an online book by David Gurteen
A community results from a web of complex and interdependent relationships that form over time among individuals who share common interests, values, and aspirations. Community members care deeply about one another and work closely together towards a common purpose.
A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic(s), being place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, town, or neighborhood) or in virtual space through communication platforms.
Credit: Wikipedia - communityA community results from a web of complex and interdependent relationships that form over time among individuals who share common interests, values, and aspirations. Community members care deeply about one another and work closely together towards a common purpose. | David Gurteen Continue reading What Is a Community? David Gurteen (2022)
Peter Block is an American author, consultant, and speaker in the areas of organization development, community building, and civic engagement. He has had a huge influence on my thinking around Conversational Leadership, particularly his book Community: The Structure of Belonging Community: The Structure of Belonging | Peter Block WebsiteAbundant CommunityWikipediaPeter BlockBlogAbundant CommunityYouTubePeter BlockGooglePeter BlockPosts: Peter Block Continue reading Peter Block Author, Consultant and Speaker
Community and culture are often confused. They are not the same. Organizational culture is the attitudes, customs, rituals, values, and beliefs shared by the members of an organization that govern their behavior. Every organization has a culture, good or bad, no matter what, but that does not make it a community. | David Gurteen Continue reading Community and Culture Are Not the Same David Gurteen
Community is much more than belonging to something. It’s about doing something together that makes belonging matter. | Brian Solis Continue reading Community Is Much More Than Belonging to Something Brian Solis
We know the rules of community; we know the healing effect of community in terms of individual lives. If we could somehow find a way across the bridge of our knowledge, would not these same rules have a healing effect upon our world? We human beings have often been referred to as social animals. But we are not yet community creatures. We are … | Scottt Peck Continue reading It Is Our Task to Transform Ourselves From Social Creatures Into Community Creatures Scott Peck
Leadership is the ability of an individual, through social influence, to enlist the support and cooperation of others in achieving common goals and in building and sustaining a community. | David Gurteen Continue reading Leadership and Social Influence David Gurteen
How can you recognize communityship? That’s easy. You have found it when you walk into an organization and are struck by the energy in the place, the personal commitment of the people and their collective engagement in what they are doing. These people don’t have to be formally empowered because they are naturally engaged. The organization … | Henry Mintzberg Continue reading How Can You Recognize Communityship? Henry Mintzberg
If you nurture something such as a child or a young plant, you care for it while it grows and develops. Nurturing a community is not something you do directly, but instead you nurture the relationships between the people within it. | David Gurteen Continue reading Nurturing a Community David Gurteen
An enterprise is a community of human beings, not a collection of human resources. | Henry Mintzberg Continue reading An Enterprise Is a Community of Human Beings, Not a Collection of Human Resources Henry Mintzberg
Enough of the imbalance that is causing the degradation of our environment, the demise of our democracies, and the denigration of ourselves. Enough of the pendulum politics of left and right and paralysis in the political center. We require an unprecedented form of radical renewal. In this book, Rebalancing Society, Henry Mintzberg offers a new Continue reading Rebalancing Society: Radical Renewal Beyond Left, Right, and Center by Henry Mintzberg (2015)
My Definition of Leadership | Peter Senge People: Peter Senge (1)Peter Senge Systems scientistPosts: Peter Senge (1)After-action Reviews and the Habit of Thoughtful Leadership Conversations Nurturing a conversational cultureBooks: Peter Senge (11)After-action Reviews and the Habit of Thoughtful Leadership Conversations Nurturing a conversational cultureKnowledge Is the Capacity for Effective Action Peter SengeLeadership Is the Capacity Continue reading Leadership: the Capacity of a Human Community to Shape Its Future Peter Senge (2012)
Accountabilty is the willingness to acknowledge that we have participated in creating, through comission or ommision, the conditions that we wish to see changed. Without this capacity to see ourselves as cause, our efforts become either coercive or wishfully dependent on the transformation of others. Community will be created the moment we decide to act as creators of what it can become. This … | Peter Block Continue reading How Have I Contributed to the Current Reality? Peter Block
