Communities provide a unique safe-space for personal growth. They concentrate knowledge, motivation and inspiration – and thereby spark positive change.

Stress. Anxiety. Insecurity. But at the same time confidence and a feeling of being safe. I’m at a workshop for working on one's presentation skills and just about to tell a very personal story to an audience I barely know. For the first few sentences, I struggle. The few scraps of words I’m able to form sound quite confusing. But then, something in my mind clicks. Every person in this room is going through the same thing when standing in front of the group. So why am I anxious? I decide to give my confidence a bit more space – and suddenly, I feel more secure, more of my body language and what I’m saying. From now on, every presentation shall be like this. Secure. Confident. And fun.

A week later, I meet the same people again. We discuss how the workshop affected our perception of presenting and what impact it had on our professional and academic life. I learn about how they profit from certain strategies from the workshops and vice-versa. At that moment, I realise what an incredible impact a community can have on oneself (with “community” meaning a group of people who come together to fulfil a certain purpose). They generally provide a safe-space you can’t find anywhere else. And the deeper you get into it, the more information you’re able to exchange and the more you grow. 

We engage with content on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn – but we often forget about face-to-face discussions.

It’s something I inherently miss in today’s digitalized world. We engage with content on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn and recommend inspirational videos to friends – but we often forget about face-to-face discussions. Especially with strangers who might bring different perspectives to the surface. Joining a community can bring back those discussions and much much more. That’s why it might be one of the best decision one can make – not only professionally but also personally. Let’s take a closer look at the clear benefits of joining a community.

💁🏽‍♀️ 1. Similar people, different backgrounds

Communities come in all shapes and sizes. There are sports-clubs, business-communities, book-clubs, writing-communities – and even communities for personal growth like the female factor. No matter how different they might look – in their core, they all do the same thing: They bring together people with similar interests and offer a safe-space to work on their skills. That could be a breakdance-workshop at a local dance club or a digital marketing class at a professional community.

Because diversity leads to tons of different perspectives, a topic might be discussed way more broadly – which in turn leads to a broader understanding of the topic.

Even though the members of a community generally have similar interests and a similar mindset, they can have completely different backgrounds. A community for business-people could consist of startup-founders, artists, engineers and investors in one place just because they’re all interested in … let’s say ...  presentation skills. And because diversity leads to tons of different perspectives, a topic might be discussed way more broadly than at work or university – which in turn leads to a deeper understanding of the topic.

🏆 2. Growth, growth everywhere

Regardless of what type of community you’re in: You’re there to grow. Even if it might not look like it in the first place. Take a sports club: Even though the main objective might be having fun, every member will automatically work on her/his physical health and – probably – become a fitter human being. And it’s the same for mental tasks. 

Through all those different perspectives, a community will speed up the learning-process. Sure, you might as well be able to work on your writing or presentation skills on your own. But when you join a dozen of passionate people doing the same thing in one place, there’s just far more information to conceive.

🧘🏻‍♀️ 3. Commitment and focus

Have you ever taken an online-course only to find yourself following it half-ass because there’s a lack of engagement and fixed dates? It happened to me multiple times – and in my cases, online courses simply weren’t the right formats for what I was trying to learn. 

There’s no distracting environment, no social media, just you and other people trying to achieve the same thing.

When you’re part of a community, you usually attend fixed meetings or workshops with the sole goal to get in and achieve greatness. There’s no distracting environment, no social media, just you and other people trying to achieve the same thing. Which in turn is inherently motivating. Furthermore, you might have put the workshop in your calendar which means you’re willing to dedicate a fixed block of time solely to this particular activity.

Also, you usually start building relationships with the other community members – and at that point, social pressure might come into play. You mightn’t want to miss the great time together anymore and therefore you might be more likely to regularly attend meetings. And if you don’t like the people … well … it might be advisable to look for a different community.

🙌🏼 4. Incredible relationships

I already mentioned it: People are definitely the best part of a community. They’re the reason why a community even exists. And if you join it, you’ll not only exchange lots of useful information but also build delightful relationships – professionally and also personally.

Communities are places to broaden your social circle to new, unknown dimensions. That might mean that you get access to business partners you could never have imagined, find incredible mentors or simply build new friendships. Eventually, if you stay in a community for at least some time, you’ll always come out of it with a bunch of whole new relationships.

🧭 5. A different mission 

One aspect that I personally find most exciting about communities that they all pursue a mission – which is in most cases different than your day-to-day job. They bring some kind of variety into your life which makes regular days and weeks more fun. 

When I get home after a long day of work or studying, all I want to do is getting my mind onto something different from my job or studies. Being part of a community allows me to do that. It allows me to focus on something different for a while every week. And it definitely benefits my motivation and well-being big time.

💪🏿 6. Collective power

Imagine you want to learn about the stock market. If you’re on your own, your best options would be talking to a knowledgeable friend or research the information on your own. However, if you’re part of a community, you might be able to utilize your collective power and invite one of the best investors of the country for a workshop. How awesome is that?!

Community unlocks powers, a single person can never obtain.

Community unlocks powers, a single person can never obtain. It makes the impossible possible by combining knowledge, people and one single mission. Another example would be a tennis club which invites a tennis-pro for a training-day. Again, how awesome would that be?! These things simply aren’t possible without the power of a community.

🐳 7. After all, it’s fun

Seriously. As convincing as all the reasons above sound: After all, life is about fun and happiness. And I feel that’s why we actually join communities. We meet interesting people, work on our skills, grow personally and professionally – and have fun doing so. There’s no pressure, no quarterly revenue-goal to meet, just oneself and similar people with similar missions.

Taking into account that humans are social creatures and communities generally build incredible relationships, it’s no surprise that people have created communities as early as the 15th Century. The first-mentioned society (“Verein” in German) was founded in 1413 in London with the mission to fulfil public welfare-tasks. Moreover, people have met to play games, train or fight even earlier than that.

🔎 How do I join a community?

If you now feel inspired to become a member of an incredible, inspiring community, you can simply look for clubs and societies that align with your interests in your city. Most of them will have a website or Facebook page with up upcoming events and further information. Also, check what communities your friends are part of – they might know some hidden gems. 

In case you’re interested in personal and professional growth, the female factor might be a perfect fit for you. We're a curated global community for a new era of female leaders, creating tailor-made career and business opportunities by boosting connections, confidence & competence. Ready to advance your career and create business opportunities? Join the inner circle!