144 – Value Of Community - a podcast by Alf Herigstad

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VALUE OF COMMUNITY…
I have been thinking a lot lately about the importance of community, and the relevance of community to men specifically…and even more specifically, to men who want to be better men.Before I get into that I am going to acknowledge the sponsor of today’s episode.  http://www.stumptownkilts.com (Stump town Kilts.)  They cater to a specific community of men…the men who wear kilts, or men who have always wanted to.
These are the same kilts I wear every day and I believe they are the best designed, most innovative, and most durable kilts on the market. They are 65% polyester and 35% cotton twill blend, making them super durable and functional for every day use, and fancy enough to wear out on the town and be noticed.  It also makes them machine wash and wear…no ironing required.
Right now you can get 10% off your on-line purchase by going to http://stumptownkilts.com (stumptownkilts.com) and entering the code:  betterman at checkout.  This offer is available exclusively for you, the listeners of Being a Better man, check them out today at stumptownkilts.com.OK, back to our discussion about communities. There are all kinds of animals on our planet.  There are herding animals like cows and sheep, there are animals that stick to family pods like whales, there are animals who survive in pairs, and there are solitary animals, like polar bears. 
I believe human beings are community animals.  I think we are designed to thrive best in a community setting.  Some people would say we are tribal animals…I don’t disagree with that, but I think of a tribe as a larger thing, as a collection of like-minded communities. For the purposes of this discussion I am defining “community” as any group of people that you commune with and feel a part of. 
In the old days a community was also reliant on geography.  You could not commune with people you were not in proximity to.  Nowadays, it’s possible to be a member of a global community as well.It’s all semantics though.  Regardless of how we define community or tribe, the fact remains that human beings tend to be at their best when operating as a member of a larger group.  I think the reason we evolved this way is because it ensured our survival and reproduction.A lone man in the wilderness didn’t have much of a chance against predators, the elements, or other people who would try to take his resources.  A lone man, eventually, was a dead man.
Nowadays, the need for community is not as evident.  In these easy times we live in a lone man can live, or at least exist, without the resources of a community.  It is possible for a man to live in a city, have a job and a house, and go shopping for food while at the same time being totally isolated from others, having very little interaction and live a solitary lifestyle.In my opinion a man like this is living a shallow life.  He is only existing, he is not thriving, and he is giving up some of the best of what it means to be a man in the first place.  For whatever reason, he is living in a way that is contrary, and not complimentary to his human nature.  I’ll explain what I mean.
One of the things a community provides to a man, is opportunity.  Opportunity to be the best man that he can. What good is it to be a great guy, if you have no one around you to be great for? 
What good is it to have knowledge, if you have no one to share it with, that knowledge will die with you.How can a man learn to be a leader if there is no one around to lead? 
What is the point of humor if there is no one to laugh?  What is the point of having strength if there is no one to share it with, to help, to protect? I contend that by himself, a man can achieve only a certain hight of existence.  By yourself you run into a ceiling of improvement, and you can improve no further beyond that point.  The presence of a community of other people however, is like a ladder...

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