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Get Out of the Back Row! A Community Involvemen...

Get Out of the Back Row! A Community Involvement Primer - #OpenWest

This talk is for the quiet ones, the lurkers - all of you sitting in the back of the room, or the back of the open source & PHP community. You’ve taken a great first step by attending OpenWest, but let’s make sure you get the most out of it by stepping out of your comfort zone and making the most of your time here. It’s also for the seasoned conference vets, though - are you talking to the same people and doing the same things? Stop it, and let’s help bring the open source & PHP community closer together to our mutual benefit.

Joshua Warren

May 09, 2015
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Transcript

  1. OR:

  2. Founder & CEO Founded Creatuity in 2008 PHP Development Firm

    Focus on the Magento platform Just a few of my Creatuity teammates demonstrating community involvement
  3. Not that kind of exercise. A practical exercise in community

    involvement. Find a person sitting near you and learn where they’re from and what they do.
  4. –Etienne & Beverly Wenger-Trayner Communities of practice are groups of

    people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly.
  5. You may be part of different communities as well, and

    I encourage you to apply these lessons to those communities.
  6. Please don’t make assumptions about what I mean - if

    you have a question about a label I use, speak up!
  7. (But to be fair, everyone in the last photo was

    just sitting near a power outlet.)
  8. Generally, the only difference between a new community member and

    a well-known, seasoned community member is time.
  9. Just because someone has been involved in a community longer

    than you doesn’t make them unapproachable.
  10. I didn’t speak to a single person I didn’t already

    know at the first conference I attended.
  11. At the 2nd conference I attended, I talked to fellow

    attendees on Twitter, but not in person.
  12. So - make the most of the time, effort and

    money you’ve invested in being here.
  13. Most of the seasoned community members you see here are

    humble and would be honored to help introduce you to the community.
  14. At every conference and in every community is someone who

    knows everyone and is happy to make introductions.
  15. Don’t forget what it was like to be a new

    community member on the outside looking in.
  16. Use your experiences as a new community member to make

    it easier for the next group of new members to join.
  17. Each time you meet a new community member, introduce them

    to at least one other seasoned community member.
  18. If your venue allows, setup rooms in round tables and

    other layouts that create more conversations.
  19. Give returning attendees a specific example of how they can

    make new community members feel welcomed.
  20. After the 11AM session ends, head to lunch in the

    quad with someone new you meet in that session.