INsight/ Dying Social Networks

Photo by 2H Media on unsplash.

Manila, 6 March 2024 — Are social networks really dying?

“When you want to have an uplifting conversation with fellow leaders in a safe and exciting online space, where do you go?” 

Story

It happened one month ago. In their cover story, The Economist told us that, “although social media are more popular than ever, social networks are dying.” Explained Zany Minton-Beddoes, their editor-in-chief, “After two decades of evolution, the digital “town square” is being dug up and rebuilt. Politics is out; impersonal video feeds are in.” Yes, but, is that all there is to it? 

As a busy leader under pressure, where do you go when you need the online company of colleagues in a space where you won’t be distracted and harassed? Where you can have uplifting conversations and share your own experiences without constant concerns about privacy, comparison, and echo chambers? Tell me, I’d like to know.

While social networking has truly transformed in the two decades since Facebook started, it isn’t dead or close to dying. What has changed is where we meet. What The Economist overlooked is the rise of social networking in communities with a purpose. You can find these on WhatsApp and in thousands of member communities on platforms like Mighty Networks (my favorite).

Challenge

As a leader who is on a life-long learning journey, I am interested in a safe and exciting community where I can meet and get to know other leaders and learn together how to practice effective leadership behaviors. Where we learn collaborative ways to influence positive changes in our workplaces. Changes that bring about a more sustainable and peaceful world. 

That is, in fact, what we have been doing. Building on the amazing, ever-evolving platform called Mighty Networks, we have started a community of practice for leaders who like to connect and grow together in challenges. What is special about this community is that you, rather than joining individually, will invite three of your colleagues to join together with you. That’s how we build our community of practice.

Since we started five years ago, some of the best conversations I have ever had as a professional and leader have been inside this community. Moreover, I’ve been endlessly inspired by the members who, after graduating from a challenge, went on to start their own initiatives to drive positive change in our world. To see that happening has been heartwarming.

Question

As with the many other social networks out there, joining our Grow3Leaders community of practice isn’t a good fit for everyone. We are proud of the Mighty Networks vision to unlock a world with millions of unique, vibrant communities mastering something interesting together. For us, that something is collaborative leadership, 21st-century style. 

Our community is less about knowledge and content than about creating a new culture of leadership in our workplaces. We are inspired by the Mighty Networks mission to support a new breed of culture creators who change social networking for the better, knowing that we’re not all meant to live in the same feed. When you join Grow3Leaders, it is to create a better culture and community.

As a fellow leader, my question to you is what culture you want to create in your workplace, and how you will go about doing that. If you want to discover better ways to change culture collaboratively, you can join us in our Grow3Leaders community of practice.  Don’t forget to invite three of your colleagues to come along with you. Growing your leadership with colleagues is faster and more fun.