10 reasons why Intentional Communities fail
"Ignorance is a voluntary misfortune"
Be warned.
What needs to be done to get an intentional community off the ground, AND keep it there, might not be what you think.
Being an idealist and having good intentions isn’t enough, this kind of project is simply way too complex and involves too many people to just 'work out somehow'.
One of the major reality checks for me personally was the realisation of the importance, no hang on, the actual NEED of a whole lot of paperwork...yuk!
So unless you are willing to consider drawing up vision documents, learning how to run meetings, or god forbid, signing contracts, please do not read any further.
By the time Diane published her book Creating a life together in 2003, Meadowdance was one of the successful 10%.
By 2008, after ten years of starting the project, only two families were left and decided to disband.
What happened?
When they started out, the founders couldn’t agree on the property, so only a few went ahead and spend lots of money on trying to get a permit for the development of the land they wanted, but without success.
So instead they bought a house and started their business, which eventually, was successful.
4 years later they tried again and leased land, sold the house, then bought land but still moved a couple of times until they ended up in a temporary scenario, because their place wasn’t big enough for expanding the community after all.
During my research I have been told a few times now, that the unity of the core group is the most important thing of all, and not to worry too much about the final location of the community.
"If you can start something together, survive a move or two as a community, you are likely to make it".
Hmmmm. I understand that but still, I cannot shake the feeling that what this community went through, was somewhat 'unsettling', literally.
And there is something else- me personally, in this hopefully final project of mine, I want to 'put all my eggs in one basket', the basket being the community. I want it to be my life, private and work-wise.
After spreading myself thin over years, doing lots of different things, loosing energy by running around like a headless chicken...
I feel it is important to me to make the community priority.
In their final update on their website Meadowdance states: "We have been living as only two families for the past two years, focusing our attention on our kids and our business, with no time or energy left over for growing the community."
Did they make the wrong choices when it came to the property...and never recovered from it?
Were they not clear enough about how the community should look like, or its purpose?
Did they just take on too much, creating a community AND starting a business at the same time?
Ok, so that community not making it was obviously a mixture of all sorts of things.
For example, they had to update their core agreement, adding "we choose to maintain an environment free from illegal drugs and their influence"...I think we all get the drift and this is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed from the very beginning.
So hopefully we will learn from the mistakes others have made and make good use of the vast information made available to us by people who have been there, done that.
You will find that most of the points below are about doing your homework, as in researching and learning all the things you need to know before you even start an endeavour like this ...and then learn some more!
So, here are the top 10 reasons why 90% of Intentional Communities fail:
1. Not being clear about the common vision of the project
Good will is just not enough, so really really make sure you all discuss, agree and WRITE DOWN the who, what and why, or lets say your non-negotiables.
Since it describes the shared future you envision, it is what you ultimately commit to when you create or join a community.
2. Not understanding the importance of communication, especially decision making
You have to agree on a decision making method (consensus, holacracy, sociocracy etc.) and actually learn how to put it into practice!
Most of us might not be skilled in this field, anyone living in a partnership or sharing a house will know ego and emotions can get in the way of a solution...so make sure all of you or at least someone in the group gets trained up for that!
3. Not ensuring equal access to power
Making sure that every member of the community has equal rights is a must, although everybody making use of it is another matter. There will always be people who do more and others who do less, but still everybody need to have the same possibilities and we need to avoid creating a source of unhappiness amongst the members.
4. Not making clear agreements- in WRITING
It starts with choosing a legal entity for owning the land together, to forming co-ops or none profit organisations. What ever it takes to avoid misunderstandings, whether it is mundane day to day stuff or financial.
Because if you don’t, your community can get into a loooot of trouble...better save than sorry
(as in ending up in court!).
5. Not screening/choosing members
This is a very touchy subject.
It might seem unethical to not allow anyone to join, but the reality of it is that a new or small community just cannot handle emotionally dysfunctional people, so having admission standards and criteria are vital to the survival of the community.
6. Not agreeing on a procedure/ how to deal with members who don’t comply
Holding each other accountable for agreements being made, that is a tricky a business and it has to be handled professionally.
Conflict resolution methods need to be applied here, so again, learn what you need to know and put it into practice.
7. Not knowing how much money it will take
Of course no estimate is ever spot on, but you need to make sure that you have done all the research and crunched the numbers. Actual costs ending up being much higher than anticipated can be very disheartening ,members could drop out or in the worst case the whole project just dies.
8. Not being realistic about how much time it will take
Time is one of the factors that we cannot control. It starts with actually getting a core group together and drawing up the very first serious vision document and ends with having to wait for permits, contracts etc....so hang in tight and don’t give up hope too easily.
9- Not anticipating members coming and going
Statistically, only very few of the initial core group members end up being part of the community, many might drop out just before it gets serious, just like members might leave and new ones join. Fluctuation of members is part of the process so don’t get discouraged by it.
10. Not being aware of your relationship with other members
Are you sure that you want to live "in community", that you will make an effort with the people you are going to live with?
