Creating Kinder Gaming Communities with Victoria Tran of Among Us
Episode 39
Spotify | Apple | Google | Stitcher
Letβs take a deep dive into the fascinating world of gaming communities.
Meet Victoria Tran, the Community Director for Among Us at Innersloth and a co-organizer for Game & Colour. She was previously the Communications Director at Kitfox Games. Victoria is passionate about creating practical, more sustainable, and kinder online communities.
While Among Us is played by millions of people around the world, Victoria is actually part of a tiny indie team and the sole person responsible for Among Usβ social channels. The Among Us Twitter account officially launched with its first post on Nov 18 2020 and gained 1 million followers within 1 month.
In Episode 39 of Create Community, Victoria shares her social media strategies and what she learned after suddenly inheriting a community of half a billion players. π±
In the gaming industry in particular, toxicity and trolling can be rampant. Victoria and Marsha take a deep dive into moderation challenges, creating social values, and how we can create more sustainable and kinder online communities.
βCommunities are bigger than us, but nevertheless, still value and include us. The world can be a very, very scary, lonely place. Communities are what make us a little bit kinder and braver not only to each other, but to ourselves.β
β Victoria Tran
Listen To The Episode:
Connect with Victoria
Follow Among Us
Learn more about Innersloth
Learn more about Game and Colour
A huge thank you to Origins Media Haus for producing this podcast. You can find them at:
Website | Linkedin | Instagram | Twitter
Connect with Marsha:
LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter | Website
Transcript
Marsha Druker 01:48
Hey, Victoria, welcome to create community. I am so excited to chat with you today.
Victoria Tran 01:52
Thank you for having me.
Marsha Druker 01:54
So let's go all the way back to high school. What were you like growing up? And what were some of your interests and extracurriculars during that time?
Victoria Tran 02:02
Honestly, I feel like a lot of people feel the same way about like just falling into community. And I always thought when I was growing up, like adults would always say, Oh, I just like fell into my job. I was like, That makes no sense. I don't understand how you could just fall into a job. And then yeah, I fell into community. I was like, I see I've been proven wrong. But ya know, in high school, I definitely didn't know I wanted to get into community I didn't know it existed. I had a very like, traditional like Asian upbringing. So the goal was to get into health care. In high school, I did spend a lot of time just honestly, playing a lot of different kinds of games, my extracurriculars were all the kinds of things where it's like I had chess club, at one point, I did swimming, I didn't do anything really related, I think, to games in particular. But the one thing that always fascinated me was like, I spent a lot of time on the internet. And on the internet, I made friends. And I talked to a lot of people and from like, all around the world, and it was this cool thing to me that I was like, oh, wow, like, I'm actually talking to someone at the time, like say, allegedly in the United States, or in Europe, or whatever. And it was really cool to me as a high school student to just be like, I can't believe that this is something I can do right now. And I think that's sort of what started the whole spark in being interested in the ways that we connect online.
Marsha Druker 03:31
So what did you end up studying and post secondary?
Victoria Tran 03:34
I studied sociology, and I double majored in communications and the social studies of medicine.
Marsha Druker 03:40
Very cool. And how did you start your career out of that?
Victoria Tran 03:43
It's weird because it kind of meshed together in that in order to pay the bills for university I ended up taking a lot of like random quotation, like social media jobs, because at the time, like, you know, a lot of startups and love companies are like, oh, students, they know what Instagram is. So yeah, sure, well, we'll just we'll hire her and you know, workout. And that's actually how I kind of started in the community space and, like learning kind of little more about digital marketing and a little bit more about the professional side of things just out of pure Well, I need to pay the bills. And also, they're the only kinds of people who would hire me. So let's do this. As I was doing that, I was working towards getting into healthcare, PR.
