Why One Community Now

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 


"You make the world you want to live in and people will want to join you."

~ Peter Sellars ~

For the first time in history the world is ready for One Community. In the words of Dr. M. Scott Peck, The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace, "It is our task--our essential, central, crucial task--to transform ourselves from mere social creatures into community creatures. It is the only way that human evolution will be able to proceed." Genuine community is the solution to the key issues of our day (conflict, resources and the economy) and the genesis of new thinking and ideas necessary for our evolution tomorrow. Never before in history have we needed and been ready for community more.

Many realize that the current system, if not broken, is at least very flawed. Looking at the collapse of our financial institutions, the bitter divisiveness within our government and nations, and the rising cost and scarcity of resources paints a grim picture with a predictable outcome. We live, work and socialize in places without community, without genuine connection, without being able to fully express who we are and what we've experienced to get here because the safe space doesn't exist to open up about these things.

We pay for what we think is convenience and a sense of security with our freedom and our quality of life. As the price of food, gas, electricity and water rise we work harder to keep up and find ourselves with less and less time to do the things that really mean something. Personal expression, stimulating interaction, and family time are sacrificed to drive time, increased work hours and standing in line. Our environments have no soul, no beating pulse of energy and vigor and we know less and less about the people around us, interacting mostly from necessity rather than true desire, caring or interest because we live in a system of separation.

At the end of each month we pay our bills and prepare to repeat this process, trusting in our retirement 20 or 30 years away because we have never made the decision to do something different. At the end of each month we look back at what? At the end of each month how have things changed significantly for the better in our lives and in the world? At the end of each month how have we grown or evolved as an individual in any significant way that impacts our family or our society? What are we doing about it?

One Community is the Solution.

One Community is the answer to these questions and these problems because it demonstrates that communication, technology and human values have evolved enough to do something different. The internet has put the ingenuity of the world's thinkers at our fingertips with creative minds hungry to collaborate. Technologies for both food and energy self-sustainability are affordable and easy to implement and people, regardless of their opinions on the longevity of our current system, recognize the rising costs associated with it and want to do something different. Most importantly, people are starving for meaningful interaction, quality relationships, and an opportunity to make a difference in their own lives, the lives of their families, and ultimately the world.

Genuine Community provides the safe and inviting environment a person needs to transcend your history, your fear, your weaknesses and your ego because by definition it operates beyond these things. Anyone who has ever played in a band or on a team seamlessly working together has felt the cohesion of community. Anyone who has ever experienced the explosive growth and development of a project where everyone's contribution was more important than any individual's self has tasted the creativity and camaraderie of community. Anyone who has ever been a part of a crisis where everyone let go of their egos, their judgements, and their desire to 'fix' one another in favor of working together has shared in the love and connection of community. The game, song, and project of One Community IS community because we look around and know that we are in the middle of a crisis of humanity and we are committed to doing something about it.

The time is now because we can't afford to wait any longer and people don't want to anyway. People are evolving and empowering themselves through the teachings and messages of amazing leaders like Oprah, Robbins, Tolle and others as what was once radical thinking becomes demonstrably true and common understanding. A life that previously seemed to be happening TO us is now seen more and more to be happening THROUGH us as we recognize the subjectivity of our reality because our perspective is not just different, it is unique! Realizing that no two people have the same experiences to draw on we finally understand that it really is possible for us to have dialectic opposite views on things and still all be right... we can agree to disagree when necessary!! We no longer need to win because there is nothing real to defend since perspectives will always be different... even when we think they are the same.

We can now ask ourselves a different question: what do we really want? Do we want to continue to depend on a system of inflation for our necessities or does it make more sense to become self sufficient? Do we like the amount of time we spend working, traveling to and from work, shopping, etc or would we rather create something more efficient? Do we spend as much time as we'd like with the people we care most about, and care most about us, or would we like more? Do we trust the current system for our retirement enough to invest another 10, 20, 30 or more years in it or should we create a different plan? Do we trust the current system for our health to invest another 10, 20, 30 or more years in it or should we invest ourselves in something different? Are we happy with our jobs, our lives and our contribution or would we like something more?

The people who are clearest on the answers to this new question, "what do I really want," are the people creating One Community because the answer starts with "community." We are working together to create the most beautiful and abundant community we can imagine with the goal of sharing this gift with the world because we have experienced that even visiting genuine community can transform your life.


"Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose." 

~ Helen Keller ~

If you are drawn to join this community, you will.

