Belong behave believe

It begins with belonging...
Growing our tribe. Finding people as committed as we are. Who are all in.
It's maybe the hardest challenge for any purposeful organisation.

The temptation is to start with belief.
Finding the others who are completely aligned with our world view.
But the truth is, that's not how movements grow.
If those people were out there, your company or cause would have traction already.

Somebody told me their local vicar talked about this simple model for growing his church: belong, behave, believe. In that order.
The very last thing he required for somebody to join his congregation was for them to actually believe in God.

It might also be claimed by the gang leader - from Charles Dickens' Scrooge to present day drugs pushers.
Find people on the edges, with an unmet need for connection, and give them a sense of being cared for and safe...
They will do awful things and become fearlessly loyal on the basis of belonging.

To take it into the more prosaic world of team-building and recruitment.
When we find people we feel can contribute with their skills and experience, our first question and challenge to ourselves should be how to help them feel they belong.

Daniel Coyle refers to foundational "belonging cues" in his book The Culture Code:
- We're connected
- I'm safe
- We have a future together.

Only then will great performance and, ultimately, true commitment follow.