Victoria Tran 04:24
But after I graduated, I had like this little post grad breakdown, I was like, wow, I don't want to do this. I don't want to do this at all. So as I was continually kind of doing my work with various companies in terms of being like a brand ambassador or doing social media work or digital marketing work on the side, I started looking at other avenues that might have interested me that I had never considered before because I was on just like the straight and narrow path of like getting into healthcare PR and from that, I Realize that Oh, like games has always been something that I've been interested in and that I've loved and has been a part of my life. And I never actually realized. So Oh, of course games need, like marketing help need community help. And they are built on communities. That's all. Like, that's so much of what games are. And that's sort of how I started off in games when I applied to this company that basically did customer experience, user experience, outsourcing, and they had a community management branch there. And that's how I started off.
Marsha Druker 05:32
That was so cool. What was that first role, like, within gaming, like, it wasn't like everything that you thought it was gonna be? And more or where there are some things were like, maybe you had some misconceptions around what it would be like, it wasn't really what I expected, but
Victoria Tran 05:47
I definitely got the kind of vibe of like, oh, like, yes, there's game communities in particular, I think are so interconnected, and they talk so much. And they formed friend groups, which is something that I learned on the job and that I really appreciated it. But for me, because it was a games outsourcing company, and not necessarily a game studio, like I wasn't actually a part of a studio, I was just, you know, outsourced work, I didn't really get the sense of like, Oh, I get to kind of make a difference in the community, I get to set the tone, I get to figure out what I think would be right for the community, I was more so just being told what to do, or just trying to maintain the status quo, which wasn't something that I was really passionate about. So after that, I saw that another indie game studio was hiring, I applied for that on Twitter, actually. And that's how I got like, really into the game studio and the games network.
Marsha Druker 06:42
That's amazing. So what was that next role like?
Victoria Tran 06:45
Yeah the next role, I started off as a community manager for this indie studio called Kitfox Games. And honestly, more than I could have ever asked for and expected, the team was lovely. But also it was a team that really valued community and understood community work at a time when I think a lot of people were still not really sure, like, what the value of community was, like, what does a community manager even do, like do like all they do is make memes. Like, that wasn't the mindset that kitfox came at it with, which was really empowering for me. And I'm still like, continually grateful for, I got to basically work with a lot of our games, and I got to set the values and the tone for the community and really build it from the ground up. And because it was a small team, I ended up doing a lot of jobs. So whether it was like marketing work, or PR work, or events work, like I was part of all of that and help develop kind of the outward facing image of kitfox. And that was really cool to me, because the kind of energy that I learned that I put out there, like we attracted that same energy back in terms of our community. And we ended up having a very supportive one, which, you know, it's very, it's very grateful for.
Marsha Druker 08:02
So for me personally, like I've done community for a while now, but I've never been in gaming. And I'm learning so much about the industry, through the new role that I started at Bevy, where I'm organizing monthly events for gaming industry professionals, and in marketing and community, specifically in gaming. And it's been so cool just to learn about this industry. And something that has surprised me so much about it is that behind these like massive games and like massive companies with like, millions of followers across social and like, like massive amounts of people playing these games, usually the teams are actually really, really small. So I want to jump into your current role as community director at inner sloths and among us. So for listeners who are maybe not so familiar with the gaming industry, can you share a little bit about what inner sloth is and a little bit about among us, I think most people know what among us is just in case somebody isn't familiar.
Victoria Tran 09:02
So Innersloth is a three person independent game studio, based in the States. And it's interesting, because they kind of started off as like that whole story of like, oh, like the two co founders started making games in high school together, and it kind of developed into this whole company. And now we're a team of five. So yes, we're still very small. But they've made games like the Henry Stickman collection, which was also a game that if you played flash games, way back was on newgrounds.com. And, as we know, now have made the game Among Us, which actually released in 2018. So it's been a while. Yeah, and Among Us is a game about teamwork and betrayal there, you can play with four to 10 players, whether it's on PC or mobile, and it's all about trying to work together to make sure that your spaceship is functioning correctly. But the trick there is that there are one or two people who are imposters and you have to make sure you can find them within your spaceship, or else, you know, you lose the game. And the trick is that there's emergency meetings. And that's the only time you can talk to each other. And you have to kind of figure out and discover who you think among your group of friends is the imposter.
Marsha Druker 10:18
So what does community mean at Innersloth? Like who is a typical community member?
