The Virtuous Cycle of Listening, Learning, and Sharing
On October 16, 2012, TechSoup for Libraries program manager Sarah Washburn joined the #CommBuild chat to talk about the benefits of listening, learning, and sharing with your community. Join #CommBuild every Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. Pacific time.
Hi there, I'm Sarah Washburn, Library Program Mgr @TechSoup. You can find me at techsoupforlibraries.org. Excited to be here! #commbuildListening, Learning, and Sharing, aka Being a Good Human
Q1) We all have common definitions for listening, learning, & sharing. How do they differ in the context of community building? #commbuild- A1. they don't differ, really. Community building is all about being a good human. period. #CommBuild
@CommBuild A1. Building on Sarah's comment: I think of a process with defined best practices behind each of those terms as well. #commbuild
A1: Perhaps in that it's with individuals and groups that we have very narrowly defined relationships with. #commbuild- A1 and that's what i hope we can talk about today. what active listening & generous behavior looks like & how we can do it well. #CommBuild
Checking Your Assumptions at the Door
- A2) The cycle is about listening, responding, sharing, giving. You listen to produce something. To give back. It's constant. #CommBuild
A2) High quality listening and learning, coupled with funneling back to your community builds trust and mutual respect over time. #commbuild- A2) right, @graphicsmith. It doesn't stop. To do my job well I'm constantly listening, learning & refining. #CommBuild
- A2) and I'm reporting what I've learned w/o coming to conclusions right away. I check my assumptions at the door. #CommBuild
- Ask: do it often. use all channels. make responding easy. have a core group of comm members to keep you straight. #CommBuild
- Listen: check your assumptions. be flexible. being surprised is good feedback. #CommBuild
- Respond: report publicly what you learned w/o conclusions. be honest. be humble. be thankful ALWAYS (quote, promote OTHERS!) #CommBuild
The Spirit of Generosity Prevails
- Q3) How is listening online different from listening offline, if at all? #commbuild
- Q3) listening online, there's more strategy involved, even though the spirit of being generous and a good human still prevails. #CommBuild
- A3) listening online: you're listening to many people, through many channels. you need to consider it. respond. #CommBuild
- A3) listening offline: you're 1:1 or 1:many. still be generous and check your assumptions. the focus is different. #CommBuild
- A3: Listening through social media means being aware of members larger community, & how they influence members #commbuild
