Community…

Greetings all from windy, warm Florida. Last year on this trip we met Rochester Randy and learned a ton about what it really means to be a “believer.”

The second big fear of humankind is the fear of the outsider. Remember, according to Don Brown in his book Human Universals, the second biggest fear, expressed as a need, is the need for community. We want to belong to a team. We want to be known and understood by someone. We also fear those that are not like us.

Often these fears and wants collide inside our own family and our place of work.

We want to have a real relationship with our son or daughter but cannot “relate” to them during their teen years. We want our spouse to transform us and be transformed by us yet we cannot face them when they are going through their “dry” times. We want our coworkers to be a community of purpose and passion and yet we struggle when “strangers” join the group.

Our family is staying at Disneyworld this trip. Disney is know as the “Magic Kingdom.” They know what you and I want and they try their best to give it to us. They tell us to make it a “magical” day, they address us as “cousins,” and they greet us with the familiar phrase…”welcome home.”

It feels good to be greeted this way. I know they are taught these phrases. I understand they are paid to be nice. Some, however are sincere. One such individual is a man named Eddie. He has formed a “community” with my father in law who comes here every year. This community has taken years to develop. This is simply the way real community is built. Over time and through adversity.

Here’s the interesting thing about this “odd couple.” Eddie is 42, Muslim, Father to one child, and recently divorced. Nick is 88, Christian, Father to five, Grandfather to eighteen, Great Grandfather to eight, and a widower. Together…they are a GREAT team.

MAGIC.

How does your team embrace the outsider?

What is your process to diversify your teams?

What fear is holding you back?

In your “kingdom” are you serving or reigning?

Are you investing your time in building real community with your son or daughter that drives you NUTS?

Are you able to “relate” regardless of how uncommon your peers?

Why?