On enough, vision, and gathering

I’ve been thinking a lot about enough, vision, and gathering recently.

Gathering and community and connection has been a running theme I’ve been hearing among conversations with clients, friends, and acquaintances.

Another theme I’ve been noticing from both clients, and non-clients has been “I suspect something needs to change, but I’m not sure what, or how, or when I’ll know the change is complete, or even if I actually need to change or just give it more time to work.”

I find neither of these themes surprising given [the state of things].

Let’s consider the second theme first. I’ve been thinking about this as the “what’s enough?” theme.

Is staying the current course good enough? Should I add another product / revenue stream / platform / system / market / event? Should I post more? Should I email more? Should I spend more? Should I try more? What’s enough? These questions are coming from all across the effort and capacity spectrum.

This theme boils down to: whatever “enough” is, no one thinks they’re doing it.

The other theme I’ve been noticing is the theme of gatherings.

I started my career in theater – an art form built around gathering.

Theater is by definition communal. It is people in a room together having a group experience. The trappings of scenery, and costumes, and lights, and such, set the stage for the experience, but the experience doesn’t happen until people are there to co-create it.

In some ways the show is an excuse to get together.

And that is the heart of the theme I’ve been hearing in conversations of community: what is the excuse to get together?

“Let’s hang out” is easy to brush off or reschedule when things get busy (and when aren’t things busy?). But an event with a reason + a date + a time, that’s harder to brush off.

A reason + date + time gives the connection a container.

If the heart of this theme is more connection, more conversations, more emergent insights, then the container needs an excuse that stands up to the encroachment of modern life, but does not quash the flow of connecting.

Which rather ties neatly back into our “what’s enough?” theme.

What’s enough to generate connection without creating another calendar burden? What’s enough of a reason to make the time?

What’s enough to be the nucleus of a salon until the salon becomes the place to be?

I don’t exactly know. But what I do know is that enough is often decided not found, and what different people get from the same event is often different but can still be exactly what they need.

Deciding on enough starts with a clear vision. And so does putting on a good show.

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