Life is fast and it’s only getting faster. People run to work, spend from 8 to 12 hours at work then hustle to the gym and finally to their families. This happens every day over and over again. That is why rituals are more and more important in these hectic daily routines and should be embodied not only in our personal lives but in our work lives as well.
A ritual is a repetitive activity with a fixed structure and with a clear purpose. For instance, you can have your own morning ritual - morning coffee on a balcony, reading newspapers and small stretching. The ritual´s purpose is clear - to wake your body and mind up.
Why are rituals important?
👉 They help us to create some rhythm, since they are an anchor in our daily routines.
👉 They slow down time. Because they are repetitive activities, people can learn and get used to them very fast, providing a chance to catch up on a podcast or audiobook.
👉 Through rituals we build community, we make transitions and mark important events in our community, and perhaps, most importantly, we create and sustain community identity (core values, behaviors, etc.).
All communities should have their rituals which make them unique. Community rituals are common around the onboarding process, community gatherings, and celebrating community successes. You can find some inspiration for your community rituals below. ⬇️
The most powerful community activities are regular community gatherings.
As mentioned above, rituals are a repetitive activity. You can organize events for your community which are held on a weekly/monthly or even yearly basis. What about Monday breakfasts, community anniversary celebrations or some regular community meetups? There are many types of events, so let's have a look at them in this article! What is great about regular community gatherings is that people get used to them, and you don't have to spend so much time or money on promotion. Just remember to regularly evaluate if these events still bring value to you and your community members.
Welcoming new members is essential for future engagement.
This is one of the most important community rituals - the ritual of becoming a member of a community. Every single person who is becoming a member of a community has to be aware of it, not only for themselves but for others as well. With that in mind, you should design your onboarding process very thoroughly. Do your newcomers know all the important information? What should be their first step in the community? How do other community members realize that there are some new faces?
Online environments are as important as in-person gatherings.
Is there any type of content that you are used to posting on your online community channels? How do you promote the community highlights, community members’ birthdays and other relevant content? If there is something that you would like to present to your community on a regular basis, plan it and do it systematically. What about a monthly online competition or an announcement of the most active member of the month? Let your imagination run wild!
Community can help other people, other communities.
One of the core values of every community is to help each other and what really encourages a sense of belonging are charity activities. There are many ways on how you and your community can help other people:
👉 Announce a fund-raising campaign for a local children's home, hospital or retirement home.
👉 Organize some beneficial activities during your organization sports event. For instance: participants can pay a registration fee, buy a beneficial t-shirt or purchase a drink for charity. The profit from these activities can go to people in need.
👉 Organize a community activity - you can plant trees, pick up garbage or collect some clothes from your community members which you donate to homeless people. And many more...
Take a break and celebrate success.
Some people tend to be oriented only around progress or on learning from mistakes. Then they end up forgetting to celebrate the successes they actually achieve. Communities are a great opportunity for celebrating success because the joy is shared, or in other words, multiplied! Build processes on how to learn what your members succeeded in and then spread than the joy among your community. It is a great motivator for your community members and it helps you with loyalty building. Don´t forget, people always like to be appreciated.
