Communication = Community?

Listening to my mom describe the odd dynamics of her new tennis team... how some people "get" information first, say, when an announcement is made. And some people already knew the news. And some people didn't yet. And it's often the same division of people. Makes for the "others" late in knowing to feel like, well, others. And makes me wonder: does communication make a community?

In the example of her tennis team, it does. It's simple: the experience of being on the outs makes you feel as if you aren't a part of the group.

I've been a part of many groups and teams, yet haven't belonged to many "official" communities. So I don't know. Can community cohesion be boiled down to something as simple (and as complex) as "communication flow"?

Our community at Walker Creek can sometimes have choppy communication lines at best. And, mostly, it works anyhow. And, mostly, it suits people's busy lifestyles and preferences for "flow" rather than "rules." And - I still find it an interesting question to consider.

Teresa's post on the Evergreen Land Trust blog about "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" intrigued me: the first and foremost trigger dysfunction being Lack of Trust. http://evergreenlandtrust.blogspot.com/2009/03/looking-towards-building-strong-elt.html

I could easily argue that crappy communication is a major contributor to lack of trust. How can you trust your team if you're not sure you're getting the correct information? Or, that you're being included in whatever process in occuring in the community? My mother's tennnis team situation is an interesting petri dish for the theory. My guess is she's going to be jumping to another team soon.

P.S. I'm here for the long haul at Walker Creek.