Victoria Tran 10:24
The interesting thing about Innersloth and Among Us is that among us has gone so huge that at this point, a community member can literally be anyone, right. So we've had teachers play with their students we've had the WWE play it we've had AOC play it we've had, so like politicians, students, like kids, families, like it's been this entire thing where there's just so many people playing the game that it's hard to define just, you know, sometimes just one specific community member. That being said, it's like for us, because among us is based on teamwork, and also just talking to each other and forming connections. And being a community like, that is the most important thing, when it comes to our games and like things that we tried to do is like, we are always thinking of the community first, and trying to make sure that no matter what we do, we're doing right by them, and we're considering what they need. And we're considering what they want.
Marsha Druker 11:22
That's so fascinating that you bring that up, just like how diverse in terms of what types of people play it. Do you think that like, obviously, like gaming has really exploded during COVID? Because everybody's at home? And you know, they're looking for their sense of community? In this way? Do you think that it really played a huge role in in the growth of Among Us, as well? Or was this something that was sort of already happening?
Victoria Tran 11:47
Definitely. I mean, so the thing is, with among us is that, in games, in general, it's very rare for a game that has been out already, like in 2018, to suddenly gain massive amounts of popularity years later. So COVID, I think was definitely part of it. But it's also like, I think it was just a perfect storm of things that came together. And also the fact that it's not honestly, like super technical or difficult to understand when you first pick it up. And being able to just pick up a game and know like, okay, you don't, it's like there's some basic mini tasks that you need to do. But overall, like the game encourages you to like, talk to each other to plan things out. And then or if you're an imposter to lie, a little bit fun within itself. So I think it was just like a bunch of things that really helped among us grow.
Marsha Druker 12:53
So in your role as community director, you wear a lot of different hats. I'm just curious to learn what are some of your main areas of focus and is there like sort of like a typical day in the life of or is it very, very different day by day, it is definitely very different day by day, in terms of being a community director, like one of the biggest things, obviously, it's just handling the social media channels. I'm also because again, the team is like a team of five. And we do have like external partners that help us out with a bunch of things like business development, and whatnot. But I'm also a part of basically like, all the partnership, almost all the partnership meetings, a lot of the kind of business dealings that happened because at this point, when we want to talk about among us, we also want to make sure that any partnerships we do keep the community in mind. And that's sort of my job is to be like the person to advocate for the community, and also be the voice for them, right to be like, hey, like, this is what I've seen a lot. Can we do anything about this, that sort of thing. So it's really hard to kind of pinpoint anything one thing that I do in a day.
Marsha Druker 14:03
So I think this the social piece of it is really fascinating, especially the Twitter account, which has grown so much. The Among Us Twitter account, officially launched with the first post on November 18 2020, and has since gained 1 million followers within just one month of the launch. So I like I'm so many questions around that. How like, how many followers is that now? And what were like some of your strategies and thoughts behind handling such an enormous community that just kind of like sprung up so quickly with you being so new in the role as well.
Victoria Tran 14:41
Oh, God, yeah, that was wild to see. So it's it hasn't grown too much. Now. It's at 1.2 million followers, because I've been trying to split my time between the social media channels. So TikTok actually saw massive growth is now at 1.4 million followers. And I launched that later after the Twitter. So that's a lot!
Marsha Druker 15:00
That's so cool.
15:01
My strategy for them on Twitter is that I've never actually tried to focus it too much on growth. So when I launched the Amoung Us Twitter account, I was like, I'm not trying to get the most Twitter followers, I'm not trying to be like the biggest Twitter account there is. What I'm really concerned about is creating that quality content, but also really engaging with our community, I think there's a very common thought that like, if you can connect with someone, that automatically means you're connected with them. And that's not the same thing, right, like actually feeling like you're having conversation or that you're a part of a community is more than just tweeting at a company. And that just being it right, it's more than just typing random words on a keyboard, sending it off, and hoping that someone replies to you, it's like feeling that you're actively participating, it's that you're welcomed here, and that your opinion is valued, and that you're being heard. And that's, to me what community is all about.
