Exactly one year ago, I sat back and thought of creating a Group on one of the latest social media applications, "WhatsApp”. My thinking was simple; I realized that I had very many friends I met in different settings, but these friends did not know each other. This “WhatsApp” interface would therefore help to bring us all under one umbrella, so that my friends would also become friends to complete the old English adage, “A friend of your friend is your friend”.
The date was 7th of February 2014 when the first seven members were invited to my group, which I initially named “Dee’s Best Friends Corner”, “Dee” being my stage name, and the sounding of the initial for my name “Deo”. The beginning was quite rugged especially as most members were completely unknown to each other. We started well, but like any other community, it was not long before we began to face some challenges. One of the challenges was failure to agree on whether members were free to share basically anything. I was very careful in selecting which friends to invite to the group, paying more attention to those individuals that would be cooperative. I made it clear to my friends that whoever dared to be insensitive to fellow members’ feelings, would be showed the exit immediately. A few other disciplinary measures were instituted, some of which carried a suspension penalty and others straight expulsion.
After some people being suspended severally, they were uncomfortable, suggesting that I was a very tough group manager and that as adults they needed to be free to interact as they wished. I was quite uncompromising especially considering that some people were parents. You don’t want as a parent to always be on tension fearing what your child might access on your phone.
It wasn’t long before some members broke away and started a semblance of a modern day ‘Rebel group’. They formed their own group under the same brand name in an attempt to protest my strict management tactics, but this rebel group didn’t last for long. To counter this “terrorism”, I disbanded the group and opened up another. I named the new group “Dee’s Lucky Few”. In this group, one would have to consider one lucky to be a member. A few members from the old group were re-admitted into the new group. However, this time, the conditions were relaxed a little to allow members interact freely without fear of expulsion; but there were no guarantees nonetheless. I clearly explained to my friends that this was intended to be a Family of friends and not just any other WhatsApp group.
Today as we celebrate one complete year under the brand name “Dee’s Lucky Few”, many of us have reason indeed to say, “God bless the brains behind this WhatsApp thing”. Used properly and for the right reasons, WhatsApp can transform our lives and bridge the gaps of our times. Yes, with very little opportunities for physical meeting as family and friends, a WhatsApp group helps to keep people that share something in common together. Friends are able to post updates on new developments in their lives like weddings, graduations, child birth, bereavements, sickness; and by a single click, all members are notified. We also pray together online by having a member type and post a prayer, and we share different life experiences for example marriage and relationship tips, new products on the market, news updates and so much more. And there’s so much fun each time a new member joins the group. It is handier to keep in touch with a group of friends situated on a single forum than looking out every individual in their Inbox. This way you easily keep track of your friends hassle free. Within Dee’s Lucky Few, we have friends located as far as Kigali Rwanda and others scattered in different districts in the country, but the forum keeps us all in one place 24-hours a day.
On Saturday 7th February 2015, Dee’s Lucky Few met in real life for our 1st Anniversary celebrations at the Kembabazi Restaurant on Naguru Hill. It was such an electric moment as some of the members were meeting for the very first time after several months of chatting. It was interesting just how we were all receptive of each other, reliving those funny jokes and fun shared on WhatsApp. We took lots of photos and shared on the group instantly for those that couldn’t make it to have a feel of the occasion. One of the members baked us a very delicious cake, and those present happily contributed towards the luncheon. It was quite a moment of fulfilment that people could burn their fuel, spare their time and come for this memorable function, which absolutely cemented the bond in the family.
On the leeward side of things, I must say that it is not easy to moderate, let alone sustain such a group for a long time. It requires a lot of commitment to keep members engaged, lest they get bored and exit on their own. Also establishing that critical niche that friends would wish to identify with is quite challenging. WhatsApp requires Internet access to function, and because of the frequent engagement, it consumes the user’s battery power so quickly. WhatsApp can also be quite addictive and disruptive and therefore requires serious personal discipline. Sometimes the volume of chats can be extremely high, making it difficult for lazier members to follow. In some instances, some spouses are not comfortable with their mates spending so much time chatting with friends, while some friends are too religious and picky on what to share with others in an open forum. So you have a few individuals who only participate occasionally, while a few keep the group moving. At Dee’s Lucky Few, we’ve thinned ourselves to retain only those few members that are ready and willing to open up and interact freely and regularly.
To expound on the idea, I also started another group for my family members named “Dee’s Family Hub”. The chats here are more controlled and tailor made, but the principle benefits and challenges are quite similar.
Oh, what a wonderful world!
