Leading for Community

October is a month of community for me. Two reunions, two very different groups of people, both important to me.

Res Life

First up was the annual gathering of the group known on Facebook as Walker Tower 9th Floor 1975. One of the unusual elements of this group is its homogeneity. 95% of us are the same age (the exceptions are various spouses and partners). Most of us grew up in Oklahoma and Texas. (Some of us went to the same schools as kids – two of us even figured out we had been in the same homeroom in seventh grade.) But those reasons aren’t why we have a reunion each year.

We have a reunion because during our first year of college, we became a community. There was a group of residents who came together to play every intramural sport, and yes, there were a few drinking games in the elevator lobby late at night. Both were elements in the creation of community, but the real catalysts were three or four individual people who invited people into the community. Eventually, I found my way into that community. I would always have been welcome, it was my reticence that kept me out.

Our reunions are really due to one person who found us all on Facebook. She created the Facebook page and brought us all back together virtually. From there, our reunions grew.

Professional Associations

My other reunion in October is at the annual conference of TACUSPA (the Texas Association of Colege and University Student Personnel Administrators.) This group is much less homogeneous though we all work in the same profession. A wide range of ages, genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and identities was visible across the ballroom during the opening session. There are also differences of opinions, backgrounds, and ideas for the future. And it’s one of my favorite communities. This community is the work of many dedicated organization members over time.

Leading for Community

In both of the reunions I enjoyed this month, there are people who have worked to create the experience of community and invite others into that community. This is leadership work. And it’s not only residence halls and professional organizations that benefit from such work. Our workplaces need community can benefit as well.

When we talk about silos in organizations, we are acknowledging the absense of community. Comments about “town-gown” problems tell us we aren’t a community. When members of a department say they don’t know why they are in a particular division, they are saying they haven’t found common ground. Leaders have a role here to help people find their shared values no matter how different their work, experiences, or demographics.

Author Robert Fulgham puts it this way, “To spend time in the company of others who have our concerns, values, interests, beliefs, or occupation is to get confirmation of who we are – to feel connected to a larger image of ourselves.” Leaders who want to make a difference, who want to accomplish tasks would do well to remember the African proverb, “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Working to create community is leadership work.