Purpose - Values - Mission

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 

"In order to change an existing paradigm you do not struggle to try and change the problematic model. You create a new model and make the old one obsolete. That, in essence, is the higher service to which we are all being called." 

~ Buckminster Fuller ~

Purpose

Prototype Community and Culture for Global Change

Vision Statement

At One Community our vision is to be a genuine community and create a thriving culture of seamless spiritual growth, personal expression and financial abundance; built on the cooperation and communion of impassioned individuals living their gifts.

Mission Statement

One Community is a template for world change by demonstrating abundance beyond self-sustainability and inviting others to experience and learn from our example. We accomplish this through being the change we wish to see in the world; sharing responsibility for, and working with, our environment while living and sharing our gifts and passions as a community with each other and humanity through entrepreneurialism and an open invitation to the world.

Core Values and Beliefs

To accomplish our mission One Community bases its culture and actions on the following core values and beliefs:

Accountability for the Future

At One Community we view our work as the highest purpose life can hold - doing everything in our power to ensure an amazing place of beauty, love, growth, expression and spirituality for our community, our children, our grand children, our children’s grandchildren and beyond.

We therefore hold ourselves accountable to each other, our community, humanity, and our planet for doing whatever we can to bring about this creation and this future for One Community first and then globally. We are clear in our purpose and in our vision and committed to the accomplishment of both as part of our personal and spiritual path of growth and evolution.

Creating the Future

We know we are creating the future right now, so we choose to do so consciously.

Future Context for Today’s Actions

One Community is dedicated to being conscious of how today’s decisions may affect the future of all the individuals involved, as well as the community, the culture, and even the world.

Moving Towards Vision vs. Moving Away From Problems

One Community's decisions will aim towards our vision for the future, rather than away from the negative realities of today (problem-solving). We will encourage others (and remind ourselves) to avoid problem-solving approaches and encourage the potential in others (and ourselves) to instead aim our efforts at identifying the deeper learning gained from our challenges and how these learnings contribute to the accomplishment of our purpose.

Short Term Results vs. Long Term Impact

At One Community, the best decisions will favor long-term contributions to our mission, our culture and our community over short-term expediency for One Community or an individual.

Asset-Based Approaches

To build something amazing, we must build it upon a strong base. We know that our culture and our community has an abundance of gifts, talents and strengths upon which to build the future we envision - resources that may be overlooked in the quest for dollars and high-profile allies. Clear, concise and heartfelt communication shall be the foundation for accessing the abundant resources contained within our culture and our community as we stay grounded and clear in our vision and purpose.

We are Passionate People with a Vision

One Community sees passion and vision as powerful assets and we create an environment for the expression of this energy and emotion through spiritual exploration and illumination, artistic creation, and personal and cultural expansion and expression. One Community is designed so that each individual is encouraged and rewarded to generously share his or her special gifts in helping to create, grow and empower the community. Contribution through personal passion is our greatest resource.

The Wisdom of Our Community

We encourage our community to draw on their own wisdom and experience, acknowledging that most often, those community members have the answers inside them, waiting to be tapped.

Seeing All Our Resources and Gifts

One Community encourages our community and culture to see and express the abundance of resources they already have within, helping them identify ways to build upon that asset-base and share it with each other and the world.

The Assets of the Individual

In doing our own internal work, One Community, as a culture, will be mindful to share our gifts and seek methods of exportation.  We will encourage individuals throughout the community to use and build upon the gifts of one another and share their methodologies and philosophies to expand the strongest asset we can have - the passion, creativity, and ingenuity of the group, as well as the individual, to create something beautiful.

Interconnected and Interdependent

We know that none of us exists in a vacuum - that individuals, organizations, communities, and countries are all interconnected and interdependent. None of us can create significant impact on our own; our potential is greatest when we work together.

Non-Competitive Approaches

At One Community, our approaches and actions discourage competition, as competition precludes working together with those who care about the same things we care about. We seek to do our own internal work in a way that is as cooperative and open as possible, and we encourage our community to do the same.

It’s Not About Us

One Community is a culture not a concept or an individual. The best decision will be the decision that provides the best end result for the community. If it is not good for everyone affected, it is not good for One Community.

"Community Joy"

Any action taken at One Community will treat all parties involved with respect, compassion, generosity, humanity, honor and grace. All the while, creating a joyful and fun environment for all to grow. Life is serious enough; we strive to combat seriousness with playfulness as we achieve our dreams. If we aren’t having fun, why are we doing it?

