require them to believe in and value the same things we do (no matter how trivial or significant).