It is like a business partnership and a marriage rolled into one after all, with all its advantages and challenges...are you really ready for it?
What needs to be done to get an intentional community off the ground, AND keep it there, might not be what you think.
Being an idealist and having good intentions isn’t enough, this kind of project is simply way too complex and involves too many people to just 'work out somehow'.
One of the major reality checks for me personally was the realisation of the importance, no hang on, the actual NEED of a whole lot of paperwork...yuk!
So unless you are willing to consider drawing up vision documents, learning how to run meetings, or god forbid, signing contracts, please do not read any further.
By the time Diane published her book Creating a life together in 2003, Meadowdance was one of the successful 10%.
By 2008, after ten years of starting the project, only two families were left and decided to disband.
What happened?
When they started out, the founders couldn’t agree on the property, so only a few went ahead and spend lots of money on trying to get a permit for the development of the land they wanted, but without success.
So instead they bought a house and started their business, which eventually, was successful.
4 years later they tried again and leased land, sold the house, then bought land but still moved a couple of times until they ended up in a temporary scenario, because their place wasn’t big enough for expanding the community after all.
During my research I have been told a few times now, that the unity of the core group is the most important thing of all, and not to worry too much about the final location of the community.
"If you can start something together, survive a move or two as a community, you are likely to make it".
Hmmmm. I understand that but still, I cannot shake the feeling that what this community went through, was somewhat 'unsettling', literally.
And there is something else- me personally, in this hopefully final project of mine, I want to 'put all my eggs in one basket', the basket being the community. I want it to be my life, private and work-wise.
After spreading myself thin over years, doing lots of different things, loosing energy by running around like a headless chicken...
I feel it is important to me to make the community priority.
In their final update on their website Meadowdance states: "We have been living as only two families for the past two years, focusing our attention on our kids and our business, with no time or energy left over for growing the community."
Did they make the wrong choices when it came to the property...and never recovered from it?
Were they not clear enough about how the community should look like, or its purpose?
Did they just take on too much, creating a community AND starting a business at the same time?
Ok, so that community not making it was obviously a mixture of all sorts of things.
For example, they had to update their core agreement, adding "we choose to maintain an environment free from illegal drugs and their influence"...I think we all get the drift and this is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed from the very beginning.
So hopefully we will learn from the mistakes others have made and make good use of the vast information made available to us by people who have been there, done that.
You will find that most of the points below are about doing your homework, as in researching and learning all the things you need to know before you even start an endeavour like this ...and then learn some more!
So, here are the top 10 reasons why 90% of Intentional Communities fail:
1. Not being clear about the common vision of the project
Good will is just not enough, so really really make sure you all discuss, agree and WRITE DOWN the who, what and why, or lets say your non-negotiables.
Since it describes the shared future you envision, it is what you ultimately commit to when you create or join a community.
2. Not understanding the importance of communication, especially decision making
You have to agree on a decision making method (consensus, holacracy, sociocracy etc.) and actually learn how to put it into practice!
Most of us might not be skilled in this field, anyone living in a partnership or sharing a house will know ego and emotions can get in the way of a solution...so make sure all of you or at least someone in the group gets trained up for that!
3. Not ensuring equal access to power
Making sure that every member of the community has equal rights is a must, although everybody making use of it is another matter. There will always be people who do more and others who do less, but still everybody need to have the same possibilities and we need to avoid creating a source of unhappiness amongst the members.
4. Not making clear agreements- in WRITING
It starts with choosing a legal entity for owning the land together, to forming co-ops or none profit organisations. What ever it takes to avoid misunderstandings, whether it is mundane day to day stuff or financial.
Because if you don’t, your community can get into a loooot of trouble...better save than sorry
(as in ending up in court!).
5. Not screening/choosing members
This is a very touchy subject.
It might seem unethical to not allow anyone to join, but the reality of it is that a new or small community just cannot handle emotionally dysfunctional people, so having admission standards and criteria are vital to the survival of the community.
6. Not agreeing on a procedure/ how to deal with members who don’t comply
Holding each other accountable for agreements being made, that is a tricky a business and it has to be handled professionally.
Conflict resolution methods need to be applied here, so again, learn what you need to know and put it into practice.
7. Not knowing how much money it will take
Of course no estimate is ever spot on, but you need to make sure that you have done all the research and crunched the numbers. Actual costs ending up being much higher than anticipated can be very disheartening ,members could drop out or in the worst case the whole project just dies.
8. Not being realistic about how much time it will take
Time is one of the factors that we cannot control. It starts with actually getting a core group together and drawing up the very first serious vision document and ends with having to wait for permits, contracts etc....so hang in tight and don’t give up hope too easily.
9- Not anticipating members coming and going
Statistically, only very few of the initial core group members end up being part of the community, many might drop out just before it gets serious, just like members might leave and new ones join. Fluctuation of members is part of the process so don’t get discouraged by it.
10. Not being aware of your relationship with other members
Are you sure that you want to live "in community", that you will make an effort with the people you are going to live with?
It is like a business partnership and a marriage rolled into one after all, with all its advantages and challenges...are you really ready for it?