Communications and community
communication March 13th. 2008, 7:11amSometimes we communicate to the world by virtue of the groups that we join.
Membership often implies that you subscribe to the beliefs and values of the groups that accept you as a member. Is that really true?
Do you ever feel like you are a member of many groups but that you don’t belong to any of them?
What do you think?
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March 13th, 2008 at 11:28 am
No, because I’ve never been one to join every single group out there. The main two “traditional” groups I belong to are International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) and the Louisiana State University Alumni Association. Both are very much representative of who I am and I certainly feel I belong there.
Now if you look to all the “new” groups - especially thinking of online communities - it gets a little fuzzier because while I am in LinkedIn and Facebook, I don’t think they give me a sense of belonging. But … I do feel I very much belong in the group of Twitter.
As with the traditional groups - it’s what you put into them that you get out.
March 13th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
@Laura - Hello and thanks for stopping by! I was actually thinking more of online communities when I wrote this wee post, since it is so easy to join and leave them. I certainly feel strong ties to most off-line groups that I am a member of.
“The group of Twitter”: now that’s an interesting topic. I’ve heard there are over 750K Twitter users. That’s fairly large even at a global scale - about three times the global membership of Toastmasters, as an example. But, like other Web 2.0 creations, I feel it’s more like glue than an actual community, or maybe more like a phone system. A number of groups use the Twitter service, but at some point that’s going to have the same meaning as being a Web or telephone user if Twitter continues to grow.
On the other hand, those we follow and those who follow us to constitute a kind of group, right?
March 13th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
I currently belong to a group where I am a newcomer and the group all has something in common that I don’t have — but they’re great people and I enjoy hanging out.
March 14th, 2008 at 5:43 am
@Meryl - I’m sure over time you will develop common interests.
March 15th, 2008 at 6:39 am
The type of group a person is a member of, has a similar to the type of people they spend time with. It is one of the most influencial factors in a person’s life. It’s a very effective strategy to hang around the people you want to become more like, and the same principles behind mastermind groups.
So you need to be carefull, when trying to fit in with a group, because what that really means is you’re becoming more like them. Unless you are a very strong leader, in which case the group becomes more like you!
Now when referring to online groups, if you look at the Web 2.0 phenom. You begin to realize it’s a bunch of people getting together to form a bunch of different groups under a signle banner (site). I still think the same principles apply if you’re active.
March 15th, 2008 at 9:02 am
@Alex - good point about the single banner - I agree
June 7th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
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