Have you noticed the proliferation of "fire pits" in neighborhoods? I don't remember anyone having them a few years ago, but now they seem to be the hot item (pun intended) in driveways and back yards.
I think that these fire pits are the modern day water cooler or the equivalent of chatting across the fence while hanging laundry in times gone by. People are drawn to community, and when the pace and trappings of affluent America rob them of the informal encounter, they gravitate to what brings it back. Privacy fences keep people out and air conditioning keeps people in -- so much so that many go without ever seeing their neighbors, let alone knowing them.
Thus many young couples gather around a fire ring to kindle relationships and nurture the primitive longing that people have to tell stories and connect with others. One neighborhood even has a "man-fire" where the males utilize the fire pit as an excuse to gather and build bonds.
What is the equivalent of a fire pit for your organization? Think of how people are encouraged to create community and to gather in less formal ways. Fire is powerful -- even if it is in metaphorical ways, use it to draw people toward each other.
-- beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
@leadershipdots
leadershipdots@gmail.com
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