The Awesome Power of Peer Networks
This article was originally published on LinkedIn in September of 2017. I’m reposting it here as part of moving my writing to my own platform…
It might not seem like it from my pics on Instagram, but lately my work life has been turbulent and emotionally draining. Two acquisitions, changes in business priorities, budget changes, blah blah blah. It seems like a never ending stream of obstacles and challenges, when I just want to help my Instructors make awesome content that helps our members learn and grow. It’s my nature to care deeply about what I do for a living, I can’t just phone it in, so these changes have a dramatic impact on my psychology. I can honestly say that I would not have made it thru the last couple years without a solid network of peers to talk with on a regular basis.
Humans developed spoken language to express complex ideas and emotions. Those ideas bound our ancestors together and moved them forward towards a common goal. It’s natural that this evolved behavior moved from around the campfire to the workplace. It’s the people in a company that move it forward, and people, for the most part, enjoy talking to one another.
I’ve always enjoyed talking with people. That’s been a huge part of my career success. Early on, I discovered that running my ideas past someone I worked with made the idea stronger if it was worthy or force me to discard the idea if it was not worthy. As those relationships developed the nature of those peer discussions deepened, moving from simple ideas like “what do you think of the timing on this animation?” to deeper subjects like “Are robots coming to take video production jobs?” (spoiler alert: probably)
But Rob, Where do I find thees peers you speak of?
Step 1: Look up from your computer… Believe it or not, there are people all around you. All you need to do is step away from that spreadsheet or that code base or that After Effects comp and look up. Smile at someone, say “how’s your day going?” and actually listen to what they have to say. Having a peer network is not always about YOUR ideas. It’s just as important for you to hear what other people have to say too.
Step 2: Start slowly… Developing a relationship with someone is a process. Don’t open up a conversation with someone new by dropping a conversational bomb like “Isn’t our President a self absorbed jack ass?” That person might not think the same way as you do, and you’ve alienated them right off the bat. Instead, keep it light. Start off with simple fun topics that are easy to digest. “Have you seen that new particle plugin for After Effects?” “Have you ever written in C#?” “Do you know anything about pivot tables in Excel?” (spoiler alert: don’t ask Rob that one he sucks at Excel)
Step 3: make it regular… meeting with peers on a regular basis gives you both something to look forward to. Talking with someone about things that matter to you is not a chore, it’s a pleasure. And it’s that pleasure that forms networks that you can count on to help you through difficult stretches. I have several standing weekly or bi-monthly meetings with coworkers and industry friends. These meetings have silly names like “Psych 101” “Beer Skype!!!!” and “Super Happy Fun Time”. The goofy meeting names are often a direct counterpoint to the deep discussions we have about the nature of our work, the nature of our company, or the nature of the world.
But Rob, I don't work in an office, I'm a freelancer. How do I connect with peers?
Step 4: ON THE INTERNET SILLY!! I don't work in an office either. Seriously though, take a step back and think about how you're currently using social media. Are you just sharing pictures of your cat and the food you had for lunch? If so, it's time to make a change. You can find people in your industry on just about every social network. Whether it's Facebook groups, or hashtags on Instagram and Twitter. In fact, I hear this whole Linkedin thing is really catching on.
Reach out to someone that you have something in common with. But be selective. Don't expect to actually be able to talk with your favorite industry personality with a million followers. Those people are bombarded everyday. But you CAN reach out to another follower of theirs. Turns out you both have something in common. Whaaaaaaa? See how easy that was?
(Note: the next steps were added based on valuable reader feedback in the comments)
Step 5: Join a user group in your town. Or if there isn't one... start one up! About 2 years ago, I moved from Los Angeles to Bend, Oregon. In LA there were lots of opportunities for meeting other people in my profession... Bend? not so much. BUT, there were people here! A quick search on Meetup.com showed that there was a small but active community of digital professionals right here in a small town of about 90,000 people. There wasn't one specific to motion graphics, so I started one up! There's only about 5 or so regular members but we get a couple newcomers from adjacent industries like audio, games, and web design every time we meet.
Step 6: Go work at coffee shop or shared work space. For most of my career, I've worked at home with occasional stints working on site for studios and networks. Although I'm used to being shut in a room all day concentrating, It's good for your psyche to get out and see people. So, at least twice a week I go and work at a local coffee shop that has decent internet (and the most amazing Ocean Roll, a local Bend delicacy). I've met quite a few people in the last 2 years, most not in my business, but that doesn't really matter. It's much more about having people to talk to than "who am I going to get my next job from?".
BUT… There can be a dark side to peer networks...
Having people to talk with is important for challenging your own assumptions about the world. Believe it or not, the world does not revolve around you, and your ideas about the world will not line up with everyone in it, and sometimes... your ideas are wrong.
Imagine yourself as a young, white, male, engineer at one of the most important internet companies in the world. The vast vast majority of the people you work with are other young white males. More than likely that’s all you’ve worked with since getting out of college. Because of that utter lack of diversity, your peer group probably consists of other people with an extremely limited set of experiences in the world. This limited set of experiences might cause you to adopt a set of beliefs about other races, or genders that does not line up with reality. When you voice those misguided beliefs to your peer network with the same limited worldview as your own, these peers might give you positive feedback since some of the ideas ring true to them. If nobody in your peer group says “Dude, that’s F***ing crazy and here’s why…” you might be tempted to express your misguided views to the world and become the center of a lot of unwanted attention.
A peer network is only as valuable as the diversity it contains.
When I say “diversity” I’m not just talking about race and gender. It’s also important to have diversity of ideas. The best man from my wedding is a dyed in the wool Republican. One of my great pleasures in life is to sit down with him, have too many beers and argue about the state and nature of the world. Sometimes I say things that he has no answer for, but more importantly, sometimes he says things that I have no answer for. It’s those moments that provide the most value and stick with me and make me do some research, and ultimately learn something new. I might still disagree, but hopefully it's not blind disagreement.
If your peer network consists only of people who have the same views as you, then you might never have your whacky ideas challenged. Feedback that doesn’t challenge your stance is not at all constructive. It’s the emotional equivalent of eating candy all the time. It might seem good, but...
