Five Ways To Start A Movement

By Fraser Chapman ’93

I was asked to write about "five ways to start a movement" but the word "movement" might be misleading. This little column should be titled "five ways to start a community."

A movement makes me think of something that could be short-lived. A community is something that is succeeded by generations of our children. A community lasts beyond just you and me. A community is built on core values that maintain the integral message of what its founders had in mind.

That is what the Morning Glory Cycling Club is. It is a community of like-minded individuals who love to see the sun rise while riding their bicycle. The MGCC’s mission statement is to get butts on bikes. It started with just two of us. Now there are 1,200 of us.

So what did we do that created this community? How did we grow from just two of us 10 years ago to 1,200 of us now? Here are the five ways to start a community:

PASSION: The leadership of a community must demonstrate an undying love and passion for its focus. Ours is riding bikes. I could not understand why somebody would not want to ride bikes with us. Your passion for the focus of the community has to be undying and almost blinding. Your passion has to be in every word you speak, every person you meet, and with us, every pedal stroke.

INCLUSIVENESS: A community is not a community unless it has an overwhelming feeling of inclusiveness. All newcomers are welcomed with open arms. Newcomers must be embraced and taught the way to feel the passion for what makes the community so enticing to others. The feeling of intimidation should have no place in the cultural fabric of the community. Questions should always be asked. Knowledge should always be shared. Group hugs are common.

PURPOSE: A community needs to have a purpose. Our purpose – which one would think was to ride bikes – was actually to scratch two daily itches: the need for exercise and the need to socialize with like-minded individuals. Lifelong friendships were formed while exercising the mind, body and soul while pedalling the bicycle.

CONSISTENCY & PREDICTABILITY: The growth of a community takes an extremely consistent message. A message that is predictable. If your community has scheduled activities, the scheduling of those activities has to be extremely consistent. Keeping your communication strategy consistent and predictable is key.

VISION: A community needs to have a vision that is long-term in nature. Once that vision is set by the leadership, the vision can be tweaked but the general message needs to remain the same. Lots of little bumps on the road will allow for second-guessing. Groups of naysayers and doubters will emerge within the community asking for change. The vision has to be maintained. Alternatives to the community will come and go. A community that is loyal to its vision will always live on.

Crescent School alumnus Fraser Chapman '93 is a keen cyclist. In 2008, he invited another cyclist that he saw regularly on his bike route to join him for a weekly ride. That was the beginning of the Morning Glory Cycling Club, which now hosts group rides, training camps, youth programs and charity events across the Greater Toronto Area.