The importance of being awesome. What we can learn from Mr Spock … And Hank Green.
Booking guests for my new podcast series The Missing Piece has been an absolute revelation. To be honest, I expected it to be a hard sell – I’m not famous, and it’s a new concept – a science-based podcast about community.
But if you don’t ask, you don’t get…so, taking a deep breath, I got in touch with Hank Green, who is a god in the world of building online communities.
Hank and his brother John Green created Vlogbrothers on YouTube, Project4Awesome that raises huge amounts for charity every year and the Vidcon events that bring a community of online content creators together. Hank is also behind the Nerdfighters movement which reminds us ‘don’t to forget to be awesome’. He’s got millions and millions of subscribers and supporters. Plus he’s a musician, entrepreneur, science communicator and author…I can’t imagine how busy he is.
But because he believes in the importance of community and how it can help humanity, he agreed to give up his precious time for an episode of The Missing Piece.
I do hope you’ll give it a listen on: Apple Podcasts , Spotify
And Hank, I am so grateful for your time!
I took three main points away from our conversation – and as you probably know by now, in these articles I like to expand on the science behind these points.
First up, Hank talked about how a ‘like’ on a video or a post was not the same as a hug.
We are hyperconnected but we are lonely. And loneliness is a killer.
It’s true that technology is redefining how humans connect, but is it a barrier to community? Or a bridge to get us there?
Despite concerns that technology is destroying community, many scholars – along with people like Hank - are pointing to the growth of opportunity for people to find and connect with people who share their values and interests. The term “virtual communities” was coined in 1987 by Howard Rheingold. However, since “virtual” implies something is “almost” or “effectively” real, most scholars use the term online communities as online friends can be just as “real” as offline ones.
Sociologists Wellman and Gulia, in their study of online communities, found that while online relationships take longer to become as “deep” as “offline connections” our online interactions can be just as intimate and meaningful as those in person. It’s the strength of the connection, not the means of communication that matters!
What’s more, communities very rarely exist in purely one sphere. Online community members meet offline, and in-person communities keep in touch online. So the debate is set to run and run – why are so many of us feeling lonely and disconnected from our communities when the tools for connection have never been more available?
Next, Hank talked about being willing to sacrifice for the community and how, counter-intuitively perhaps, this had a beneficial outcome for everyone.
Public policy researcher Arthur Brooks tells us that people help others through civil society because they feel a sense of duty and obligation to give back to their communities. And the more that people feel a sense of duty to serve others, the happier they are.
Sacrifice is an area of interest to philosophers as well - more than 100 years ago, philosopher James Allen wrote that “there can be no progress, no achievement, without sacrifice”.
We often hear this quote used in discussions about individual achievement – giving up cake to train for a marathon, skipping social events for exam study. But this message rings especially true when it comes to building community. Sometimes we have to sacrifice in order for the community to progress and succeed.
Not only is sacrifice important for community, Hank tells us, but we need to feel needed.I don’t think there’s much doubt that humans like to feel needed – I certainly do!
Feeling that we are necessary motivates people to put time, energy and resources into the community. Our lives are ‘fuller’ when we let go of our time, money, and energy for people and causes outside ourselves, says public policy expert Ryan Streeter. Not only that, but ‘feeling needed’ could be motivating us to serve others.
Finally, can you do that weird Spock hand sign where you separate fingers one and two from fingers three and four and make a V sign? I can with my left hand, but not my right. Go figure. Listen to the podcast and you’ll know why I’ve been practising!
Hank talked about the importance of symbols, rituals and catch phrases like “Don’t forget to be awesome” in creating his community.
Hank and the Nerdfighters constantly remind each other of their shared vision – to “decrease world suck” - and have a range of rituals that community members take part of. Like the Spock-ish hand sign! And he’s onto something there. Rituals, symbols and memorable mottos all have a role to play in making us feel part of a community. As McMillan and Chavis tell us, common symbols, as simple as a logo or flag, or even words, ideas and signs that have meaning, represent the social bond between group members and play an important part in “creating and maintaining a sense of community”.
A 2014 study of university campus culture established that community is “formed and experienced through rituals”. It was found that the consistent performance of rituals, such as award ceremonies or new student welcoming events, built consensus around core values and helped university students to feel part of the campus community.
Experts on brand community Muñiz and O’Guinn describe rituals as “social processes that ‘perpetuate the community’s shared history, culture and consciousness’ through which “the meaning of the community is reproduced and transmitted”. An example of a global brand with a strong community bound together by symbols and rituals is Apple Inc. In a case study of Apple, researchers from the University of Edinburgh and the University of Ljubljana looked at the role of rituals in creating Apple’s strong brand community and subsequent “consumer fanaticism”.
So, in a nutshell, here are my three community-building takeaways from Hank.
1. Make the time and invest in relationships– it is not the means of communication that matters, but the strength of connection.
2. Take one for the team – because the total benefit of cooperation outweighs any individual loss.
3. Create your own Spock-ish hand signs – it’s worth introducing ritual, symbolism or a team motto to bond to reinforce your shared values and create community cohesion.
This is all information I’m using on a daily basis to help build the communities within UNSW, because #belonging is better.
And of course, ‘Don’t forget to be awesome’ and support ‘Project 4 Awesome’.
Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts , Spotify
