A few months back a notification popped up on my Facebook Feed inviting me to apply for a Facebook Communities Summit. I filled out the questionnaire and promptly forgot about it. I figured in the wide world of Facebook, there was nothing special about me.
About a month later I received an email requesting several interview times so I could participate in a phone interview with several of the Facebook staff.
When my interview time came, I jumped on the phone with 4-5 Facebook staffers and we talked about CrossFit and community and what Recursive was doing in our small corner of the world and also the impact having the CrossFit Games in our backyard had. I was allowed to ask questions as well and wanted to know how any people applied, were being interviewed, and would ultimately get invited to the Summit.
I was not ever told how many applied, but 1000s were interviewed and about 300 community leaders were selected to represent themselves at Facebook in Menlo Park, CA.
I received my email invite and immediately clicked ACCEPT. At the a time I was expecting it to be an invitation to go there, but that I would cover my travel expenses (which I was fine with.)
As I clicked through the registration process, I saw food preferences and was excited they were feeding us! Then I saw hotel preferences and was excited they were covering that too! And the I was directed to airline info where they had a corporate account set up for me to pick my flights t and from San Francisco – and they were covering that as well!
Not surprisingly, a Facebook group was set up for the Summit Members. I was one of the first people to join. I watched over the next few days as more and more people commented on how excited they were and how everyone felt 2 things – that they weren’t sure why they were chosen, and they felt like they had won the lottery!
About 2 months passed as everyone got to know each other through this new on-line community. We learned about each other and came to realize that there were 3 main types of groups being represented – Group Admins, Non-Profits, and for the first time Small Business Owners (which was the group I was representing being a CrossFit Gym Owner.)
From the moment we were selected to participate, Facebook took care of everything in amazing detail.
We were requested to arrive by 3pm on Wednesday so we could attend a Welcome Reception to start to get to know one another in person. The weather in the midwest was bad and my flight was cancelled, but they were on the phone and rebooked me on the next available flight to San Francisco. I did arrive too late to attend the Welcome Reception, but once I landed an Uber was arranged to take me to my hotel.
When I arrived at my hotel room, there was a big envelope and a box waiting for me. There was a letter about why I had been chosen, the itinerary for the next few days, an artistic postcard, and a small figure with instructions to bring it the next. There was also a box with some snacks.
Like I said, I missed the Welcome Reception, but from what I saw and heard it was amazing. It was held on the Menlo Park Campus in one of their patio spaces. There were strings on lights and fire pits and blankets and scarves to keep everyone warm. There were signature cocktails and a wide variety of food and drinks provided.
The next day there was a shuttle provided from the hotel to the Facebook Campus. One we arrived we had to go through security (that rivaled the airport security), pick up our badge, get screened again, and then were invited to one of the 9 lobbies on the Facebook Campus. Breakfast was provided as well as coffee drinks and plenty of inviting space to network and connect with people.
We were then ushered in to the main room where they had a live band playing as we took our seats. On the seats there was a goodie bag with a notebook and pen and some snacks.
The first speaker was Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook. She made a point to reassure everyone that they were chosen for a reason. We deserved to be there. We had proven to be leaders in our communities. (Many of us still didn’t believe it yet though.)
Mark Zuckerberg even made a short appearance to welcome everyone to Facebook and thank us for the important work of leading communities. Facebook has recently changed their mission statement to “Give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.”
And this is why a small CrossFit affiliate owner was selected to attend.
The main take-aways over the next couple of days was building stronger communities (and how to do that). And Facebook unveiled enhanced ways to do that through their platform. We can now format posts, enhance and enforce group rules, connect people with mentors, a simplified messaging system with one spot for both Facebook and Instagram messages, and other ways for small businesses to use Facebook to grow their communities.
They walked us through understanding our audience, posting content that resonates, how to connect, and how to engage people. We also got to explore some creative apps to make our content stand out in the giant world of social media.
There is also now a feature on Facebook where people can book appointments – which is great as a CrossFit gym!
Facebook is trying to build communities, create content, and mentor people along the way. Not so different from any great CrossFit gym!
They fed us a lot. Breakfast, Lunch, formal snacks, a wall of baskets of snacks, dinner, drinks – the whole nine yards.
That first night we were taken from FB HQ to the local aviation museum which had been rented out for our group. Again, there was a signature drink, as well as wine and beer available and delicious passed hors d’oeuvres while people mingled.
Dinner was served family style, while once again, we got to connect with people from all over North America.
Throughout the days I was there I found 3 types of people. Those that knew and loved CrossFit, those that had heard about CrossFit but thought it was too scary to try, and still a fair number of people that had never heard of CrossFit at all! I guess that surprised me that there were still people out there that had never heard of CrossFit.
The communities represented were quite diverse. Local neighborhood groups, health and medical groups, specific disease support groups, special interest groups (like people that just love octopuses!), truckers, female bikers, crafters, and more.
I was able to connect with a few people that had specific benefits to CrossFit and fitness. Like a Type 1 Diabetes Group, an eating disorder group, an obstacle course training group, a minority owned yoga studio, to name a few.
At the end of the dinner, we were each given a Portal by Facebook and a shuttle to the hotel.
I was even given a small time slot to meet with a Facebook staff member to ask a specific question. When it was my time, I was escorted through some more security where the staff needed to swipe the badge to get through the front desk gate, to get onto the elevator, and to get into a conference room. While there I talked with 2 very nice and knowledgeable people about using the FB pixel and how to best run ads for the gym.
The next day was similar, with peers giving presentations on different topics. The day ended with another special cocktail and a group toast before shuttle left for the airport. On our way out we were given t-shirts.
Facebook has a greater mission to connect people through communities. In this massive world where the internet connects everyone instantaneously, we are simultaneously more and less connected than ever before. Facebook wants to connect like-minded people into these smaller groups – which is my humble opinion, is also my goal as a CrossFit Affiliate owner.
It was an amazing and crazy whirlwind few days at Facebook. It’s awe-inspiring to see what the power of community can do. My gym may be small in the grand scheme of 200 members, but to those 200 people, our community is significant and important. Each person has a story to tell, and it’s an important one.
As I was flying home, I was really thinking about the people in our gym community. The number of couples that met at the gym. The friendships that were made. The business connections forged. The people helping others out in their time of need. The celebrations we have. Community is very important – both in the small scale of a CrossFit gym and also the larger scale of humanity.
It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and experience and one I will never forget!