product strategy at New_Public; previously community & growth @ Geneva
Over the last 50 years, people have shifted away from meeting and volunteering regularly in associations and informal gatherings such as support groups and Bible study groups, choosing instead to engage through “checkbook participation,” where we outsource and pay local and national organizations who hire professional staff to do the good works and... See more
Free-flowing exchange of work can establish non-transactional community. Not, like, asking your electrician to work for free, but asking your tech-savvy neighbor if they can help you install a light fixture this weekend.
"Our work is the most valuable where we're creating a discourse that isn't just informing people, but actually getting them involved with the creation of good information — because they value good information themselves and are part of a community that values that," he said.
Social media differs from note-taking apps. Users provide content and interaction for free. "Why should I pay when I'm the one creating value?" Fair question.
But maintaining the space where that expression happens costs money. Playing in a park is free. Maintaining the park requires taxes.
At the most basic level, being an artful gatherer is being a creator of relevant ceremony.
When @colinhanks decided to close his business @hankskerchiefs, he didn’t just shut the doors. He marked the moment with a wake.
Watch this space all week for more highlights of how folks are... See more
This is all to say: it’s worth listening when a place calls to you. It’s worth thinking about whether the place you live enables your goals or stands in their way. And it’s worth noticing what surroundings speak of enchantment, cultivate the conditions you feel at home in, and aim toward them. Life is more malleable than we think. It’s a surprise... See more