Everyone Working Together

One Community will encourage all strata of the Social Sector to work side by side, to share in each other’s wisdom, and effect greater change. One Community will further encourage reaching beyond the sector, to ensure the whole community shares ownership of and responsibility for the “now” we are contributing to and the future we are creating.

Systems vs. Individuals

We believe systems fail before individuals fail, and that blame is often mistakenly aimed at individuals rather than at faulty systems. We stand for a community of leaders and recognize that modifying non-working systems, rather than condemning proactive leadership, is the most empowering for the individual and the good of the whole. 

Proactive Systems Aimed at Success

At One Community, our approaches aim beyond individual people and individual symptoms by identifying the systemic roots of those "problems," and working to change those systems by utilizing all “problems” as feedback for improved systems.

Sustainability vs. Fear of Survival

One Community's efforts will focus on building sustainability and growth into the community and culture’s systems; to prevent the ongoing concern for short-term survival that prevents individuals, families and collectives from focusing on and creating the abundance and future they are capable of creating. The community is designed to create an environment of maximum potential and growth because basic survival needs are provided for from the start.

Programs with Lasting Impact

Because the purpose of One Community's community and culture is global transformation, each venture undertaken will be designed with a ‘prototype mentality’ for duplicable results and constant attention to increased efficiency and ease.

Always Practical

We know that people become engaged when they believe change is possible, and when they believe their individual actions can indeed bring about that change. We further know that without practical tools for accomplishing those tasks, individuals are likely to downplay their vision for the future as little more than a pipe dream.

Always Practical

As One Community presents practical approaches for creating the future of our world, we will always be mindful to ensure those approaches can easily be understood and adopted by average community members sitting on average boards. We will further be mindful of developing and presenting approaches that do not require hiring outside consultants to figure out how to implement them and create usable and easy to understand templates to model after.

Go Where the Work is Being Done

For the greatest likelihood of success, every individual in the community must be aware of his/her potential for creating significant impact. One Community will therefore make its work as accessible as possible, for as many people as possible, in as many ways as possible.

Always Learning

And finally, because the community is designed to be infinitely diverse and constantly growing and evolving, we will always encourage a culture of ongoing learning through participation and sharing of ideas, for ourselves, for community members, and for the much larger community called “Humanity” that we all serve.

What is Genuine Community

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 

Genuine community is the most loving and accepting place humanity is capable of creating. It is a place of comfort, safety, compassion and growth because it is a place of acceptance and appreciation for each other and each other's differences. In genuine community we get to allow who we really are to shine through and be seen.

This page is the most important piece of information in regards to what One Community is about. It describes something that meets all 6 of the human needs, epitomizes and creates elevated levels of consciousness, can't be purchased, and is infinitely more valuable than money. In the words of community making expert Dr. M. Scott Peck in his book The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace, "If it is so channeled, life in community may touch upon something perhaps even deeper than joy... what repeatedly draws me into community is something more. When I am with a group of human beings committed to hanging in there through both the agony and the joy of community, I have a dim sense that I am participating in a phenomenon for which there is only one word. I almost hesitate to use it. The word is "glory.""

Peck differentiates "genuine community" as something much deeper than the "community" most of us know as our town, our church, our fraternal organization or our "community of friends." He goes on to say "If we are going to use the word meaningfully we must restrict it to a group of individuals who have learned how to communicate honestly with each other, whose relationship go deeper than their masks of composure, and who have developed some significant commitment to rejoice together, mourn together and to delight in each other, make others' conditions our own."

Everyone creating One Community has experienced this magical feeling of genuine community and we are committed to creating it permanently for people to share, grow and evolve with us, in it. It is our mission and our purpose.

The "soul" of our community is freedom to be who you are without judgement or fear of everyone trying to "fix" you. It is a safe place. It is a place of contemplation and growth. It is a place of consensus. It is a group of all leaders. It is a community transcending the traditional paradigm of society and culture and ascending to new levels of communication, connection and creativity.

One Community is committed to community as a preeminent condition for truly powerful individual growth. As a genuine community our decision making process is done by 100% consensus because we relish the opportunity to discuss our differences and explore higher possibilities that support everyone, resulting in a community growth process. We work in teams and build our communication skills as a way of life, committed to 'nothing in the space,' speaking our hearts and our minds so that others are comfortable to do the same. We recognize that conflict and judgment are not personal and we honor the opinions of others and the diversity of approaches and thought processes that enrich our community.

