I didn't even know I was looking for a tribe until I became part of a soul-centred blogging community. The community was formed by those taking part in the 8 week blogging course 'Bright-Eyed and Blog-Hearted' by Rachel MacDonald.
"A tribe is a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader and, and connected to an idea. For millions of years, human beings have been part of one tribe or another. A group needs only two things to be a tribe: a shared interest and a way to communicate." Seth Godin
If you use the internet at all, you cannot escape form the term 'tribe' that is thrown about, often as a way to gain followers to a blog, brand, or product of some sort. At first I thought it was just another marketing ploy to pigeonhole you into yet another label (you know what I mean 'Gen-X!'). Then something happened. I actually started following different people online, be they creative thinkers, writers or wellness experts. I started to resonate with the concept of getting behind their ideas and being a part of their tribe. Leaders of a tribe are trying to connect you with their idea and ultimately, connect you with each other within the tribe.
Earlier in the year while I was shifting from one tribe to another and becoming engrossed in new ways of thinking. I then stumbled upon Rachel's site, In Spaces Between. It was a complicated tangent of paths that led me to this point, and I think the 'tribal leader' who initially directed me to her was the 'Wellness Warrior', Jess Ainscough.
Rachel was offering a blogging course like no other. It promised to show you how and where to start with blogging and carve out your own unique space. It honed in on how to get clear on my vision and where to focus my energies. The comprehensive coursework covered every aspect imaginable of not only setting up my blog, but also ideas on how to turn those visions into a business. I admit, this element of it is still very much a work in progress for me! It is something that will take time to create and build. Without this course though, I wouldn't have even have found this outlet in the first place.
One other key aspect of the course, is what I mentioned at the beginning of this post, and that was the opportunity to be part of an exclusive Facebook community for those participating in this course. This is where the tribe started to truly appear! Warrior women from many walks of life participated in this forum offering support and encouragement on all levels. It has become the ideal of what you want in a tribe. A community connected to each other by a common goal and helping each other to move forward with that goal.
They are out there you know...these tribes of people who are actually there to help each other. It can be a lonely business following your heart and being vulnerable to the world. These tribes offer a chance for you to belong, and reassure you that you are not alone on this journey. The internet has offered a global forum, be it Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or others, where these 'outsiders' can find each other and be accepted into a bigger tribe they would never have thought possible.
"We need to create our own thriving tribes to support each other." Arianna Huffington
If you want to find out more about the 'Bright-Eyed and Blog-Hearted' tribe I urge you to jump on over to Rachel's site and sign up for her next course starting on 28 July 2014. You might even belong to a tribe but were not even aware of it yet!