Review of Purpose
Posted: 15 Sep 2023, 14:08
[Following is a volunteer review of "Purpose" by Gina Bianchini.]
I was truly surprised that I enjoyed Purpose: Design A Community and Change Your Life as much as I did. In fact, I can honestly say that this book has challenged -and changed- my personal perspective about the potential for authentic relationship-building on the internet, which up to now has been negatively shaped by my observations of the shallow, surface level relating found on Facebook and Twitter that seems to generate conflict and insular thinking, rather than true social connection. This book, written by Gina Bianchini, has inspired a revolution in my thinking, expanding my understanding of the true potential of the internet as a vehicle for personal and social change. And this shift is not theoretical; it has been put to the test, as the author has been pioneering global platforms to cultivate social networks since 2004, culminating in Mighty, which currently uses cultural software to support remarkably successful online communities that are responsive to the needs of their members, while focusing each member’s attention on a collective intention. She presents a compelling case for creating such communities, arguing that achieving our own purpose is intrinsically linked to how- and why- we connect with other people. Drawing upon the teachings of Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” and Abraham Maslow’s “Network of Needs”, Gina Bianchini emphasizes that we can reach our full potential through the process of helping others realize theirs. Through the development of thoughtful and intentional social networks, Gina Bianchini shows how the internet can be harnessed to support our personal and collective potentials. She brings the full force of her extensive experience as the CEO and founder of Mighty Networks, having taught thousands of people to build empowering digital communities, to effectively walk the reader through the process of bridging the reader’s personal purpose to a specific collective intention, then learn to ground it in real time. This process, developed in her face-to-face “community host” trainings, is laid out in a remarkably easy, yet deeply thoughtful step-by-step process that meets us where we are at, and shows us that maybe this isn’t as hard as we may have feared. Even if the reader chooses not to build a digital community themselves, they emerge from this book with a greater understanding of their personal purpose. Gina Bianchini shines as a teacher, offering each step in well-paced, bite-sized pieces, while her gentle, compassionate, and conversational style puts us at ease. Somehow, the author manages to communicate all of this in a streamlined, extraordinarily well-edited, no-frills book of about 200 pages. Quite a feat! And one that demands that I give this well-written opus of a book a five-star rating.
******
Purpose
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
I was truly surprised that I enjoyed Purpose: Design A Community and Change Your Life as much as I did. In fact, I can honestly say that this book has challenged -and changed- my personal perspective about the potential for authentic relationship-building on the internet, which up to now has been negatively shaped by my observations of the shallow, surface level relating found on Facebook and Twitter that seems to generate conflict and insular thinking, rather than true social connection. This book, written by Gina Bianchini, has inspired a revolution in my thinking, expanding my understanding of the true potential of the internet as a vehicle for personal and social change. And this shift is not theoretical; it has been put to the test, as the author has been pioneering global platforms to cultivate social networks since 2004, culminating in Mighty, which currently uses cultural software to support remarkably successful online communities that are responsive to the needs of their members, while focusing each member’s attention on a collective intention. She presents a compelling case for creating such communities, arguing that achieving our own purpose is intrinsically linked to how- and why- we connect with other people. Drawing upon the teachings of Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” and Abraham Maslow’s “Network of Needs”, Gina Bianchini emphasizes that we can reach our full potential through the process of helping others realize theirs. Through the development of thoughtful and intentional social networks, Gina Bianchini shows how the internet can be harnessed to support our personal and collective potentials. She brings the full force of her extensive experience as the CEO and founder of Mighty Networks, having taught thousands of people to build empowering digital communities, to effectively walk the reader through the process of bridging the reader’s personal purpose to a specific collective intention, then learn to ground it in real time. This process, developed in her face-to-face “community host” trainings, is laid out in a remarkably easy, yet deeply thoughtful step-by-step process that meets us where we are at, and shows us that maybe this isn’t as hard as we may have feared. Even if the reader chooses not to build a digital community themselves, they emerge from this book with a greater understanding of their personal purpose. Gina Bianchini shines as a teacher, offering each step in well-paced, bite-sized pieces, while her gentle, compassionate, and conversational style puts us at ease. Somehow, the author manages to communicate all of this in a streamlined, extraordinarily well-edited, no-frills book of about 200 pages. Quite a feat! And one that demands that I give this well-written opus of a book a five-star rating.
******
Purpose
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon