I spend a lot of my time online. If you, like me, want to succeed as an author or have any form of Internet business, you probably put a lot of focus on your social media activities gathering or building a so-called tribe. Another word for this is your platform, a built-in readership or pool of potential customers or clients you create in your target market. But this tribe probably looks like a lot of people who follow you on your social networks—people you may not really know.
That’s a bit different from what a tribe used to be.
Tribes in the Old Days
Think back to the tribes of biblical days. These were families and family lines. It was a geneological line that could be traced. In the Jewish tradition, for example, people still talk about being Levites, the priests, and Jews call themselves “members of the tribe.”
Native American also come from a tribal heritage and continue to refer to themselves by their tribal identity. Indiginous people of all sorts consider themselves part of a tribe.
Being part of a tribe used to mean belonging to something with meaning. And your connection to the other members of the tribe linked you to something greater, in most cases a blood line.
Tribes Today—Online
In the online world, a tribe tends to form around an authority, expert, thought leader, or celebrity. Those of us building tribes hope our authenticity comes through (at least most of us do) and that we will be known, liked and trusted enough for others to gather around us. But the connection is not the same one that we had in biblical days or that comes out of a blood line. It’s more of a guru and follower relationship (no wonder most networks call them “followers), even though many us don’t consider ourselves gurus. While most of us have the intention to teach or to give in some way—and this may also feel like our soul purpose, at the end of the day we hope our followers will purchase something from us, such as a book our coaching packages, for example.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Leading a Tribe
I’ve heard it said that the world needs leaders—chiefs, if you will. I can’t say I disagree. Without being guru-ish, you can build a tribe for the purpose of leading. That might be your calling, your mission. This is especially true if you have a cause you want to support. Then drawing people around you and leading them is imperative. Your tribemates help support the cause.
But becoming a leader doesn’t have to involve big social change or causes. You might become the chief of a tribe to help others in some small way. For example, your tribe might be focused on weight loss, prosperity, getting books written and published, child rearing, or even dog training.
You might want to impart a message that is meaningful or important. And, to really get the message heard or for it to have impact, you draw around you more and more people to hear it (or read it). That’s a tribe, too.
But, again, you may not have the same relationship with these people that used to go with tribemate.
Or maybe you do…maybe you build that out of a commonality of purpose, shared values and friendship.
Who are Your Tribemates?
Who really is your tribe then and who are your tribemates? Is it the people who have chosen to become part of your online community, the movement you are building or your email list? Is it an offline community you have created or a combination of both online and offline followers? Or is it your family and the elders and people who have come before? Or is it possibly your friends−your family of choice?
How do you define a tribemate? Is it someone who would come in a time of need or someone who would purchase something from you? Is is someone who cares enough to comment on Facebook when you are having a bad day or who subscribes to your blog? Is it your immediate family or the people on your mailing list? Or do you have different types of tribes?
And…maybe most important…what does it take to succeed in your endeavors (online or off)? What type of tribe do you really need? For sure, your family and friends are not enough to ensure your success. That leads us right back to the need to build a tribe.
I’d love to know what you think. Leave me a comment below.
Photo courtesy of lenm | Stockfresh.com