15:57
So when I launched this Twitter account, like my strategy for it was like, I'm not going to try hosts like eight times a day like and put out like a lot of means, and, you know, tire the entire community, when it comes to how many times I'm posting, what I instead decided to try and do is I'm just going to reply to as many tweets as humanly possible in the work time I have, obviously without burning myself out. And that has honestly worked out really well. For us. It's like I'm continually engaging with the community, I'm continually talking to them having conversations with them. And while I can't get to, you know, obviously, like all of it, it has come to a point where our followers do expect that they see like how much I reply. And that being said, I only reply to things where I think our quotation mark, like quality content, or if people are being really nice, because I think that sets the tone, right? The more you respond and pay attention to people who are not there to give quality, you know, feedback or to just spam. It doesn't. And you reply to those, it encourages them to do it more. So I'm very selective of what I reply to as well.
Marsha Druker 17:06
For sure, yeah, I think you really have to find that balance, you know, making sure that people are feeling heard, but also like maintaining a set of values, and also just like maintaining some balance for yourself, since you're the only person who's doing this. So in that article that I mentioned, Deconstructing Among Usβ Twitter Strategy, you mentioned that you always write out a specific custom set of social values, and that this more than anything defines your strategy. So how did you go about this for this Twitter account? And what are those values for among us?
Victoria Tran 17:41
The great thing about working at inner slough and the team is that I have been given a lot of trust, right, in terms of what I do with the community and kind of the values that I decide on. So when it came to creating the kind of core values for the brand's voice, I suppose.
Victoria Tran 18:01
So when I built my values, it kind of boiled down to four things. So one is delight. So we want to create a community experience that players are amused and delighted by and being proud of the kind of work that we put out in the making sure that they know that they're welcome in it, and it's welcome for new and old players alike, you know, doesn't matter if you've just played among us, or if you've been playing it, since it came out in 2018, you're like, you're welcome to be a part of the community, too, obviously, very important is respect, like zero tolerance policy for like harassment, cyber violence, discrimination, all that kind of thing. And really working on that. That's one of our major priorities right now, in terms of it. Third is very important to me, I kind of define it as sharing the elevator, inner sloth and among us definitely started off as like a very small project. And it's a very small community. So having other people help support us and help us get to the success that we do have, and all the collective energy that went into that, like, we want to give that back to the community, right. So how that kind of translates is that when I see fan art, whether it's from a child or from like someone who's made this entire, like 3d movie of among us, like, I want to be able to support them, I want to help boost them and make sure that they are known and seen and know that we appreciate everything that they do. And lastly, I really value integrity. So I think that lip service is really easy to do. But I don't want to say it if I'm not actually going to do it. And I think actions are very, very important. So I try not to speak like really sweet words with any of the among us accounts if I don't think that we can actually do it or if I can't promise anything. We focus on community sentiment and never intend to like manipulate or deceive our community within our means for sure.
Marsha Druker 19:55
So on the flip side of it, what does moderation look like inside of a gaming channel? unity of the scale? Are there any, like massive challenges that happen there? And how do you approach it?
Victoria Tran 20:05
Oh, for sure.
Victoria Tran 20:06
So moderation is extremely important, right. And it is one of the things that is right now, our top priority like what we need to create accounts, and we need to make sure we get reporting in moderation and for the game. For that moderation is always difficult before acuity of the size, it is definitely a lot. So the challenge with this is just, especially in a game that really requires you to be able to talk to people and to say, you know, many different things and kind of accusing people of things, moderation is really difficult. So in terms of how we're trying to combat that, it's like one, like, we're definitely going to have the accounts so that you know, you can report that sort of basic thing. But the important thing when it comes to reporting people, and all of that is that we didn't want to rely on bots or anything. So as we're creating these accounts, we want to make sure that there are people reading these reports want to make sure that they can catch all the nuances like it's really important to us that the community doesn't feel like it's just being relegated to bots, because bots are so you know, there's a lot of things that can go wrong with them in terms of when it comes to human speech and communication, and nuance.