There are 4 stages of community building and maintenance (pseudo community, chaos, emptiness, genuine community) that we are committed to because each time we traverse them we experience deeper levels of Peck's community "glory" than we ever imagined possible before. This is what creates the profound healing nature of community and the comfort of community being the most loving, creative and joyful place to be. This is what keeps us ever growing, healing and evolving as individuals and as a group and makes it clear that the community we create is the greatest gift we can imagine for ourselves and for the world.

"For the reality is that there can be no vulnerability without risk; and there can be no community without vulnerability; and there can be no peace - ultimately no life - without community."    ~ S.M. Peck ~

As the preeminent expert I include here Peck's description of what he considers to be the most salient characteristics of a true community:

• Inclusivity, commitment and consensus: Members accept and embrace each other, celebrating their individuality and transcending their differences. They commit themselves to the effort and the people involved. They make decisions and reconcile their differences through consensus.
• Realism: Members bring together multiple perspectives to better understand the whole context of the situation. Decisions are more well-rounded and humble, rather than one-sided and arrogant.
• Contemplation: Members examine themselves. They are individually and collectively self-aware of the world outside themselves, the world inside themselves, and the relationship between the two.
• A safe place: Members allow others to share their vulnerability, heal themselves, and express who they truly are.
• A laboratory for personal disarmament: Members experientially discover the rules for peacemaking and embrace its virtues. They feel and express compassion and respect for each other as fellow human beings.
• A group that can fight gracefully: Members resolve conflicts with wisdom and grace. They listen and understand, respect each others' gifts, accept each others' limitations, celebrate their differences, bind each others’ wounds, and commit to a struggle together rather than against each other.
• A group of all leaders: Members harness the “flow of leadership” to make decisions and set a course of action. It is the spirit of community itself that leads and not any single individual.
• A spirit: The true spirit of community is the spirit of peace, love, wisdom and power. Members may view the source of this spirit as an outgrowth of the collective self or as the manifestation of a Higher Will.

One Community Philosophy

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 


The foundational philosophy and culture of One Community is that happiness and growth are why we are here. These are the keys to longevity, quality of life, health and productivity and we know that freedom to be who we are, a loving community, time spent with friends and family, living a life of virtue and principle, time spent in Nature, and being a part of something larger than ourselves all increase our happiness and help us to grow. We are committed to these foundations of living because we are committed to happiness itself.


"Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions."

~ Dalai Lama ~

Freedom to Be Who We Are

The philosophy of One Community is that freedom to be who you are is a choice made much easier when your community accepts, loves, and appreciates you for who you are without the desire to 'change' or 'fix' you. We embrace diversity and recognize that for each of us to truly be in our power and to truly shine our full magnificence, we must be open to each other and accepting of one another. We wear our hearts on our sleeves and speak our emotions, and our minds, from a place of love and truth so that others may do the same.

A Loving Community

The philosophy of One Community is that a loving community is the most healing, transformative and nurturing place the human soul can play, learn, grow and evolve. At One Community all community members are treated with love, honor and respect and we are each committed to evolving and maintaining this community with each new addition. Community is our greatest gift to each other and ourselves and the key to our spiritual evolution and the evolution of humanity.

Time Spent with Friends and Family

The philosophy of One Community is that it is important to create the space for time spent with friends, family and community, and make it a priority. We are committed to practical rituals such as group dining, sunrise and sunset classes, working in teams, and music and story telling; all designed to bring us together daily in order to spend quality time with our friends, family, and community.

Living a Life of Virtue and Principle

The philosophy of One Community is to live our lives consciously and conscientiously; within a self-sustaining environment that allows and empowers its members to grow, learn and express their gifts further aiding the sustainability of community. We exercise a culture of conservation and believe that people given the opportunity will always choose what they feel is the right choice. As a result we foster an environment of virtue and principle founded on responsible decision making with regard to ourselves, each other, society and the planet.

Time Spent in Nature

The philosophy of One Community is that time in Nature is a precious gift. It is healing, energizing and something to be honored and grateful for. We are committed to a life of communion with Nature and we respect Her as a living organism, host and part of our community; choosing to preserve Her pristine state and live in cohesion with Her as much as possible.

