Tenet Series: Community
The second life tenet is community. A person in this life cannot be great without a community around them. Humans need family, friends, connections, empathy, touch to be successful in life. You simply can not do this thing without help. And if you say you can, I argue what would your successful life look like if you did have help?
Ancient tribes like the Hazda, Rarámuri, Pygmy and others, are all in historical history books because of the community they created. We look to them now because they all give us something to learn from. The Hazda for example are one of the healthiest cultures on earth. They live simply, move daily, hunt in packs, and would literally not survive without the help from every individual knowing their role and responsibilities to support each other.
A recent study by Better Health showed many reasons on why community is so important. A few main factors were reducing stress, mental health benefits, stronger immune system, sense of purpose, emotional support, and more. Check out the article here.
Who is in your community?
Take a step back right now and thing about who is in your community? Many say that you are the reflection of the five most people you spend time with. Who are those five people for you? Can you think of 150 people who you would want to interact with every day? Every week? Every year? What if I told you to make a list of the people you know, aspire to, and interact with to connect with them once a year. To check in on them. Ask them if they need help. Or simply, say good work, keep it up.
Build that community. It will not only help your physical and mental states, but it will help theirs too. The reason we look at 150 people is because that is where the communities thrive. Dunbar’s number looks at how humans can only keep 150 connections. And when you look at historical evidence and the best performing communities around the world, the same results will pop up. For an introduction into this science, here’s a great article! It looks at both then and now, especially with social media controlling our lives.
How can you be an asset?
Nobody wants to be the liability in the group. We all want to please in some way and give back to our communities through skills, attributes, knowledge or similar. Would it be too ‘dad jokey’ to say it’s human nature? By looking to be an asset, you again create win-win solutions. You hone a craft, show support, and add value to your community by giving them your skill. You are appreciated, helpful, and an asset within your tribe. This is what we should try for. To look at helping others by bettering ourselves, and the world will give back because your intentions are good.
When you are a liability, selfish, or unteachable, things may not go in your favor.
Finding your community
If you’re here reading this and in search of a community, I would recommend you check out Trybe Summits. A place for experiential growth, community, leadership, and health, it’s the perfect recipe for building better humans.