Victoria Tran 21:15
So we're working on that. And we're going to work with people in order to get that kind of setup. We also want to implement things like quick chats, and all that kind of stuff. It's just a matter of sheer scale, that becomes a problem when moderation can block as many words as you want. There's always somehow someone will find a way as I'm sure many community people will know some way to say something anyway. So just being able to put moderation as our first priority. And to put it behind people who will see things and to hopefully, create a tone like in my job right is to create a tone that encourages people to be more compassionate with each other. And to be more kind is really kind of the focal point.
Marsha Druker 22:04
So I'm really curious how you measure success and the business impact of your community initiatives? Like Are there any main KPIs or things that you look at? And how do you really make sure that you're on track?
Victoria Tran 22:17
Yes. So the interesting thing about all of this is that it's sort of hard to track a lot of things like brand listening things, or sentiment reports are difficult to navigate. Because with Among Us, you have a lot of words like death, kill. You know, like, it all revolves around that. So like, technically sentiment reports will be like, Oh, you're not doing so great. But actually, in the context of the game. Now, this is great, right? And like, you know, it's part of the fun and joking is like yelling at other people and being like, I can't believe you did that. And like, I hate you. And like, you know, that sort of thing, but in a joking manner. So it's really difficult, honestly, that's one of the things that I've been trying to work on and try to, like, figure out how to do it better. But in terms of like, other things that we do in terms of community, for me, like the success measures are honestly just like, Are people engaged with us? Are people excited about the new map that we're going to drop? And are they interacting in a way that is friendly and good? And that will be easier once we get the accounts in for sure. So for now, it's a little bit of a shaky, like process, but hopefully in the future, in the future, once the updates come out?
Marsha Druker 23:32
For sure. something to look forward to. That's so funny, I would have never thought of that in terms of the sentiment reports. But that's like, yeah, that's a very valid point. Yeah, it's a very interesting problem to have. I don't actually feel the sentiment is just very difficult.
Marsha Druker 23:54
So I wanted to chat a little bit about the initiative that you started with Game and Colour. I think it's really amazing that you built that and you were able to balance that with everything else that you're doing. So can you share a little bit about what Game and Color is? And what inspired you to create this?
Victoria Tran 24:12
Gaming and Colour is a grassroots organization that I started with three other wonderful developers. And we basically, it's a group that amplifies and supports game developers of color in Canada, and elsewhere, but the main focus is Canada for now. start off small as you know, what it basically was, was something that was born out of the fact that, you know, in games and I assume, in tech, in general, like there's a lot, there's not a lot of spaces for people of color to kind of come together and to interact and to share resources and stories and to just have a place of support for each other. So gaming color was that for people or we hope it will become that for people and whether It was having like little meetups at various local game events where people could talk to each other and you know, take a break, or sharing resources. And though there's like scholarships and funds and all that we share within the community, we basically wanted to be able to create a space that would lift and invest in the success of fellow community members in the games industry space. Because for us, like games only benefit from having more diverse thoughts and more inclusive stories in terms of like, the games we create, but also, you know, the company that we keep, and being able to have new fresh ideas is something that's really important to us. So that's why the Game and Colour was created. Obviously, now that COVID is a thing we haven't liked, we had any physical meetups, for sure. But before that, it was more in terms of creating those events that we could all gather and hopefully, share our game ideas and support each other.
Marsha Druker 26:06
Um, so I want to chat a little bit about community and mental health. This has really been a big topic with a lot of past guests. And I think a big thing is that community building is definitely not for the faint of heart. But especially in the gaming industry. I think a lot of community builders in general, you know, we're just like we're wearing a lot of hats, we're really stretched like very thin, not a lot of resources. But in the gaming industry, I feel like it's just taken to a whole other level where there can be a lot of toxicity and like difficulties in moderation. And trolling can be pretty rampant. So can you share a little bit about your journey with it? Have you had any really like low points throughout your career in gaming?
Victoria Tran 26:51
Yeah, I guess I would be really interested to see how other community managers in the industry like to deal with it, and how much they have to deal with. But the great thing about working in games in particular, and community management in games is that the network for community managers is so powerful and great. And I love them all. Because game communities in particular, you know, can be victim to a lot of things like online harassment and targeting the fact that a lot of community managers just talk to each other. Like we create our own spaces. We have group chats, we have dams, like we're all connected, and we're all willing to share ideas and tips and tricks until we lend a shoulder to each other when one of us is having a particularly bad day. That is something that I continually value, and love. And there's like no secrets in terms of how community managers help each other in the gaming space.
