Something I didn’t expect when growing a niche community:
The hardest part isn’t 0 → 10 members.
It’s 30 → 50.
At that stage:
• Engagement fluctuates
• Core members emerge
• Lurkers increase
• Calls are harder to scale than posts
• Energy becomes leadership-dependent
Before 25 members, you’re testing.
After 25 members, you’re responsible for culture.
Curious for other builders:
What shifted for you in that 25–50 range?
What did you have to adjust?