At the beginning of this month we joined the LaunchAcademy which is one of the most active tech communities in Vancouver. We did this so so we can work closely with the other startups and also further promote the open source Anahita technology. This morning I was chatting with one of the community coordinators about ways to make the community more social and more engaging by making some adjustments to our day-to-day interactions and making them part of the community culture. I suggested a list and I am posting a copy of it here.
- When you come across a person in the hallways or the kitchen, initiate eye contact and smile. This will make you both happier.
- To take that further, greet them and ask how their day is going. Wish them a productive day. We all want more productive days.
- When you see a person that you don’t know in the common areas, initiate eye contact, smile, introduce yourself, and learn one or two facts about them. Likewise share some basic and interesting information about yourself. This will not only expand your social circle, but also increase the building security in general.
- Use every chance to share the fruit of knowledge and offer to help those who need it. This will increase the knowledge wealth of our community.
- If someone is having a bad day, show empathy rather than offering solutions right away.
- Ask for permission before joining into a group conversation.
- Respect people’s time and keep the hallway conversations short.
Please feel free to make adjustments and share. If you know how to make it better, please post your suggestions as comments.