"Get Together" Podcast Roundup
Interviews with author of "We Should Get Together," Kat Vellos, financial hype woman Berna Anat, and Shana Sumers of HER social app
The Podcast Roundup is an introduction to ordinary people building extraordinary communities featured on the “Get Together” Podcast.
________
Issue #3
This coming week we will publish our 50th full length interview on the Get Together podcast!
Through the generosity and wisdom of these leaders, we have learned so much more than we ever could have on our own.
In the last few weeks, here’s who we’ve learned from:
Kat Vellos taught us how to cultivate deep friendships in a sea of busy, mobile people and how to spark community in otherwise isolating situations.
Berna Anat shed light on how to role model the ways your community members can show up.
Shana Sumers shared insights from how she created a radically inclusive online space.
If you haven’t had the chance to listen to their stories yet, read our round up below and subscribe to listen.
Onward ✌️
Bailey
🔊Podcast Roundup
The Podcast Roundup is an introduction to ordinary people building extraordinary communities featured on the Get Together Podcast.
Making friendships more “user-friendly”🤝
Kat Vellos is a user experience designer who uses her trade to help people connect authentically. She is the author of We Should Get Together, which breaks down the four most common challenges of adult friendship. In her early days in San Francisco, Kat created an event called Better Than Small Talk and sparked the Bay Area Black Designers community, which is described as “Silicon Valley’s largest unofficial ERG for Black designers.”
Editorial note from Kevin:
Kat talks about starting Bay Area Black Designers because she rarely saw other Black designers. Rarely saw them at conferences, in her organization, in her city. It’s a reminder that if you feel are feeling isolated—if it seems that there aren’t other people who look like you, who care about the same things as you–that they are out there and you can spark a community that draws them in. It takes action, and collecting the first few folks, but you can be difference between someone feeling like they’re supported and seen or not.
🎧Listen on your favorite podcast platform.
Bringing humor & hype to personal finance 💸
Berna brings hype to the “hella male, hella stale, and hella pale” financial space. She creates videos, writing, and hosts talks that encourage, support and celebrate those of us who struggle with personal finances.
This work is personal for Berna. Growing up a first-gen child of Filipino immigrants, money felt like a taboo topic. Berna set out to change that. Today she’s a writer, producer, speaker, “Fin-fluencer,” and she just launched a brand-new monthly membership program that connects community members to one another for financial learning and friendship.
Editorial note from Kevin:
One of my “a-has” from chatting with Berna is that role modeling how you want community members to show up and participate is powerful. Berna is leading with transparency about her finances, vulnerability about what she doesn’t or didn’t know, and an overall funky energetic vibe. That’s helping her spark a meaningful membership community. It’s influencing how these early members are supporting and communicating with each other.
🎧Listen on your favorite podcast platform.
Creating a radically safe, welcoming space online 🏳️🌈
HER Social App is the largest social community and dating app for LGBTQ+ womxn and queer people. Unlike other dating apps that tend to end the user journey when people find a partner, HER is also a place for users to return to for queer friendship and conversation.
Shana Sumers is the master behind the community at HER. She started as an ambassador of the app and now serves as the Head of Community, helping launch and grow it to over five million users worldwide.
Editorial note from Maggie:
Shana doesn’t do anything without consulting her community first. She talked about a difficult decision on the HER social app forums: people would list their dating preferences, and her team wasn’t sure whether some of these statements were phobic or just stating personal preferences. Instead of taking down the comments right away, Shana decided to let it play out on the forums and let the community react. Sure enough, the community started calling out the posts for being disrespectful, and then Shana was certain they needed to be removed. But it was important that she let the users decide.
🎧Listen on your favorite podcast platform.
✨This Week’s Inspiring Link
Creating Abundant Communities from the “Community Feelings” Substack
You simply cannot accumulate a large number of members and turn them into a community. You must do the reverse. You must let the fruit ripen on the tree before picking it!
Communities form when bonds between members are created. Think about two types of gatherings 1) a small dinner party with a group of people that share an interest or 2) a large concert. In which situation would you most likely create true bonds?
When building a community it’s important to start with a core founding group (the size of a dinner party) and add members slowly. Grow slower and deeper bonds will form. Deeper bonds = regular engagement and community member stickiness.
More on all things People & Company and Get Together here.
We published a book, host a podcast, and coach organizations on how to make smarter bets with their community-building investments.