Think About Uncommon Community Through The Common

Five Things To Think About For Five Minutes on the subject of UNCOMMON COMMUNITY THROUGH THE COMMON

com·mon (kmn) adj. Belonging equally to or shared equally by two or more; joint: common interests.

1. Practice COMMON Courtesy.
We practice common courtesy as a show of respect.  Watch most any parent teaching their young child how to interact with people and you'll hear them instruct them to say "please" and "thank you."  We learn to address people as "sir" or "ma'am" as a show of respect and an understanding of treating others well.  There's an underestimated power in being polite and courteous.  Smile at people.  Hold the door open for someone.  Let others go ahead of you in line.  When we try and force our way through life or demand our own way we chip away at the very community we are seeking to build.

2. Discover COMMON Ground.
Do you notice that we instinctively do this when we meet someone?  Once we move past the "Hello, nice to meet you," we begin to ask questions about where a person is from or what they do.  At that point, we tend to find a point of connection to what they share with us.  We look for ways that life has treated us in similar ways and how we've responded.  Our commonalities help us to make connections to each other.

3. Seek The COMMON Good.
Community is formed when we begin to ask the question: What is best for both of us?  We move past looking out for our own interests and seek out what is best for "we" instead of "me."  The rule of thumb for leaders is if you get someone to do something or follow after you for your own benefit - you will have the tendency to manipulate them.  But on the other hand, if you are leading in something that is for their benefit or the benefit of the community - you will seek to motivate them.

4. Find A COMMON Cause.
We all want our lives to mean something, to spend them on something that is significant and meaningful.  When we discover a cause that will bring about a better future for others and for the world, people begin to rally around that.  It will strengthen your community if you can identify the causes that you are a part of that will make a difference.  Do something that the community believes in.

5. Use COMMON Sense.
Perhaps of all the common issues that are mentioned here, this one may be the most uncommon of them all.  Common sense is the thing that helps us to gauge what is the proper response in any given situation.  It is a sensitivity to the thoughts and feelings of others.  It's being able to see how the actions of the moment fit into the whole scheme of things.  Common sense knows when it's the right time to approach people and when we simply need to walk away.  It is intuition.  It is defined as "good sense."

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