Community building and the rise of social media usage seem to be BFF’s or at least distant cousins. While it’s hard to poke holes through something as sincere as ‘helping build or rebuild a community’, it’s quite fascinating how it seems everyone is jumping on the bandwagon. One concern might be ulterior motive since it seems highly unlikely everyone is in it for the greater good of their community. I’ve put together a litmus test of sorts to shake out the real McCoy from the Impostors.
They use ‘community’ to profit from – Impostor
Sure, a business needs to make money to survive. Getting involved in community projects so that your company may profit down the road from exposure is expected however if there is no real concern for your community improving, you’re doing things for selfish reasons. Sometimes you’ll need to donate your time, or resources to help make something better. If there needs to be something in it for you in every situation, I’m calling you a phony. It’s typically easy to determine how genuine people or companies are through their involvement.
They only care about their own events – Potential Impostor
This one is tricky, with so much going on it’s easy to get caught up in your world. One concern is when a group or company talk about getting involved in making their community a thriving place to work and live yet only endorse events they directly are involved with forgetting that the old adage, give to get. I imagine every community sees this happen and for many, this is probably a non-issue. In the end, you see their efforts are driving positive results however, would support among each group, company, or individual for each other cumulatively help even more? Let’s make ‘help thy neighbor’ be more than a simple tweet, quickly forgotten the moment it passes through the stream. Put in another way, true leaders…or linchpins don’t care about credit, only desirable results. Once community involvement strips away any ego that may exist, the sky’s the limit.
They give without mention or attribution – Real McCoy
We all know those folks that give because they care. Whether its money or time, they are willing to do whatever it takes to make things better and they’d prefer to stay out of the limelight. They’re doing the heavy lifting, dirty jobs that most others wouldn’t consider yet without this support, improvement would be gridlocked. There always needs to be people behind the scenes, the offensive lineman if you will who aren’t in it for the sole purpose of individual rewards and recognition. Typically these guys are in it for the long haul as opposed to a short campaign. I once heard someone say integrity is what you do when nobody’s watching. I might describe them as ‘selfless’.
They can’t clearly define their mission – Real McCoy needs guidance
Probably the biggest category is this one, where effort is genuine just misguided. They often lack true leadership with no vision or plan but still progress is being made. You have to give credit to them as they are trying and for that they should be commended. This group meets regularly, talks about agendas but like a guy on a treadmill…goes nowhere fast. We witness these groups all over the map and feel like they’re on the verge of something big but without a new leader it’s likely they might not prosper in reaching any definable goal.
So, what’s your take on this? More importantly, what are you doing to help your community, if indeed you are currently involved?
Photo credit: http://www.baratunde.com/blog/tag/social-media
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
This was a post I have been waiting for someone to write, it needs to be addressed. I like how you broke down the players into four categories. I hope people read this, take it to heart, and look inside themselves to see where they fit. I know I did.
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Great post, Dave.
Tough topic to discuss and while I sometimes believe that intent is positive on any level, (and don’t believe the adage about good intentions), you’re right, it’s just misguided… or misunderstood.
Either way, I believe that many times if we choose to look inward, we can give the community a much needed boost, simply by being a bit selfish. I call it being selfishly selfless. Picking and choosing what community building efforts we want to be a part of… and which ones we have to say no to because we have to work on ourselves or our companies. Because if everyone made certain their own doorstep was clean, we’d have a pretty clean neighborhood.
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I’m with Matt. There’s a lot of gray with these distinctions. If you think about it, it can be selfish to be so selfless. I know I love the sensation of knowing that I have helped someone, especially when it does not really help my billfold. It is karma thing, at the end of the day.
There is something to be said to be wary of those that seek to abuse a good thing. I know Tweetea has had its fair share of interesting characters that get in the mix with weird intentions. A fine line is imminent in any charitable situation, much like documentary work. It is very easy to come off exploitive if one is not careful.
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I knew the topic would be a little controversial and you’re right, judging someone’s intentions might be impossible to do. Just shedding light on an issue that I thought deserves some discussion.
I appreciate you sharing your thoughts. The Detroit community has a lot of passionate people looking to make things better, I hope it continues as there is plenty of work to do.
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In everything we participate in we need to ask ourselves 1) Whom do I serve and 2) For whose glory am I serving?
.-= DaveMurr´s last blog ..Instead of… =-.
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While I agree (to some extent) with your comments about people leveraging community solely for profit, I think it’s a little unrealistic to think that individuals and companies should be expected to give “just because it feels good” and not expect anything in return.
Looking at these categories, I would probably fall between an “impostor” and a “McCoy.” I’ve organized events for fun, and I’ve corralled people to events on behalf of clients (Verizon Wireless Incredible Tweetup and Garden Court Fireworks). While my intentions may be good, I could totally see community/social media purists viewing me as suspect.
Honestly, I wouldn’t devote the time and energy required to organize an event, locate sponsors, market across channels and qualify/quantify success if I knew that all I was receiving was more points on my karma score card. I know that what I do within the community will benefit me and my company in some way.
Certain people may not like that… and I’m cool with it.
Brandon
@bchesnutt
.-= Brandon Chesnutt´s last blog ..“I Love Detroit” Video Contest Wrap Party =-.
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Thanks for letting this post serve as a discussion starter at Tweetea!
.-= Nikki Stephan´s last blog ..Guest Post by Tweetea Founder Hubert Sawyers III: It Is NOT a Race to the Finish =-.
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I appreciate everyone’s responses and discussion on this topic. Each of the people who responded on this post are the real McCoy in my mind. The amount of positive change I’ve witnessed over the past couple of years is directly related to the efforts you all have put in. Lastly, I agree with Brandon that it’s unrealistic to think we do things just because it feels good. Hard work deserves proper recognition, that’s what fuels others to work hard.
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It’s actually pretty great if you think of it along the mold that Brandon brought to the table… the nature of the reason for doing something positive in the community and the groups around you… is that it comes full circle. I think it’s right on, and I think that’s the way we’d all want it.
I feel like I just added #tweetea to my calendar next week
.-= Matthew Dibble´s last blog ..Go Solo Episode 1 — “My Lucky Tie” =-.
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