9December 2021and David Hunt, both of whom had joined the platform only a couple of weeks before and were themselves still finding their feet. We put our heads together and decided we could harness our collective influence to curate a new dialogue, unhindered by the conventional rules, where people from all walks of life could come and suggest how life sciences could be transformed, with no money or glory involved. As if to prove the hypothesis, we were quickly supported by passionate patient advocate Christine Von Raesfeld, who now leads many of our club's conversations despite never having worked in a pharma company. She embodies the idea that improving patient care can be more important than egos, employment status, and earnings-per-share. Over the next few weeks, we evolved into a `daily show' format. People are busy, so we agreed on a maximum of 30 minutes per session, every day at the same time so no scheduling was necessary. A tight time limit, but we agreed we'd always leave a few minutes spare for anyone to ask a question or throw in their perspective.On Mondays, we tackle Diversity and inclusion, a longstanding issue in a white-male-heterosexual-dominated industry. Aurora Archer, Pamela Raitt, and Kelly Croce Sorg are leading a fascinating and provocative conversation about the new faces of our future industry.On Thursdays, we double down on the patient engagement and listening agenda, with the help of Christine and Kristof Vanfraechem, by giving them the mic to express their needs, hopes and frustration, and propose solutions for patient empowerment. Tuesdays and Wednesdays have become days where we could talk about creative ideas that are needed to revitalize our industry's communications and trust, and where we could hear about the career failures of executives in a constructive, learning environment. Did I mention the refreshing nature of the conversation? Our no-cost, no-commitment, no-glory approach has opened unexpected doors, with very senior and distinguished leaders volunteering to take guest spots, and the size of the club growing beyond 1500 in just a few months. Today, we feel more of a movement than a mere conversation in a trendy app. Our rooms are places where renegades converge naturally, where broken industry dialogues are restored, where networking becomes about quality over quantity ­ joining executives, providers, patients, and even their families. Many reports that they learn more in a 30-minute session than a whole month of more structured sessions. This was made possible by agreeing that everyone talks as an equal, representing only oneself, genuine and empathetic, a collective of like-minded people propelled by the same values and a desire to turn words into action.Last week saw a new initiative, bringing our club out of Clubhouse and onto more established platforms such as Zoom. With no advertising, no communications campaign, and no marketing director, we registered in mid-August more than one thousand people.It turns out that a ragtag collective of wide-eyed industry optimists can create a stronger sense of engagement than even the most well-orchestrated, well-funded initiative. Because we want to raise the tide for all ships. After all, death and taxes may be certainties, but so is the fact that we'll all become patients in our lifetime. This is surely what paying it forward means.Join the movement. MTWith no advertising, no communications campaign, and no marketing director, we registered in mid-August more than one thousand people
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