Why a Community is Important during Tough Times

My Perspective: “Community—it builds the heart, the mind, and the soul.” ~ Me from my book, “Self Motivation Strategies for Women.” 

As humans, we learn how crucially important it is to be around other people, whether in the office, hanging with friends at the gym, meeting new friends, or hanging with old friends at a retreat in Costa Rica 🇨🇷 that was supposed to happen in April 2020!

The connections I made with some INCREDIBLE women at the retreat were what I needed, along with genuinely digging deep on recognizing my worth using my voice to stand up for myself and others.

This week,  I chat with you about community and its importance, whether you are in the fitness and triathlon space or everyday human space!

Make Community a Priority

During the 2020 lockdown, you may have seen some changes in our environment. For example, in April 2020, MSNBC showed us photos of temporary air pollution drops worldwide. Yet, simultaneously, you may have seen human beings become interdependent and genuinely need each other.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had no borders, bringing us together to figure out how to win this challenge and support each other.

Pandemic or not, here are five ways you can do something positive and productive for your community:

1. Volunteer to help the elderly in your neighborhood. With the pandemic, many older people can’t go out and get the basics they need. But, of course, this is true for non-pandemic times, too. So reach out to the older folks in your town and ask if you can pick something up for them.

2. Donate whatever you have extra (toilet paper, cleaning supplies, clothing, etc.) to whoever may need it.

3. Make cash donations where you can to help the people in your community.

4. Speak up for others who can’t speak for themselves.

5. Join a movement to show your support.

Build Your Community

When I think of building a tribe, there are a couple of ways to look at it: on the personal side, with friends and family, and on the work side, with colleagues and coworkers. So what kind of community do you want to build? It could be something as simple as a gardening group. You know a few ladies who love to garden, so you start a virtual group for gardening tips and meet once a month at someone’s garden—taking that a step further, you can build a community garden together.

Getting started on building a community is a lot like volunteering. Ask yourself these questions:

1. What speaks to your heart? In other words, what are you passionate about?

2. Do you know other people who are passionate about it, too? Reach out to them and make a plan to meet up.

3. How much time will you spend interacting with your community?

4. Is it a closed group, or will you invite others to join your community if they are interested?

5.   Is it a hobby you’ll all be pursuing together, is it just for fun, or do you want to make this a learning group?

Monarch Mindset Squad Facebook Group

I started a women’s coaching program, Champion Mindset Coaching, almost two years ago, which turned into Monarch Mindset Coaching. And while I have pulled back on this and working with “Everyday Human” Accountability Coaching (men and women), I still have my Becoming a Butterfly Facebook Group. 

It is a group where women can come to a safe place to connect and share things they may need help with. So if you are interested, join. I am not a person that will overpost, but I also want to let others know that they will always have a safe place to connect with others if needed. 

What Can I Do to Help? 

So, let me ask you this? Do you have a community that you connect with? What are you doing to help yourself in 2023 to connect with people?