Humans are hard-wired for community. Deep in our DNA is the need to bond. For millennia after millennia, teamwork or togetherness was required for survival. In the long ago past, men hunted together. It was easier for a group of cavemen to bring down a woolly mammoth than it was for a single individual to do so. Modern sports team reflect that experience, and it’s an experience that’s quite different from simply having an intellectual conversation together… not that one is better than another, just different.
That said, bring intellect and movement together (i.e., engaging in physical challenge) and there’s something special that happens. It’s exactly why merging A people in A place engaging in A activities becomes so effective.
One of our clients started a 5K race, which has continued to grow and evolve. Each year, there is greater and greater community involvement. Perhaps you’ve witnessed something similar. When an event gains traction, more people want to be part of it. It’s that hard-wired need for community. This is especially true when there is a philanthropic angle, like building a playground or holding a nonprofit fundraiser. People want to come alongside you and make it even better. Desire the good of all and the universe will always work with you.
Planning successful events, whether for your clients or your community, requires a great deal of attention to detail. Only when you pay attention to every detail can you offer a really great experience. Successful events, or for that matter success in anything, never happens by mistake. You take on the role of producer, and in that role, you must over prepare so that you can be fully present once the event kicks off. Consider giving a speech. If you practice, practice, practice, you can focus on the moment itself rather than worrying about the words that come out of your mouth. And that translates to any activity. Full preparation beforehand allows you to relish in the moment when it occurs. Just ask any preacher, performer, or athlete.
Knowing the importance of community, take a look at yours. And by that I mean, who you are keeping company with. Are they at a high level? In a sports metaphor, you play to the level of your competition. Are they above you? When they are, they provide inspiration to you. They model what you probably want to achieve. They force you to figure out how you can achieve what they have. It all starts with your community and where they’re at.
There are conscious and unconscious structures around this. For example, when you’re at home, there’s usually something for you to do: a project, something needs to be fixed or cleaned, etc. That will always be there. Additionally, when you’re around your kids, you play a particular role, and there are structures underneath that. Similarly, when you’re around other people, they are influencing you, either consciously or not. You create a probability stack in your favor when you keep company with those who are up to something, who want to achieve more.
If you spend time in the gym without exercising but simply putting yourself around those who are working on fitness, you are ultimately going to start working out. This is why we hold the Peerage and the SEA (Slight Edge Advantage). Is it convenient? Not really. However, it puts you around people who are high achievers and who are up to stuff. Both consciously and unconsciously, they’re influencing you and creating a probability stack in your favor.
Being around other people, doing other things, you increase the probability of new input. If you want new output, you always need new input.
