Quarterly Community Survey Overview (January 2024)

Heather225 January 24th

I want to thank everyone who took the time to share their thoughts and suggestions in our recent community survey. Your feedback is invaluable, and I've been taking the time to carefully review it all. I'm excited to share some key areas where we're thriving as well as growth opportunities.

Regarding the requests for technical improvements, we want to acknowledge that our resources have limitations. While we may not be able to fulfill every wish, your input is deeply appreciated and will guide our future development. We're committed to making this community the best it can be for everyone, and your voices are essential in that process.

Here's some things we're doing well!
- Most people who seek a space like this are likely willing to grow and listen to others, so it's simply the people who make it welcoming.
- Mods are great with welcoming new members
- The forums and the sessions in groups are very positive.
- I think we are doing well in teams like PAT and the KP Team. I feel that it’s so sweet that we can appreciate each other and it’s so important to spread this kind of kindness around all the time
- I like the threads and different options of interactions we have. I also love the guided thread reflections, and I like the different activities and challenges
- I quite like that there have been many refresher quizzes and whatnot across the community. I notice that there are improvements in the leadership teams and I am most grateful.
- Awesome autism community.
- I think that we're good at giving vital information and we've got many amazing listeners here. We also have forum posts that are very helpful to many who read them. We are good at being supportive to one another as well.

Improvement opportunities
- Consistent and faster replies in the Needs Reply section
- Making sure both members and listeners get welcomed in forums
- Autism training material for listeners
- Heightened awareness of the importance of self-care for those in roles
- Cultivating the habit of welcoming people when they enter rooms and including them in conversations to increase inclusivity
- More mod presence and available doorkeepers
- That every team creates their own refresher quizzes to run monthly or quarterly
- Better listener training and screening process (in the works)
- More transparency as to what leaders are working on in the background.
- Organize and highlight resources for members, similar to how listener resources are prevalent in forums.
- App enhancements (ongoing)

Our journey as a collective community is full of continuous growth, and with your participation, we can reach new heights of inclusivity, support, and positive impact.

With that said, if any of the initiatives mentioned above interest you, and you’d like to contribute to helping us move them along, please let me know. Thanks, all!

Heather225 OP January 24th

Note: For followup on specific submissions, my PMs are open!

LoveMyMoonflowers January 25th

@Heather225

yay, thank you so much for this overview, H! 💙

(just a little note, i think ‘KC Team’ was meant to be ‘KP Team’ :o hehe 💜)

SparkyGizmo January 25th

@Heather225

Hi H! 😊❤️ Many thanks for the update as well as for the original forum post that gave everyone an opportunity to express questions, comments or concerns via the survey. I have to imagine that this, in and of itself, must do a great deal to increase morale around here. More opportunity to be heard, know that one said what they needed to and less potential grumbling/proliferation of negativity. Great that it's an opportunity to "speak now or forever hold your peace" or....at least until next quarter, lol 😊

While I may not have had anything of value to add ergo, did not fill out the survey, I have enjoyed reading the thoughts of others. I enjoyed hearing about what it is that we are doing well and I just so happen to agree. I have enjoyed hearing about our opportunities for growth and I agree with them as well.

For me, selfishly, this is a really great start to my day on 7 cups with the reminder of how astute, how incredibly intelligent, observant and caring our teammates are! I underestimate no one here on the platform!

While I understand that we are not the "Make a Wish Foundation" 😊 (entirely different yet also worthy enterprise) if we reach for the stars then at least we don't end up with mud in our hands. Things do take time to bring to fruition.

Having said that, after reading what some of our challenges (opportunities in disguise 🥸 ) may be, I had a few ideas that may potentially assist with some of them that are easier to do, readily available, quick fixes?

"Consistent and faster replies in the needs reply section". I guess some days you gotta' "sell it". If others are unaware of a need then it could be harder for them to rise to the occasion. The rooms are a great place as there we have what can be referred to as a "captive audience".

If forum mentors would like to (or anyone for that matter), they could visit the rooms and drop a link in the rooms specifally for the "needs reply" section, encourage others to take a peek and if they find a post that "speaks to them" to feel free to reply. We could all remind one another that teamwork makes the dream work 😊, that it takes a village and that we are all an integral part of ours here on the platform. Providing the link for easy access as well as the positive affirmation that all of our care for others and voices matter. Everyone is worthy, we all have something to give to others around here. Do a good deed for the day, do something nice for someone else, you just might end up feeling a lot better about yourself for doing so!

In addition, we used to get a "bat call" (notification) for picking up chats from the grs. Upon doing so, we would receive the "bat call" badge. (Again, if someone doesn't know of a need, harder to rise to the occasion). I thought that was an amazing concept and I wonder if we could duplicate something oh so clever with the "needs reply" section in the forums? Need reply link could be provided and granting a badge for doing so takes care of the "WIFM"........what's in it for me thing. 😊 (Again, let's sell it).

Even after the badge were given, I imagine many would still respond if a "call" were sent out as now they know what it means, how to accomplish (muscle memory for the brain). The...I got this... Weeeeeeeeee weeeeeeee! 😊

"Cultivating the habit of welcoming people when they enter the rooms". A good first step could be to have a training session with our current volunteer mods on the importance of this as well as it becoming an integral part of the volunteer mod training. Old saying "fish rots from the head".

Everyone needs to be on the same page around here and having volunteer mods in the rooms, mocking others for greeting everyone, complaining about it, telling others that "hi everyone" is sufficient really is counter intuitive to what it is that we are trying to accomplish. If a volunteer mod is seen saying these things, they should be pulled aside and spoken to as it's highly negative behavior. They shouldn't have their own agenda that is counter productive to the goal and even what is clearly stated in the room rules.

If they choose to not "be the example" for good behavior, well that's one thing. Actively bullying others for doing their personal best and getting with the program is another.

I see an opportunity for yet another badge. If a teammate is spotted consistently welcoming others in the rooms, perhaps they could be rewarded with a special "welcomer" badge for doing so. I call this concept "catch me being good". Catch one another being good, make a big deal about it, positive affirmations with showing everyone the right way to be in hopes that the behavior becomes internalized and repeated over and over again. One that holds that kind of badge really might take it seriously and see themselves in that light and know that is something that they are really good at.

"Organize and highlight resources for members". I agree that this is a needful thing and it sounds like a lot of this is in the works. For now, dropping the link for the "member welcome pack"

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CL9Yu_6zixlapOjdrhCgKLy9JN5wY3HWdrGH7PIO2WI/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.p2ah3g8frtbm

often and consistently could at least get us by before even bigger things are established.

Our community mods are nothing short of amazing! These are people that are consistent and consistently good. I have to wonder if community mods might want to take it upon themselves to drop this link for members?

If that is what 7 cups would like to see, perhaps a meeting with our community mods could be had and to encourage them to drop that link if they have the chance, moments when they aren't quite as busy? I'm confident they have enough to do already, but maybe if they have the time and see an opportunity as community mods soooooooo got this! Our com mods rock and if they say they will do it, well I'm sure that they will!

Thanks again H for the post. Maybe some of my thoughts would prove to be helpful and maybe none of them will. I care and I try hard. That's all I got and some days caring and trying hard is all that I need.

*high fives* 😊 and *hugs* ❤️