This has been bothering me more and more lately… I see a lot of groups that call themselves a community. But if the reason they group together, is because they all do the same thing, look the same way or have the same worldview… isn't it really just a clique?
I have been hearing the word “community” get thrown around a lot these days, but I'm starting to think that people don't really know what it truly means. For every layer of diversity that a group doesn't accept, it unknowingly adds a layer of vulnerability.
What makes community strong is diversity. Different world views, different strengths and weaknesses, different skills. A strong community embraces the wisdom of the elderly, the vitality of the young, the fighters, the thinkers, the workers, the creatives, the leaders, the freaks, geeks and weirdos…. Even a real jerk might be just what's needed sometimes… For every strength, there is a corresponding weakness, and vice-versa.
We live in a world where groups, cliques, or “communities” define themselves by what divides us.
But we will always have more in common by 100x-- becuase we're human beings. We all need each other, but we won't always like each other. And that is okay, because the diversity makes us stronger.
The famous saying goes; “Divide, and conquer”.
So if you're divided, are you conquered? Or just primed or it?
Which brings me to my real question.
What are you truly looking for? A clique, or a community?