Leadership is the capacity of a human community to shape its future. | Peter Senge Continue reading Leadership Is the Capacity of a Human Community to Shape Its Future Peter Senge
On Leadership … with Christien Oudshoorn | Joep C de Jong There’s nothing that makes us more free than to lose yourself in something that is bigger than yourself. I think leadership today, one of the big challenges we have, is in this world meeting each other and really finding time and a way to Continue reading On Leadership … with Christien Oudshoorn Joep C de Jong
Posts where this video is embedded What Is Communityship? Where everyone in a community practices leadership People: Henry Mintzberg (1)Henry Mintzberg Canadian academic and author on business and managementPosts: Henry Mintzberg (2)Reframing Questions Shifting perspective changes the conversationWhat Is Communityship? Where everyone in a community practices leadership Books: Henry Mintzberg (6)An Enterprise Is a Community of Continue reading Organizations as Communities Henry Mintzberg (2013)
Overview This booklet is written for citizens who care for the well-being of their community. It is for those people who want to live in a neighborhood and a city that works for all its citizens and who have the faith and the energy to create such a place. It is for those of us Continue reading Civic Engagement and the Restoration of Community: Changing the Nature of the Conversation Peter Block (2007)
You can’t make someone love you. You can’t force respect. You can’t mandate care. And you can’t build community. Please be careful with talk of building community. Community is a consequence of many contextual relationships intertwining over time, more like a meadow than legos. | Nora Bateson Continue reading You Can’t Build Community Nora Bateson
We each view reality from our own unique perspective, only a community of minds can show us the truth. Credit: Timothy Wilken Tags: community (46) | mind (35) | perspective (8) | social reasoning (20) | truth (28)Google Web Search Photo Credits: Pixabay (Pixabay)Gurteen Knowledge Café Workshop Wednesday 11th March 2026, 14:00 to 18:00 London time Continue reading Only a Community of Minds Can Show Us the Truth Timothy Wilken
Communityship is a practice where community members take responsibility for that community’s growth and development. They nurture positive relationships between themselves and other members of the community. Furthermore, they help develop positive relationships between other members. | David Gurteen Continue reading What Is Communityship? David Gurteen
This book Leadership-as-Practice by Joe Raelin develops a new paradigm in the field of leadership studies, referred to as the “leadership-as-practice” (L-A-P) movement. Its essence is its conception of leadership as occurring as a practice rather than residing in the traits or behaviours of particular individuals. A practice is a coordinative effort among participants who Continue reading Leadership-as-practice: Theory and Application by Joseph A. Raelin
Isn’t it time to think of our organisations as communities of cooperation, and in so doing put leadership in its place: not gone, but alongside other important social processes. What should be gone is this magic bullet of the individual as the solution to the world’s problems. We are the solution to the world’s problems, you and me, all of us, … | Henry Mintzberg Continue reading Communityship Is the Answer Henry Mintzberg
As a response to the increasing violence in our culture, the widening ideological divides, and the growing gap in economic well-being, there is greater awareness that a deeper sense of community is desperately needed. But even as we acknowledge the need to build community, the dominant on-the-ground practices about how to engage people, civically and Continue reading Community: the Structure of Belonging by Peter Block (2018)
We live in a highly connected world where human, social, and technical complexity keeps increasing across organisations and societies everywhere. Attempts to control, simplify, or plan our way through it often fail and leave people disengaged. Conversational Leadership offers a practical response by using dialogue, shared responsibility, and participation to make sense and act together. Continue reading Introduction: Conversational Leadership Practice Areas Conversational Leadership Practice Areas
Effective knowledge sharing is crucial for innovation and success in today’s world. However, many organizations struggle to nurture a culture of collaboration. Implementing Knowledge Cafés offers a practical pathway to enhance knowledge sharing and cultivate a collaborative environment. Continue reading Nurturing a Collaborative Culture Through Knowledge Cafés Using Knowledge Cafés to bridge silos and encourage open dialogue
Conversations shape how we connect, collaborate, and solve problems. Groups often struggle to focus on the right issues, approach discussions constructively, or build a sense of community. Asking thoughtful questions can guide meaningful dialogue, ensuring conversations address vital needs, encourage participation, and strengthen relationships. Continue reading Three Questions for Meaningful Conversations Clarify focus, approach, and community-building in discussions
