Why being part of a community is good for your growth
Sun is shining,
birds are chirping,
I s#ck at Teamwork.
Grumpy Haiku
I found myself in the middle of a loudly silent discussion. Somewhere deep in my head.
How an eco-system specific online community can make you a better performing person?
For a complicated question, the answer is pretty simple in words. Most of the time, our terms sound too straightforward to describe the complexity of the actions. See?! It's already a puzzle.
I should start with this: I am Not a team player. I prefer being the only one responsible for specific tasks with collaboration on its minimum. The big time consuming corporate processes with teams, meetings, and countless discussions are making me lame. In my work, simplicity is King: you have a task, you have a deadline, and you're getting the s#it done in the best possible (and smart/creative) way.
One of my favorite articles at the Atlassian Blog is Working with introverts, and not just because I am one. Season managed to give an excellent example of the struggles which people like her and I often experience in their lives.
"I’ve learned to adapt because I’ve had to. Because, as I said above, I often find myself among people that aren’t as introverted as me, particularly at work."
The essential Scrum rule is: "Inspect and Adapt," and I am following it every single day. Except in this case.
I. Refuse. To. Adapt.
And suddenly, life became much complicated. From the one side, I am actually giving tons of energy in trying to change and be more social, from the other side - no one notices. So my days stuck at their hamster wheel, as well as my emotional shape.
One day the good old Answers portal changed to Atlassian Community. As part of my job, I was often browsing the portal in search of answers to my burning Atlassian questions or references to our products. The evolution of my knowledge naturally led to some answers and posts here and there, and I even spent some of my evenings supporting people around the community (or writing about my million Confluence pages hehe).
The Ripple effect showed its power, and I manage to transform from a person who lacks any non-native language content creation skills to Atlassian Author to Community Leader. What a year 2019, what a year!
This Community growth exponentially reflected on my work, on my life, and my psychе. Not because of the adaption - with a warm and cozy feeling in my heart, I can say that I wasn't adapting at all!
What is making the Atlassian Community such an extraordinary place?
You being You.
People appreciate people for their knowledge, differences, their strong and weak parts. If you are feeling down or stuck, they are there to cheer you up and give you a hand. No matter the time zone or distance.
Thank you, @Andy - PTC Redundant, for bringing my spirit back with that Portuguese Sunshine! 💙
As I said a while ago:
Being a Community Leader won't change your life, but it will change your perspective (which WILL eventually change your life afterward).
I changed a lot and I didn't change a bit! The Schrodinger's Change. 
Now at the end of my confession, the most important thing I want to say is: be part of a community that will let you be yourself, online or offline, small or big, united around a cause, adventure or idea, and let it do its magic. If you believe in yourself, you can do remarkable things; if someone believes in you, you can go beyond.
Stay awesome (and read THIS article).
💙
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Teodora V _Fun Inc_
About this author
Putting Pieces Together @ Fun Inc
Fun Inc
Sofia, Bulgaria
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