Victoria Tran 27:50
But yeah, I mean, I think as anyone has, like, I have had my bad days, and I will continue to have my bad days when it comes to dealing with the community sometimes and the internet in general, actually, I say that back is not honestly dealing with the community, it's dealing with the internet in general, because the ones that are in our community, right, like they're, like, I know what they're like, and they are lovely. And that's actually one of the things that keeps me going. And that makes me feel really happy. And when I have a bad day, honestly, sometimes what I try to do is do the exact opposite, which is that I just tried to interact a little bit more, but in a way that it's like, I will go into the community and be like, Hey, everyone, like, just want to let you know, randomly. I'm really grateful to have you here, thank you so much for being so supportive, and then they kind of just share that energy back. And I feel so much better. So as much as I have my bad days, I know that overall, like I don't regret it, like I love it. And the community has been so supportive and so loving that and I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Marsha Druker 28:53
That's amazing. And I like that I can totally agree with that. I think like with Fuckup Nights as well there, there has definitely been some issues with trolling and some like really tough situations with just like people who would come into the community and kind of, like try to ruin it for everyone. And it was something that really got me down like in the early days especially of building a just like something that I was just like not used to it was not expecting it. And anyway, and I guess like through the years of running it something that I really learned was just like to focus on the positive side of it.
Marsha Druker 29:25
And you know, the community members that are just really engaged and like getting something out of it and not sort of let that like one bad person ruin, just like what I think of it and my mental health with that as well. But it's Yeah, it's definitely not easy. And that's amazing that you have that sort of support network of other professionals in the field where you can sort of like chat about your experiences and vent when you need to and just like know that others are going through the same thing. Taking all of that into account, looking at gaming, but then also just like other communities in general. How can we as community professionals, how can we create more sustainable and Kinder online communities?
Victoria Tran 30:07
Yeah, and I think this is an interesting question, right? for community managers in general, right? Because I think when it comes to altering the community spaces and the internet, it all works, when we kind of all work together, and we kind of have like that set a set of values that we want to give out into the world. I'm not saying we need to sound all the same, obviously, and we can all have, like, you know, variations of it, but I think what would really help in terms of creating better spaces is to, like, want that and to desperately want to do good by the communities.
Victoria Tran 30:46
And to make the internet like a little bit of a better place, even though sometimes it may seem like an impossible task. And I say this also, with kind of a call out to whoever is in charge of the who, you know, whoever's the manager of the community managers, or whoever's the boss, or, you know, if they if they are in a position of power, to give community managers more space to have input in terms of like, what they would like to see or what they would like to do, because I think the problem is, is that community managers do see a lot of problems, and they do want to help and, you know, contribute in terms of creating better spaces for the companies that they work for. But so often, community work is devalued and not taken seriously. So I guess this is more of a call out for people who have more of that decision making power to take it more seriously.
Marsha Druker 31:37
Yeah, that's like, I think that's a really strong call out, I think, like something else that has really been coming up a lot with through past interviews is that community is something that's really, really trending, especially, you know, through COVID, and through everybody kind of jumping on it. And all these companies realize that, Oh, my God, we need community and we need this, like community professionals in place to build it. But so I think like the word community is getting a lot of respect, the idea that companies needed as cutting a lot of respect, but the community professional themselves, I think we can, we can really do more to sort of like, elevate these individuals, and to make sure that they have the support and the resources that they need, so that they in turn, can actually like create these more sustainable and kinder online communities.
Marsha Druker 32:31
So I want to jump into your personal community, I think it's really fascinating how community professionals sort of navigate their personal communities outside of the community that they're building for work or for whatever it is that they're doing. So outside of gaming, are there any other communities that you're part of, and why are they meaningful to you?
Victoria Tran 32:52
This is the problem when you like, your hobby and your job, are the same thing.
Marsha Druker 32:57
It's so true. Yeah. So funny. Like a lot of people have that same answer. They're like, what community outside of what I do. That's my life.
