This is our space.
Really, our space. Just for us. So, relax, don't take things so seriously, but by all means, be sincere. Kick off your shoes, take off your earrings, and let your hair down.
Make this forum yours... so that the ideas that flow can be really, fully ours.
Here is how we'll do that together:
Be respectful at all times. Talk to everyone the way you'd talk to your grandmother.
Be optimistic, even in your deepest realism. We are facing truly trying times and must be willing to reassure each other, encourage each other, edify each other so that we can continue to see clearly the 'ways out and through.'
Deliver hard news with a kind and empathetic heart. If you discover (from reliable sources) that an asteroid or a tsunami is about the wipe out a city or there's imminent threat of foreign invasion or there's financial collapse on the horizon, break it to us...but gently, please. We'll have to have the strength to marshal our forces, muster our resources and prepare to survive. (I'm serious about this.)
When you disagree, simply do that. Do not make it your mission to convince someone that they are wrong. Our goal is synergy - bringing together disparate energies and ideas for mutual benefit. So, if someone's opinion or theory differs from yours... Hooray! Y'all are one step closer to a new idea altogether.
Nothing is worth arguing about. Arguments will be promptly neutralized. Period.
Parties who feel they must argue will either be removed for a period or permanently. Period.
Name-calling is never necessary or tolerated. No discussions; you will be removed.
Harassment of any kind will be cause for immediate removal. No questions, no discussion.
Be sincere. You do not, however, have to be serious. We often take this world too seriously and that leads to all kinds of blindnesses to opportunities and openings for change. Feel free to be lighthearted here...and this can be accomplished in all sincerity.
Please, really have read (or watched or listened to) what we are discussing prior to providing input, or at least tell us you haven't read (or watched or listened to) the material and are making general comments. Then, please, set aside some time to indulge in the information.
Do share uplifting and encouraging stories. Spread the Good News, too.
Spell and grammar check. For real...no one is policing you or asking you to write great novels, just at minimum checking for accuracy in your writing. It has marvelous benefits, seriously. Firstly, it gives you a moment to think about what you have said and are trying to say. Secondly, checking before you post makes it more certain that your point will be made clearly. Also, it secretly boosts your writing skills...and let's face it, we will all be called upon to communicate what we learn together - to somebody, somewhere, in one way or another - so let's all work together in a safe space to get a little better at it. Shall we?
Do share jokes and fun things. The work we are on about can get heavy and feel depressing at times. We can use humor to counteract these tendencies and remind ourselves that not one of us on this planet knows enough to be truly worried.
Do not lose hope. Full stop.
Think twice as much as you speak. Though we are here to discuss, please measure your responses and temper your tone. We are all working under the same weight and pressure of a world on fire... take a little time to breathe and respond rather than simply react.
Make it Yours... to make it OURS. We Are Uhuru!