Something Greater Than Ourselves

The philosophy of One Community is that our community and what it represents is much greater than us as individuals and even greater than the sum of us as its parts; we are committed to nurturing this great community and all that it represents. We commit to be the change we wish to see in the world and understand that "If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other." ~ Mother Teresa ~

Three Principles of Success

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 


One Community is a unique environment for entrepreneurial success because we have established ourselves from day one to be self-sufficient and talent diverse with a culture of teamwork. We see people's natural gifts as their most marketable talent and we work together to maximize creativity, efficiency and success in our endeavors to share these talents with the world. Our community approach to financial abundance utilizes tried and true methods of corporate business success to bring revenue to the individual and community in an environment where money never need change hands.

There are three key principles in the success of One Community: fixed overhead through self-sustainability, maximum free time through the efficiency model, and talent diversity. The principles are simple to understand and even easier to implement but they must be implemented from the start. Proper infrastructure creation with these three principles in mind is the key to their successful foundation within the entrepreneurial model of One Community.

Most people today are spending the majority of their income on rent/mortgage, food, gas, and utilities. That "overhead" of just surviving adds a lot of unnecessary stress and has created a society that is struggling for the most part just to get by. Our investment model rewards the Property Owner and eliminates the largest of these expenses, rent/mortgage for our Community Members. In addition, building sustainably, growing our own food, and living where we work eliminates almost all of the other "basic needs" expenses. The result is that we have a living environment where monthly expenses are little-to-none and opportunities for building or becoming a part of an income stream are always available. Our community contribution model not only supports this but allows for select people to enter the community with zero investment, and a business plan, and the community will vote to make this their primary community responsibility and allocate others to assist.

Consider John gets sponsored because he is a musician and a painter. John is accepted because he meets the criteria for becoming a community member and brings with him recording equipment, obvious talent (contributing to principle #3), and a good work ethic so he quits his job working at Best Buy to join One Community. Now we have a new member with marketable talent and equipment that could help anyone else looking to create audio products so we brainstorm as a group to find the best way to utilize these resources and talent, and we go to work.

In putting the community in action we would allocate as many hours as everyone could spare to supporting each other. In this example, we would support John in building multiple businesses and we would market these businesses to the world through use of the internet and also to visitors of the community. For example, we would create CD's with John that would be sold on the internet and he would also share his gifts and talents by playing music for all of us in the community center. In John's free time he would be encouraged to be paint in preparation for a similar model applied to this additional marketable skill.

Key principle #2 now becomes very important for John. Because he has a marketable skill and people desiring to build businesses for themselves with his talent and equipment, he is going to need as much free time as possible, which he has, because John has zero commute and many of his domestic duties like shopping (if any is needed), food preparation and laundry are taken care of by people who are already established and have the time to contribute in this way. Until we have exhausted all options for building businesses with John, our goal as a supportive and entrepreneurial community is to invest community time and energy into John's gifts and talents, as well as all the people involved in John's businesses. Even if John leaves the community and its members still benefit (see "Model for Entrepreneurial Success").

Imagine how rewarding this would be for John and how excited he would be to contribute to this process every day. Instead of working full time just to survive, John would be spending his days doing what he loves to do with people who appreciate him and support him in expressing his gifts and talents: music and painting. John is not only doing what he loves and benefiting himself but he also still has free time to build and create even more if he chooses to.

This approach would continue until John is established in the community and his best source of community contribution is no longer business building, at which point John could then relax on a reduced work week because of his financial contribution through his businesses. Now it is John's turn to help with other aspects of the community (playing music for the community would continue as long as John was willing) until his skills and assets are required again.

It is important to note here that unless a person comes to the community with absolutely zero personal expenses or debt, building an income stream will be a necessity and their ability to do so is an important consideration for acceptance into the community. This is a good thing for the community and the individual because it increases the value of our community model and encourages participation at all levels. To make it all work, one key to our success is creating an environment that everyone wants to be a part of so we can attract more diversified talent and motivated people, thus multiplying our think tank and business options exponentially as the community grows with talented and motivated people.

An Open Invitation to the World

This blog is the first iteration of what has now become www.OneCommunityGlobal.org, please visit that site for all the most current details on this project. 

One Community maintains an open invitation to the world by always asking the question "how can we include..." rather than "why should we exclude..." We extend this ongoing invitation through tourism, exports of goods, freely sharing our philosophy and methodologies for success, formation of symbiotic and reciprocal relationships wherever possible, and  an open Community Member Sponsorship Program.

Our mission and our purpose revolve around a larger community called Humanity and our vision is that one day all Humanity can join us in genuine community.