Victoria Tran 33:04
I mean, that's interesting, right? Because like, we're so ingrained in a community that like a thought, kind of being in another one, and not having to run it or like, you know, be a part of it is a little bit stressful.
Marsha Druker 33:16
Yeah, I feel like, for me, like when I started doing my own events, like my attendance for other events, like drastically dropped off, because I feel like I wouldn't even enjoy it to the same level. Like, I would be looking at it with a critical eye like, okay, like, what can they do better? Or what I can use from what they're doing to improve my events, or my community, and it's just like, it almost got stressful. But there were a few that I would still go to, like, I was really active in like, tech to win, like some marketing events, but I had like, really, really cut it down.
Victoria Tran 33:46
But yeah, I think that's interesting, right? Like, there's kind of this need to disconnect from a community sometimes in its own way, when you're working in a community. But I think when I think when I think of like, other things that I do that aren't technically based in games community work. I find a lot of I don't know, I guess like interest in this is also sort of a cheat answer, because I also sort of analyze the community and I'm like, oh, how can I use this, but I love fashion and lifestyle YouTubers. I think it's fascinating, right? Like, there's a certain aspect to them and also, like, just YouTube channels in general, like, whether it's commentary or educational. But I see those supportive, like, nice communities that focus around like things like food or makeup or clothes, and it's fun, and it's engaging, and I find that space very positive, and that brings me a lot of joy, and that's why I like interacting with them quite a bit. Not that I do it too much, honestly. But, I do. It's nice.
Marsha Druker 34:57
That's really interesting that you say that. I feel like those communities there, I feel like they're probably very split. Like, I feel like there's probably a lot of positivity and you know, people are uplifting each other. But I feel like there's also probably a lot of toxicity in there as well like body shaming, and all kinds of things like, come up, I feel like there's like no community that's immune from it. But yeah, that's like, that's really cool. That's like, I could not be more different from gaming, because I think that's awesome that you do that. So this is sort of a strange question, but I love hearing people's answers to this. So when it comes to the people that are closest to you, like the five to six, like friends, or people that you spend the most time with, how do you choose? Those people do feel like you look for certain qualities? Or is it just something that kind of happens organically for you?
Victoria Tran 35:45
It happens more organically. For me. That being said, like, part of like, the five closest people that are taken up are people that I've been friends with since high school. So I don't know if that counts. super cheesy, I guess. But for me, the people that I keep the closest to me are ones where I feel comfortable discussing with them, I suppose like, generally we'll have the same values for sure. But I think there is a lot of value and growth to be had to be able to sometimes ask you some really stupid question, right? To be wrong. And to kind of voice something that, you know, you're like, hey, like I can I get like a vibe check on this, like, does this sound weird? Am I wrong? Is this something that you would agree with or not? And being able to have those kinds of discussions with people that are close to you is something that I really value into have that like intelligent, deep thought about it, right? So when it comes to people that I keep closest to me, it's people who I think, think intentionally and have the best intentions in mind, but aren't afraid to, you know, like, understand where someone is coming from, and to be compassionate about it, and to try and grow along with me. That is something I really value.
Marsha Druker 37:06
For sure, I can totally agree with that as well. That's something that I really, really value in my friendships, too. So my last question for you is, and I asked this of everybody on the podcast, what does the word community mean to you?
Victoria Tran 37:19
For me, communities are basically things that are bigger than us, but nevertheless, still value us and include us. And with that, I mean, it feels like the world can be a very, very, very scary, lonely place. And communities are what make us a little bit kinder and braver not only to each other, but to ourselves. They think they help us, they reflect a lot of things to us. They discuss a lot of things with us, and they help us realize things like what, who we want to be and where we're currently at. And for me that like a lot of meaning flows from connection and communities are that connection. They are what creates meaning in the world. And that sounds really cheesy, but I stand by it.
Marsha Druker 38:09
I stand by that too. I think that's such a fantastic definition. I absolutely love that. Awesome, Victoria, thank you so much for joining me today. This was such a fun chat.
Victoria Tran 38:19
Thank you so much for having me.
