Hey, it’s Nathan. This is the "Welcome" series for How to be Second, especially built for us that are "Seconds", this kind of person. If you signed up for the email list, you're probably already getting these! But of course, you can absorb them as fast as you'd like.
Here's the whole series:
Buying into Your Self (A Second?)
Introducing H2B2 and your Second's Community
- What and WHY is How to be Second?
- Community Agreements?
- The Guide System
- How H2B2 Makes Money
OK, I’m a Second… now what?
- Opportunity Development
- Personal Development
- Professional Development
Great, WHAT do I get?
Today I’m unpacking “what you get” from How to be Second, including the Mission and Vision that drive the whole ecosystem, and our "Community Agreements".
Our intention around here is to be “Seconds R Us”, specifically for SECONDS (this identity) > we build things that have incredible value because we understand the identity and don’t shy aware from how many “things” that might be - they all serve US (Seconds) on our journey. And, we try to gather a list of resources that Seconds need along their journey, and refer to the best of those things.
Here’s some of what How to be Second has built/is building:
Community (Constantly growing)
- Monthly Meetup
- The Guide System (Seconds, connecting together)
- Happy Hours (localized)
Personal Development
- The Book
- Coaching
Professional Development
- Platform (Education + Open Roles from our partners)
- Mastermind Groups (For Seconds who are SCMDs)
- Job Transition PODs (For Seconds looking for work)
- Matchmaking (Not Recruiting) system (Pairing FCMDs w/ SCMDs)
Shows
- Weekly Email (Thoughts, Calendar, announcements)
- One Second Podcast (+Takeover Episodes)
- Ask Nathan Podcast (Nathan is a nerd about things)
- Second’s Support (Celebrating things that Second’s make real)
And we REFER to the best things that don’t make sense for us to develop ourselves, but Seconds still NEED on their journey. Just a few examples would be Therapists or Spiritual Directors (some of whom ARE Seconds!) and things like Role Specific communities (if you’re specifically a Chief of Staff or COO) or you need particular skillset education (Like learning how bookkeeping works, or need your PMP, etc) or professional communities (Like Coalition 9 or EO or YPO)
That’s a lot, are you a TEAM of people?
Sure are! Of course there’s me, Nathan, but we have a regular rotation of people (mostly volunteers) supporting everything I just mentioned. (And we’re ALWAYS looking for more help! If you’re inspired, you should get in touch with any of us and let us know!)
What are the Mission and Vision driving this?
Our Mission is to help Seconds understand who they are, how that’s valuable, how to own that value for themselves, that it’s theirs to own their value, and connect them to resources to do so along their Second’s Journey.
Our Vision is to be the #1 place (in the world) that all Seconds, and people thinking about Seconds, think to go or point to, for a Second to take their next step personally or professionally, because we want Seconds to have:
- Relationship with someone who inspires you
- Recognition for your efforts (in your language)
- Resources for yourself and those you care for
- Work you feel good about bringing into the world
- Belonging
That’s why we’ve built what we have, and operate how we do:
We guide Seconds along their Second’s Journey of Growing alone to Going together to Growing together, both personally and professionally, through
- Fostering ways Seconds can find community (and sanity) with each other
- Deeply understanding the identity of Secondness
- Helping Seconds to own for themselves who they are and how that’s valuable
- Developing offerings particularly enhanced through deep familiarity with the identity
- Increasing awareness, Market Value, and Opportunities for Seconds in the global marketplace
- Gathering, Vetting, and Connecting Seconds to the Relationships, Resources, and Tools they need
If we’re a “Community”, what are our Agreements?
Agreements about Behaviors (and upholding them), are what turn Crowds and Camaraderie into “Community”. I also believe being very selective about these is the best thing we can do.
At H2B2, we have 3 Community agreements (today)
- We will Speak from lived experience
- We will Exercise our “Get Help” muscles
- We will be honest about what we need and have
Speak from Lived Experience
When communicating, especially when someone has made a request, shared a pain, or is seeking advice…
- Seek first to understand (ask clarifying questions)
- Speak from lived experience (here’s what I HAVE DONE) unless permission to “whiteboard” or “Ideate” has been specifically granted.
Exercise our Get Help Muscles
As Seconds, we LOVE helping... AND, we're humorously awful at asking for (or accepting) help from others. Our “Figure it out” muscles are so big, they create blind spots for us.
We commit to exercising our GET help muscles, not just our GIVE help muscles.
Honesty with what we need and have
Most groups say no selling, and I get that, but if you need money and/or have a product, I think that’s fine. Just be aware, We’re Seconds; your product will be HEAVILY vetted around here. So just say what you provide and what you need with awkward honesty.
That was a lot - but we always like to ask what you’re ready for next: To grow alone, or go (and grow) together?
If you're ready to grow alone:
You could check out the next parts of this series (if you're on the email sequence, do nothing, it'll just show up)
If you'd like to listen to what it feels like to "Be this person", especially contrasted with a "Dreamer" type, the One Second podcast is for exactly that experience
If you're ready to stay on the pulse of H2B2 and the community, you can make sure you're set to get the weekly email
If you're ready to go (and grow) together:
You can register for the Monthly Meetup and come spend some time in community - or check out the main nav and touch base for what's interesting to you, and talk to a real person about that!