The Entrecarder

I've posted this semi-rant before, but I'm motivated to do so again. I'm often amused and confused at the human tendency to see things from our own point of view and then presume that others must be daft to not see them the same way. I'm as guilty of this as the next guy, only I must admit that I usually know when I'm doing it. Today's post is a result of Graham opening up a conversation about potential paths that Entrecard can take to facilitate its growth and functionality.

I was paying attention when Graham posted about Entrecard's improved Alexa rank and didn't miss that he has big plans for this community and wants it to continue to grow exponentially. I also find it amazing that he and Phirate are so accessible and survey current community members about possible changes and enhancements. Even if I don't agree with all the decisions, I really like being asked for my input.

Back to my "unity" observation. Folks, we're not going to agree on much of anything, much less everything. People are diverse in their motivations and goals for participating in the Entrecard community. And that's ok. Power Droppers want to blast through 300 drops as fast as possible and don't have the same reasoning that a stop, drop, and comment community member might have. Some people (like me) have been spending 4+ hours a day in Entrecard related activities and others are lucky to squeeze in 2 hours a week. ALL are valued members of the community and the key to success is to create a community where ALL are welcome (within reason.)

Let's find solutions that ADD to what we have and will appeal to more and more bloggers. While we will lose the "small town" feel that existed when I first showed up in December, I don't see how we lose in the long run when there are 20,000 or 100,000 Entrecarders. Those of us fortunate enough to get started early in the game SHOULD be in a great position to leverage the increased Entrecard popularity into greater individual blog readership and popularity.

By all means continue to opine and let your voice be heard. I guess what I'm really saying is that there isn't just one way to be an Entrecarder and let's put some more plates on the table, because there's a flood of new folks arriving and we want them to feel welcome.