Partner for Support: How to Find the Right Community for You!

I believe we are here on this Earth to connect—no one is intended to “go it alone”. Energy flows in, around and throw all things, including all people. To fully engage the positive forces of that energy, you have to become a part of the flow. The only way to do that is to connect to other people.

I am certain that it took me many years longer than might have been as I stumbled along on my journey because I was so sure that I had to go it alone. Once I realized that I needed support to thrive, and I allowed those around me to help, I began to achieve things I never thought I could.

Napolean Hill, of “Think and Grow Rich” fame, put into words one of the most powerful examples of the concept of partnering for success, he called the “mastermind”.

“The Mastermind principle consists of an alliance of two or more minds working in perfect harmony for the attainment of a common definite objective.

No two minds ever come together without a third invisible force, which may be likened to a “third mind.” When a group of individual minds are coordinated and function in harmony, the increased energy created through that alliance becomes available to every individual in the group.” - Napoleon Hill

Through the connection of the group, everyone is uplifted.

So through my coaching, I encourage women to reach out to find a group or partner to lean on. I call it, Baby Step #8: Partnering for Support. The question becomes: What group or community will you seek out or create? How will you choose to “step up”?

What defines a community?

From http://dictionary.reference.com I learned that community is defined as:

"a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality,
share government, and often have a common cultural and historical
heritage.
2. a locality inhabited by such a group.
3.a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common
characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in
some respect from the larger society within which it exists (usually prec.
by the ): the business community; the community of scholars.

Prior to the expansion of the “world wide web”, communities were almost always governed by geography. Now, a community is first a collective of people with shared interests, what we call “like-minded”, and then it may or may not be connected within our local geographic zone. In today’s world, many of our connections occur in “cyberspace”. No longer limited by geography we get to choose whether or not face to face connection is valuable to us in the communities we become a part of, or not.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve posed the question, “How do you define community” to friends, colleagues, and some complete strangers. Their insight has been invaluable to me as I explore building the community of Wise Well Women.

You can use the results as a “checklist” of things to look for when you’re considering becoming a community participant.

Strong communities are a collection of like-minded individuals, who have shared values, common connections, common goals and/or common interests.

Do you share values, connections, goals, interests with your communities?
And if so, are those things shared amongst group members, yourself included, with passion and compassion?

Ask yourself, what can I do to contribute to that positive energy?

And will this community thrive? What can I do to support it’s development?

Strong communities are a collective of members and leaders, committed to each other and to the community as a whole. They encourage opportunities for authentic connection. They inspire creativity through shared discussion on relevant content and provide opportunities for collaboration and growth, and they encourage an attitude of fun, too!

Lastly, they are inspired by leadership based on consistency, authenticity, fairness, a calming influence, and willingness to share, in a way the nurtures the evolution of leaders within the group.

You have most likely already sought out a community of like-minded individuals in some group that you participate in. What is the common interest, value or goal?

In the community I founded, the community of Wise Well Women, our shared interest is in becoming women who bravely present our authentic selves to the world and encourage others to do the same, sharing our truths with courage, living life on life's terms, and extending love and a message of hope to all.

You can become an active participant in your group or groups, too. Connect and contribute to forums, meetings, events. You can start a dialogue and connect to other members on a community blogsite, Google or Yahoo group or Facebook page, too.

Subscribe to the organizations newsletter and RSS blogfeed.

My vision for the Wise Well Women blog-site has always been for it to be a collective of the stories of Wise Well Women everywhere, so I encourage everyone who connects with the site to submit stories and to post comments. Find a site that resonates with you, and contribute as you are comfortable.

As you step into your future, you can create a new phase of your life full of connections that nurture your soul and pull your forward toward your dreams . Move slowly if you need to, but keep moving, one baby step at a time.

Reach out and connect. I know you’ll be glad you did!