According to the dictionary, the definition of the word community is: "a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals". Without a doubt we can say the Spotify Stars Program shares a real sense of community. After all, we have common attitudes, we partake in common interests and we follow common goals. But there is one thing we share that's more significant than anything: our values.
With the spirit of a true community, since 2021, we annually take a moment to remember and reinforce the core of the Spotify Stars Program and the Spotify Community as a whole in a series of events we call VALUES WEEK!
The values are:
- RESPECT
- INCLUSION
- SUPPORT
- TEAMWORK
- FUN
- RESPONSIBILITY
We reached the final of Values Week 2024 (VW 2024), which had the slogan "A toast to our values", and I wanted to share with you all the details of what we did across this last week.
If you're already a follower of our program, you may know each day represents a value and we had different activities that brought to our minds what it means to be a Spotify Star.
On Monday, we brought RESPECT to the center of our celebrations and we kicked it off with a quote from the scientist and physicist Albert Einstein which says: "Everyone should be respected as an individual, but no one idolized". It was a moment to reflect on how we can share ideas and a feeling of community, without breaking into our mates's space. We shared different songs that represented this important value, bringing the opportunity to reflect upon it.
Going further, on Tuesday, it was time to discuss INCLUSION. There is no real inclusivity if we don't have respect to understand the other one's reality and there is no better way, here in our community, to represent inclusion than opening space to share music. Some Stars and Moderators created together a playlist with different meaningful songs from around the world and @Joan composed a fantastic blog sharing those songs and diving into the value of the day. We got the opportunity to also reflect on that, especially with the quote from the fashion designer, Prabal Gurung that says "Beauty is inclusion - every size, every color - that's the world I live in".
On Wednesday, another splendid day to celebrate one more value: SUPPORT. Bear Grylls, a British trooper, says "Our pride can be our downfall, and we need to learn when to turn to others for support and guidance". And this value represents a lot of what we do here every day when we lend a hand to everyone who comes to us, looking for help. With this in mind, why not celebrate SUPPORT with a challenge where the main point is to help? The Stars had the chance to collaborate on different boards of the community and gather some extra points as a prize.
One step forward, on Thursday, TEAMWORK was on the table, bringing another big challenge, but this time, to be solved together with your fellows. Some Stars formed different teams to solve real cases from users who came here to the community with issues or doubts. It was a great opportunity to enhance our teamwork skills by doing what we love to do: help 😊
But this wasn't the only activity of the day - we also had a special call with a more than special guest: Dan, from the Spotify for Desktop team. We had the chance to talk to him about the new desktop interface and to get a sneak peek of what's coming next on the platform (but don't ask us about it, because we know how to keep a secret 😉). It was, as always, a nice conversation and we can't waste the opportunity to mention that Dan is always more than welcome to chat with us!
On Friday it was finally time to have some FUN. We consider it equally important as the other values. And we love to have fun by doing what - that's right, listening to music! 🎶
Do you remember that playlist I told you about a few paragraphs ago? It was time to get together on a Party Call to experience those songs together. And definitely, it was a fantastic time hosted by my mate @Jose_M. He knows how to be an awesome master of ceremonies!
Last but not least, I have to mention the special participation of @Nikola who shared with us his masterful DJ skills!
PS: If you want to check out our playlist, here it is:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5bze7krIHWlMn5mlEChEKx?si=b14dc1e76afb4869
To finish the week with a gold key - on Saturday it was time for RESPONSIBILITY. Bob Dylan said once: "A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom". We had the chance to reflect on one more value and also to enjoy extra points for our contribution here in the program.
I couldn't finish this without thanking the community moderators and managers, who made this great event possible! A shout-out to all the Stars who actively participated in the events and a special thanks to the Rising Stars @Anyk17 and @susanglezs for being available to help on this summary blog.
Let's raise a toast to our values and to everyone who is part of our great community. 🥂🍞
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Did you know you can join us and participate in the next edition? Yep! Read more about it HERE and join our constellation! 🌟
See you soon! #2024ValuesWeek #AToastToOurValues
