Amplify your work to my audience
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Hey Reader, “What’s a commcoterie?” I get asked that question occasionally (but honestly less often than I anticipated when I chose it as my company name). There are pros and cons to creating a portmanteau name for your business (Pros: like Tigger, I’m the only one! Cons: It’s unfamiliar, and often mispronounced). But like my own name, it is what it is, and it feels like it belongs. Comm- stands for a few things: communication, compassion, community, and com- meaning “with, together,” from Latin com, a form of the classical Latin cum “together, together with, in combination.” Coterie is a real word (pronounced like COAT-erie): it’s a small group of people with a unifying common interest or purpose. It can have a slightly negative connotation; that the small group is exclusive or doesn’t want other people to join them. But I see it more like we don’t mind if others don’t join. Of course I want more leaders to care about and invest in strategy, leading change well, and communicating effectively and engagingly with all stakeholdersBut I, and the organizations and colleagues I work with, don’t chase, control, or exploit. We’re not Fortune 500s or unicorns pursuing endless growth. We don’t convince or compel folks to buy into profit masked as purpose. We build sustainably and intentionally. We consider and craft. We learn and uplift. We use our powers for good. We don’t need to stay small, and we do make money (revenue, donations, investments, etc.). But we acknowledge that we’re not always in the capitalist majority, and that’s okay. That’s why we have each other. And it’s one of the reasons I’m excited to amplify my community and network more often this yearBack in November, my pal Lex Roman hosted a Secret Santa Swap for their Legends (the network of awesome creatives and consultants who support Lex’s work). Each Legend filled out a form with the most important thing they wanted to promote, like a newsletter, and Lex matched up each person with a secret someone who would promote them. My friend Kari ended up getting me, and she posted the most incredible shout-out for my newsletter on LinkedIn. I got matched with another Legend, Chris, whose work I really like, and I got to shout him out here. It was really fun to see Legends posting and writing about one another to wrap up 2025, so I’m taking a page from Lex’s book! Tell me what I can tell everyone else (be part of Commcoterie’s Coterie!)Are you raising money for your nonprofit? Are you launching a product, course, or offering? Does your company want more folks to know about your services? Are you hiring? Did you speak on (or host!) a podcast or at a conference? Let me know! I’ll share it in my newsletter and/or on LinkedIn. Here’s an example of what I gave Lex to give to my Secret Santa:
Easy! So if you want to participate, just reply to this emailInclude the following:
If something comes up later this year, please feel free to send it to me then. There's no expiration. Can’t wait to see what you’re up to! Talk soon, Caitlin Caitlin Harper Commcoterie helps purpose-driven organizations build a better world
From the Coterie
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