Seven C's for Growing Your Own Community - Simple steps for seeding your own ideas by Anna B Sexton

1. Seven C’s for
Growing Your
Own Community
Simple steps for seeding your own ideas
by Anna B. Sexton

2. I am sharing the following seven steps as a guide to growing your own ideas for creative
community change.
Read this booklet all the way through as a starting point to help you navigate your way
through your own process; from finding what you want to contribute through to how once
you are up & running how you want to celebrate your successes. I have added a bonus
eighth step which, is optional & you will see why.
Feel as encouraged & supported by the ideas in here to compliment any or all of your
own. You have a unique view of the world & a wealth of ideas just waiting to take
shape, so be bold & get going.
And this is just a snippet of the ideas, information & tips about growing your ideas &
community projects that you can find at our website www.opentocreate.com
'Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the
world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has.' Margaret Mead

3. #1. Catalyst
Change is afoot where you live, where you work...
You either like it or more often than not you don’t like or
even agree with the changes.
You start to notice a feeling, a calling inside yourself to do
something, to make a difference...
This can be scary knowing whether or not to throw your
hat into the ring. Whatever is calling you out ask yourself
these questions;
• What are my highest intentions to get involved?
• What is the best outcome I can create here?
• What ideas, skills & experience do I have to bring to
the situation that are not already being applied?
• How will I feel when my idea takes shape?
• What can I see will have changed in 1 years time?

4. #2. Create
What’s exciting about having ideas is that as humans we
are born to create; its part of our nature. Being creative is
not about being ‘arty’, although it can be. Creating comes
in your own brand version of it, based on how you
experience the world. Use the exercises below to delve into
the depths of your imagination. The trick here to be
as open, random & non-judgemental as possible;
• Use a pen & big sheet of paper to write down every
idea you have to solve the problems you are facing
& the changes you want to make.
• Go through magazines & newspapers, tear/cut out
images & words which give your ideas shape,
colour & life. Stick these onto your ideas maps.
• Pin up your ideas map in a place you will see it daily.

5. #3. Collaborate
The best plans of mice & men? Well they are made to be
done & done together. Even if you wince at the idea of
collaborating & working in partnerships; you cannot ever
alone on a planet with over 7 billion people. It is a question
of moving from an ‘I’ space into a ‘we’ space. And like any
relationship its worth knowing what makes you tick, what
your strengths & weaknesses are. Before moving forward
ask yourself;
• What is the highest purpose for creating the
collaboration?
• What are the strengths I will bring to the partnership?
• What skills will I invite in from others?
• How will we work together?
• How will we measure our success & impacts?

6. #4. Common Sense
As a partnership you will need to test your ideas with
simple, common sense filters. The successful projects that
grow are the most simple. Consider the following
questions;
• What is the demand for our idea?
• What will we answer if people say ‘it won’t work’?
• What resources do we need to make the idea real?
• How will our idea be safe for the people who use it
& make it happen?
• What ways can the idea be shown to work? i.e.
evaluating success & areas for growth
There is more to this part (see our website) yet with a
solid partnership & simple common sense plan you are
ready to get out there & deliver your idea!

7. #5. Call to Action
Your idea has grown into a project through a well thought
out collaboration. You have a plan but how will the people
you want to help know about what you are up to? How will
they get involved? Consider these questions;
• Where are the people you want to reach?
• What do they do for a living?
• Where do they live, work, & relax?
• What interests them, what switches them off?
• What do with their money? Or lack of it?
• What makes them decide to get more involved?
The more you can answer these questions, the more
people will take part in the delivery part of your project.
Yes this is marketing & the different marketing tools you
chose will effectively help spread your message & deliver
swifter, more sustainable change.

8. #6. Celebrate
Even before you first meet with your group to run the first
meeting/event/session you deserve to celebrate how far you
have come since first throwing your hat in the ring. Be sure
to build in a chance to celebrate at every part of the process
too. You have a vision for change & it is okay to enjoy the
process as much as possible;
• At the end of each session celebrate what you have
achieved; review what people want more & less of.
• Host afternoon tea or a garden party for people inside
the project to invite their friends & family along to.
• Invite local VIPs & press to the share about the project
to let them know what you are creating & changing.
• Celebrate & say a big thank you to your helpers &
most importantly yourself.

9. #7. Carry On! Keep on, keeping on. You have built up a beautiful
partnership & have started to grow a following within your
group & community. Now is the time to continue to grow
your idea. You will have more people to help you now.
Use the measurement tools you put in place at the
beginning of the process & these questions to assess;
• What worked & can be grown?
• What could be better & needs development?
Extra support?
• What doesn’t need to happen again going
forward?
Involve as many people face to face in this process, not
everyone likes, to or can fill out an evaluation form.
Make sure you use the feedback to shape your next steps.

10. #8. Complete – the optional extra
I am a realist and knowing when to stop is a useful as
knowing when to go forward. Of the many ideas I have
brought into life some only had a short shelf life. A catalyst
is a person or thing that causes the rate of change to speed
up. Change doesn’t always need to be ‘big’. During the
process small things shift in the grander scheme of things;
• Resident boards communicate better with
members following our methods.
• Local resident leads on running Social media
groups for award winning garden project.
• Mum’s group create own branding for their
creative start up social enterprise.
And knowing when you stop & step out to let groups lead
themselves is an art in itself. An end is always a beginning.

11. For more information
About working with an Open To Create... coach, consultant or
to find out how our Grow Your Own Community © programme
will support you to make your community ideas grow
Contact Anna Sexton – Director
T. 020 7515 9451 M.07941 655 856 Skype. annasexton
Email. annabsexton@gmail.com
Facebook page. Open To Create
Twitter. @opentocreate
Website. www.opentocreate.com

12. & finally thanks... Thanks to the following individuals & groups for inspiring
this booklet, this list is not by any means exhaustive;
• Arts Admin
• BAT Pack & Bow Arts
• Embercombe
• Greening Brownfield
• James Aldridge
• Lauren Craig
• Penny Stanford
• Simon Terrill
• Triumphant Events
• We Love Marlborough
All images and text © Anna Sexton 2011