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Meetings or, more generally, conversations serve two purposes. Continue reading Meetings and Conversations Serve Two Purposes There is a second purpose to any meeting which we often overlook
A community is more than just a group of people with shared interests. Many networks and organizations call themselves communities, but they often lack the deeper connections that make a real community. True communities grow over time through meaningful relationships, shared purpose, and mutual care—not through design or construction. Continue reading What Makes a Real Community? Members of a community care about each other
Many see leadership as the work of individuals. This focus can overlook the power of communities working together. Communityship shifts attention to shared responsibility, where relationships are nurtured, and everyone contributes to the growth and well-being of the whole. Continue reading What Is Communityship? Where everyone in a community practices leadership
Cultivate Communityship: We need to cultivate communityship. An organization is not just a collection of individuals. It is a community of relationships and shared purpose. Communityship reminds us that leadership is not about one person at the top but about people working together with care and commitment. Continue reading Cultivate Communityship A Conversational Leadership Practice Area
Bridging Divides ** What Is a Community of Practice Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close A Community of Innovation (COI) is a form of Community of Practice that is dedicated to the support of innovation. Resources Wikipedia: Continue reading Community of Innovation ** A form of community of practice that is dedicated to the support of innovation.
People learn a great deal from one another, often in small groups that form naturally around shared work. Many organisations struggle because they treat this activity as something to manage rather than something to support. Communities of practice provide a straightforward approach for individuals to learn together through sustained, informal conversations. Continue reading What Is a Community of Practice A group of people who share a passion for something they do
Introduction: Conversational Environments ** The Value of Hallway Conversations Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close The water cooler or coffee machine serves as a key gathering spot in the office. Employees meet here for more than just Continue reading The Watercooler Effect How casual office chats strengthen connections and culture
This story about a Personal Growth Community (PGC) was written by Jan Hellberg, a Patent Examiner at the European Patent Office in the Hague. A PGC is an adaptation of the Knowledge Café process that encourages free dialogue on various personal development topics. Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at the European Patent Office The Personal Growth Community
One of the most significant mistakes we often make when striving to initiate change is trying to enforce change on others. Continue reading Ownership, Not Buy-in We need to move from buy-in to ownership
Simply reframing a question can shift perspectives and dramatically change the resulting conversation. Continue reading Reframing Questions Shifting perspective changes the conversation
Trust is the force that holds our society together. It is the glue that connects us, builds communities, and is one of the foundations on which society depends. It is vital for society to function. Our civilization would collapse totally without it. Continue reading Exploring the Multifaceted Roles of Trust in Relationships and Society Without trust our civilization would collapse
Invitation is not only a step in bringing people together, it is also a fundamental way of being in a community. It manifests the willingness to live in a collaborative way. This means that a future can be created without having to force or sell it or barter for it. When we believe that barter or subtle coercion is necessary, we are operating out of a context of scarcity and self-interest, the … Continue reading Invitation and Community ** Invitation is a fundamental way of being in a community
A Randomized Coffee Trial, also known as an RCT, is a social experiment where individuals are randomly matched for coffee meetings, aiming to facilitate serendipitous connections, knowledge sharing, and relationship building in a casual setting. Continue reading Randomised Coffee Trials It is just a coffee, but at the same time it is much more
In many communities, persistent problems such as malnutrition or disease often resist top-down solutions. Too often, experts overlook the hidden knowledge already present within the system. Positive Deviance offers a way forward by uncovering uncommon yet successful behaviors already practiced by insiders and building change from within. Continue reading Positive Deviance in Action How everyday outliers spark lasting community change
