"Cultivating community takes honesty" (Warren, p 146). Community can only be built and cultivated when we, as leaders and employees, feel we can honestly speak the truth. As caring individuals, we often see bumps in the road to productivity as minor and we would rather gloss over them or sweep them under the rug in a hope they will disappear or resolve themselves. If we want employees to be honest with us about ways to improve efficiencies and be more effective we need to build a culture where open, honest evaluation and assessment is sought by all. This honesty, however, must be framed in such a manner as to build up and not tear down. We must also be willing to hear the truth about ourselves if we are promoting honesty and we must build communications tools, in-house, to ease this difficult process.

"Cultivating community takes humility" (Warren, p 148). Humility is a difficult concept for humans. We must understand, however, "self-importance, smugness, and stubborn pride destroy fellowship faster than anything else. Pride builds walls between people; humility builds bridges" (Warren, p 148). Do not be confused; being humble is not thinking less of yourself. Self-concept does not have anything to do with humility. Being humble is when we think of ourselves less, not thinking less of ourselves. You do great things as a school leader. Now how can you funnel those tools, skills, talents, and gifts to help others become better at what they do in your school system?

"Cultivating community takes courtesy" (Warren, p 149). Imagine how difficult it must be to get all fired up to give your best effort in an organization where people are rude to one another and disrespectful to each other. Such places are unhealthy yet make up a huge percentage of work environments in our society. Being respectful of our differences and showing an interest in how people different from yourself view the world shows your sincere interest in who they are. This does not mean you need to accept their views but your interest in their world puts you in a position of understanding and encouragement. Being considerate of individuals and their feelings can build bridges that may never be destroyed. Patience with those who seem to irritate you the most can be a life-long struggle, but the end result is a healthier work environment for you and the staff you supervise.

"Cultivating community takes confidentiality" (Warren, p 150). Trust takes time and effort to build. There must be something two people share in common that serves as the glue that holds a trusting relationship together. That trust must be tied to confidentiality. Confidentiality needs some definition. To hold something in confidence does not mean you allow someone to continue down a path of destruction just because they shared an issue with you or your group. Confidentiality means that what is said here stays here, regardless if the conversation is one-on-one or in a group or team. To hold the conversation in confidence, the group needs to deal with the issue as presented and NOT ALLOW gossip to reign.

"Cultivating community takes frequency" (Warren, p 150). Marriage counselors have written for generations that relationship building takes time. The same is true of organizational relationships. Community is not built on convenient meetings, but rather on conviction to nurture the times we can gather, visit, share, laugh, and learn as a group. To be successful you need both formal and informal times to gather. These times will lead to brainstorming, problem-solving, and opportunities to ask questions of each other in less threatening environments.