Leadership Would your community survive without you?

[Cedric]

As community leaders, we put a lot of time and effort into building up our forums, engaging with members, and creating a space where people want to be. But what happens when we, as leaders, take a step back? Can the community thrive without us, or will things start to unravel?

In my opinion, you lure in members with your content and activities. People enjoy being on your community not just for the platform itself, but because of you and the people you bring together. Once you, as a community leader, stop posting or engaging regularly, your community won’t grow stronger on its own. In fact, it will slowly fall apart. As leaders, it’s our duty to continuously foster connections and bond the community tighter.

Questions to think about:View attachment 156

• How important do you think your personal involvement is to the survival of your community?
• Have you ever tried stepping back from your community, and what impact did it have?
• What strategies can community leaders use to empower their members and maintain activity even when they aren’t as active?
• Do you have a team or structure in place that could help carry the community forward without your constant input?

Let’s discuss whether or not our communities could survive without us, and how we can ensure they’re strong and resilient enough to keep growing, even when we’re not as present.

 

[Cory]

My community wouldn't survive without me. As the owner, I am the primary person to complete code requests, answer support topics, and keep building the resources.

 

[Bryn]

When I had thought about calling it quits with one forum I had (RX Community), two of my must trusted staff members were going to take over but I figured that things wouldn't be the same without me, so I just went ahead and closed the community after four years... even though I didn't want to do, but I felt I had no choice.

 

[Arantor]

Until the hosting bill stops being paid, anyway... (I have a co-admin who can do most of the things that would be needed, and they would be able to escalate to the other stuff, but since they live in my house, any incident that befell me would probably befall them too...)

 

[Cedric]

Until the hosting bill stops being paid, anyway... (I have a co-admin who can do most of the things that would be needed, and they would be able to escalate to the other stuff, but since they live in my house, any incident that befell me would probably befall them too...)

Do you ever have any arguments or decisions you both have different takes on? Curious to hear. And if you do, does it affect your real-life situation, or does she carry grudges with her?

 

[Arantor]

We're actually surprisingly aligned on a lot of things without having to talk about it, and we've always taken the view that if either of us has a strong feeling about something that isn't matched, we talk about it like adults.

But we only met in our 30s, and we've never really had a big row about anything (not even when working together to assemble IKEA furniture)

 

[Shawn Gossman]

It depends.

I have a Facebook group with over 45,000 members on it. I can take a few days break from it, and it does fine.

If I did that on any of my forums, I think I'd come back to a dead forum.

Maybe once a forum becoming a big board or very active, sure.

 

[Bawse]

For a few days, yes. But long-term no. My community needs me to provide updates, so we can continue to grow.

 

[Al]

Let’s discuss whether or not our communities could survive without us, and how we can ensure they’re strong and resilient enough to keep growing, even when we’re not as present.

This is a solid question that many community leaders eventually face. I agree that our presence as leaders can heavily influence the community atmosphere, and for some, it's part of the draw. But I think there's more flexibility here than it may seem.

A well-run community should ideally be able to survive without its leader actively posting day-to-day. To make this possible, it helps to shift focus over time from leader-driven engagement to member-driven interactions. Creating a solid foundation and establishing trust in your moderators or key members can reduce dependency on any one person.

Here are some strategies that could work:

• Delegate and Trust Your Team: If you have moderators or dedicated members, empower them to keep things running smoothly. Let them take the reins on events or discussions, even if you’re still in the background.
• Invest in Culture, Not Just Content: Build a culture of support and collaboration where members feel like they’re part of something bigger. This makes people more likely to stick around for the community itself, not just for its leader.
• Encourage Member-Led Initiatives: By supporting projects led by active members—like game nights, Q&As, or collaborations—you cultivate a community where members are both contributors and stakeholders.
• Consider a Backup Plan: Whether it’s moderators, a specific team structure, or a set of guidelines, having a plan in place for maintaining activity can keep things steady if you need to take a break.

The bottom line is, while your presence is valuable, a truly resilient community is one that can sustain itself without your constant input. It takes time, but with the right groundwork, your forum can be just as lively, even if you decide to take a step back.

 

[Nomad]

I do not have organic activities on my forums, I get activities only when I buy posting packages or get involved with post exchanges. Without me, the forum will be dead. Your forum will be able to survive without you only when you have users active on your forum without needing for some kind of compensation. These days it is really difficult to bring users on your community without proving them some sorts of incentives.