Staying ahead of the curve is crucial.

But let’s face it – you can’t be everywhere at once, nor can you be an expert in everything.

So, how do you navigate this complex world of tech and innovation, when keeping up feels like drinking from a firehose?

Enter Technology Scouting Communities

A “scouting community” is basically a group of people interested in related or adjacent topics, sharing learnings, links, and insights on a continuous basis. These communities can serve as community radar, scanning the horizon for emerging trends and opportunities.

Key Benefits of Scouting Communities

The list is long, but if I had to summarize I’d put “scouting communities” in one of my most powerful tools for tracking and exploring new innovations:

1. Exponential leverage and monitoring capabilities for what’s moving out there

2. Access to a diverse pool of expertise of similarly-minded people

3. Networking on steroids – knowing who knows what

4. Serendipity – increasing your “luck surface” by thinking out loud with other smart people

Tools for Scouting Communities

Using Whatsapp, Slack, or other forums, it’s quite easy to start setting up self-managing interest groups that continuously keep sharing insights.

A few steps I’ve found to be useful

• Identify Your Niche: Focus on specific areas like AI, blockchain, or biotech.

• Choose Your Platform: Leverage tools like Slack, Discord, or even LinkedIn groups.

• Seed the Community: Start with a core group of passionate individuals.

• Nurture Growth: Consistently share valuable content and encourage participation.

• Expand Strategically: Introduce new members who add unique value to the ecosystem.

It Feels Awkward at First

It can be slow workings in the beginning, and it can feel a bit awkward at first if you’re the one who needs to carry the conversation.

You might only know a one or two people that would be relevant, or none at all

You might feel that you’re not really adding value, that others already know what you share, etc.

Pay that no mind

After a while, especially if it’s a group of people that don’t all know each other, people slowly start warming up, and share more and more

Remember the now famous video of the “Leadership from a Dancing Guy” building momentum and eventually a movement

As Nietzsche said:

“..those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music”

I’ve built a couple of these communities over the years, and I’m a member of even more, and the payoff has in several cases been tremendous

A Journey of Building Scouting Communities

Building a scouting community might go like this:

1. You and a few friends have an interest in a specific field, and start sharing ideas, articles, memes, etc. with each other, but typically 1:1

2. You start realizing you’re sending the same links to 3-5 people, and realize that just sending the link once would be a lot more efficient

3. Establish a group, mailing list, etc., where you say “hey all. realize I’m sending the same content to several of you, so as we all seem to be working on similar stuff I thought it could be valuable to share in a single channel”

4. Your audience may or may not respond with enthusiasm, but keep at it

5. In parallel, speak with group members 1:1 and ask if they like the group, and if they know others that could be relevant to invite

6. Ask to be introduced to the people they suggest, have a 1:1 chat with them, then invite them to the group

7. I’ve found that an introductory message, like “Hi all, meet XX. awesome person. background / expertize in XYZ. SoMe-links”

The Potential (Asymmetric) Returns of Scouting Communities

Once you have a couple of these groups, you’ll often see cross-pollination, where either content and people might be relevant in several settings.

Some examples of payoffs I’ve seen from the groups I have so far:

1. Met a some of the most interesting people now in my life, from all over the world, with unique insights and perspectives I never would have discovered otherwise

2. Received a tremendous amount of interesting content, perspectives, and knowledge I never would have found myself

3. Been invited to speak at several conferences, meetups and other events

4. Done a number of angel investments and syndicate deals in early start-ups I never would have had access to otherwise – several members of these tech communities eventually turned into founders

5. Been asked to consult / advise / work on a number of really cool projects

Where’s the Asymmetry?

In short, I’ve found building these “technology scouting communities” to be super asymmetric:

• Downside: You spend some time learning what others are interested in

• Upside: Basically unlimited in terms of serendipity and increased “surface of luck”

Are you an administrator or member of similar groups or scouting communities, and looking for interesting “outlier” members to join?

Please reach out and let me know how you build and manage these

Key words: Technology scouting, angel investing, knowledge sharing, technology news, deep tech