The life of a military spouse presents a myriad of unique complexities and obstacles to overcome. Those new to this lifestyle may not comprehend the...
The life of a military spouse presents a myriad of unique complexities and obstacles to overcome. Those new to this lifestyle may not comprehend the extent of what lies ahead or possess the necessary tools to navigate the challenges that will inevitably arise. Even experienced military spouses require support during challenging times while also having a wealth of stories to share – from the peaks to the valleys and everything in between. The thing is, there has never been a way to connect with other military spouses in an exclusive online space built just for us – until now!
The bright minds over at Instant Teams recently announced the launch of a new, free online community just for military spouses. Twelve Million Plus (12M+) is a space where all spouses (yes, active duty, veteran, reserve, guard, gold star and surviving spouses) of service members can network to help each other with issues surrounding military life, share resources that support military families, as well as find resources for personal and professional development. The community also includes employment readiness and resources because we know how much of a challenge it can be trying to find work as a military spouse.
You may be wondering how this is different from commonly used social media platforms. 12M+ is only for military spouses, and they have partnered with ID.me to verify every member’s connection with the military. A person cannot just lie to sneak past the verification questions in a private group like on common social media sites. Another thing, there is no soliciting allowed on 12M+. There’s no need to worry about being bothered by people messaging you to try and sell you a service or product. More importantly, 12M+ isn’t a social media site full of mindless posts and distractions. It is a place for support, knowledge sharing and empowerment full of like-minded people and experts who are there to help each other navigate this unique lifestyle.
In case you aren’t familiar with Instant Teams, it is an online talent marketplace created by two active-duty military spouses back in 2016. Instant Teams was created to provide both the flexible work schedules that military spouses need and high-quality skilled candidates that employers are searching for. The opportunities are mostly remote and the people at Instant Teams really do an excellent job at highlighting and even strengthening the skills you have instead of relying on traditional hiring practices. Instant Teams did something great when they created 12M+ and added their Talent Marketplace right into the app. Everyone in the community has access to the training, courses, live videos, and job descriptions of current available jobs in the Job Marketplace. There are weekly updates and live job parties that highlight some opportunities that are currently available. Professional development courses earn you badges for your profile on both 12M+ and the original Instant Teams site.
Are you a small business owner? 12M+ Includes support for you as well with their partnership with Spouse-ly, a community and online marketplace for military spouse small business owners. Another feature for business owners is access to networking with the Military Spouse Chamber of Commerce, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting military spouse entrepreneurs.
In the 12M+ app, you will have a feed that will show you community posts and posts from groups you have joined. The Community Glance feature is a no frills, straight to the point feature to help you see valuable information, upcoming events, members that are near you, top members and what spaces within the community are trending among members. Other fun features with 12M+ include live chats, polls and sometimes giveaways.
Military spouses crave community because we usually don’t have the luxury of holding onto our physical community for long. We have tried to carve out spaces for ourselves for support and fellowship on popular social media platforms with varying levels of success but have never had a dedicated space exclusively for us, until now. The inventive minds at Instant Teams have been and are still working hard to build this community full of peers, experts, and resources for military spouses to have at their fingertips. With the app being in its early stages and membership constantly on the rise, I anticipate a plethora of innovative features and opportunities from the dedicated 12M+ team soon. Past polls demonstrate their commitment to delivering the support and information we need, and I’m confident in their efforts to grow this community. Let’s come together, support each other, and make this journey a little bit easier. I’ll see you there!
