You want to expand your professional circle, transition into a new career, learn something new, or go to a new city and meet the locals. But how? By introducing yourself to new online and offline communities to meet new people and open up opportunities. In order to do that you're going to have to make yourself uncomfortable. Making yourself uncomfortable is a powerful way to identify and take advantage of current and new opportunities. In this panel, we'll share personal stories, hard-earned lessons and practical advice on how to find and explore the edges and cores of new-to-you communities. We'll provide tips on how to break through being uncomfortable and transitioning to a whole new outlook in order to use communities for personal and professional growth.

1. Make Yourself Uncomfortable Sloane Berrent Taylor Davidson Shannon Lane Carl Nelson @sloane @tdavidson @cajun_mama @carlrnelson thecausemopolitan.com taylordavidson.com shannonlane.com dropofchange.com How to Rawk a New Community

2. Make Yourself Uncomfortable.

3. “ Your life is the sum result of all the choices you make, both consciously and unconsciously. If you can control the process of choosing, you can take control of all aspects of your life. You can find the freedom that comes from being in charge of yourself.” Robert F. Bennett

4. Say Hello. Show Up. Listen. Care. Give. Rawk.

5. 26 % of US population volunteered in 2008 52 hours per volunteer 35-44 Age range with highest % of volunteers

6. Find edges, create cores.

7. “ I want to stand as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all the kinds of things you can't see from the center.” Kurt Vonnegut

8. Sloane Berrent @sloane thecausemopolitancom Taylor Davidson @tdavidson taylordavidson.com Shannon Lane @cajun_mama shannonlane.com Carl Nelson @carlrnelson dropofchange.com