Media as a Medium for Positive Collaboration

Media as a Medium for Positive Collaboration

When is consuming media productive and when is it a drain of your time and energy? From the news to social media apps like Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook, our society consumes media on a regular basis. A 2021 Forbes article reported that Americans spent on average more than 1,300 hours on social media last year. As our screen time increases, we find a growing need to examine which forms of media consumption are helpful and which are detracting from our quality of life. At NAW- RB, we discovered media strategies which are not only productive to growth, but foster collaboration and an environment of mutual inspiration.

Desirée Patno, CEO of NAWRB and Chairwoman of NDILC, is an active user and contributor to discussions on an app called Clubhouse. Through Clubhouse, people from all over the world can meet in an audio-only format to discuss any topic they choose and brainstorm new ideas. On this platform, Desiree is one of the creators and moderators of the Family Office Coffee Clutch Clubhouse group. What makes this group on social media different from a Facebook or LinkedIn group? In addition to the audio-only approach, these groups allow any Clubhouse user who is interested to listen to the group’s discussion. You can also be invited by a moderator/club member to speak on the platform and become a club member yourself.

What does this mean? A revolution of inclusivity and collaboration of new ideas and perspectives. Imagine you could find people who match your excitement and passion about your favorite topics. However obscure or niche your favorite topics are, you could find or create a group to share your thoughts on it. Consider a recent Coffee Clutch that Desirée cohosted featuring Mx. Sage Alexander. Sage spoke about affordable housing, ESG investments, and opportunity zones. The ideas and conversation flowed because the goal of Sage’s work on these topics is to improve quality of life for all, especially those who have historically been ignored. His passion shone through which opened the discussion group for others to bring their new, unique points to the table and share his vision for a brighter, more sustainable future. The forum featuring Sage can be listened to afterward on Clubhouse as well.

There are additional ways to use media platforms to spark collaboration and new exchanges between people who wouldn’t cross paths in their day-to-day lives but can learn important insights from each other. NAWRB is using LinkedIn’s new newsletter feature in order to bring articles on a variety of interesting topics to your inbox twice a week. NAWRB Golden Nuggets™ has grown to 450 subscribers in only a couple of months. Our goal is to bring unique stories and NDILC leadership videos to professionals in a range of fields to invite them to ponder something they hadn’t previously considered.

“Consuming social media often can be toxic and addictive, but when wielded with discretion and perspective, beautiful collaborations arise.”

NAWRB is leading the movement of sparking these deep connections through social media platforms like Clubhouse, LinkedIn, and Facebook. We believe that bringing diverse groups of people together to share their passion projects and ideas has the potential to bridge industries and change the world.