The Long Term

Here is an addendum to yesterday's post. 


If you are want to replicate the success of Austin, Texas by doing what they did 40 years ago, it means you might not see the fruits of your efforts this year. Or next year. By the time you create a community that others try to emulate, you might be dead. 


John Maynard Keynes was quite a quotable bloke, but his most famous quote was that "in the long run we are all dead."


That is why all governments use the bandage approach to governing, rather than creating long-term value. Voters insist on immediate improvement, so politicians give them cosmetic solutions. The politicians themselves probably want to see some value in their labor before they die, so they go along with the pressure for short-term results.


As a community leader, you have the same choice. You can build libraries, which build minds, which build businesses. Or you can organize monthly swap meets in your town, which will bring in revenue now. 

Focusing on priorities

Currently, my town is determining which of two priorities should be funded (like many communities, we don't enjoy limitless funds, so we chose to concentrate resources.)

The choices:
1) building a library
2) building a retirement home

To some people these might seem like random spending opportunities, but to me they represent competing philosophies about the future. So I've attached relevant defining slogans to the projects to represent the community:

"Farmington is preparing for a bright future"

                 - or -

"Farmington: a great place to die"

Senior citizens deserve our support and resources. They deserve our love. If we don't support them, we won't be supported when our turn comes around, and knowing that may make us less motivated to support our community now. A senior home here would make it easier for locals to visit their ailing parents, so resolve an inconvenience.

But the first option, the library, builds the community's productive capacity. It makes the community into a place people want to live in, so they will stay near their ailing parents instead of moving to where the jobs are. And it increases the likelihood of innovation. The retirement home option, but contrast, manages symptoms. Surgery vs. bandage. Vitamins vs. medication. 

And because Nauvoo, to me, represents any community that wants to move forward, I share the dilemma as a microcosm. Are you spending community coffers to make people comfortable, or to develop a better future?

Community Mission Statements

Before you start, perhaps you should write a mission statement for your community. You could call it a  Statement of Purpose or "What Farmington Means" statement.

Opinion: most corporate mission statements are poorly written. They tend to be descriptions of all the organization's purpose's, and try to cover all information possible. It should be a tool, but some are like a wrench that weighs as much as an automobile. It is too heavy and unwieldy, so no one ever uses it for anything. It hangs on a plaque in the lobby, read by visitors only if they are asked to wait for a long time.

The mission statement should not, on the other hand, be a marketing slogan. Here are some ideas that I like:

"Farmington is a place where people like to live, where businesses are encouraged to thrive, and where nature is encouraged."

"Farmington is the best place on earth because people support the community and the community supports people. We help each other."

"Pine Hill City strives to improve quality of life for residents and to offer meaningful diversions for visitors, and seeks to maintain safety for all."

Advice: keep it simple.

Artist Guilds

We're trying to build an artist co-op in our town. They will together build a brand.

The idea, structurally, makes sense.  They want to do the art, and let someone else take care of "back-office" functions. They would share the cost and effort needed for marketing.

I have some concerns. Artists can be erratic. They all have different opinions of what "art" means, as they should. But brands need consistency and unity. Conflicting types of art would cause confusion in the minds of consumers.

The idea of creating brands and guilds and co-ops is sound. Just remember, the execution is complicated.

I think we can do it.

Purposeful Tourism

(This is a repeat,as yesterday's post was lost due to a glitch)

Many small towns, seeking to reinvigorate local economic conditions, will create initiatives to increase tourism. They'll promote sites and amenities. I recommend taking that a step further.

A few months ago, I ranked people in the community according to their commitment to the community.

  - Passer-through (person who stops and maybe buys fuel)

  - Tourist (spends a week or a few months)

  - Citizen (born and lives in the area)

  - Citizen who has traveled widely (understands the hometown better than the homebody) 

A tourist is an outsider. But why not engage with the tourists, rather than merely accepting their money? Participative Tourism can add to your region's store of learning and energy.

Just a few ideas to get you started in thinking of an idea of your own:

 - living history exhibit programs
 - folk art training (much more engaging than mere folk
    art viewing)
          - how about classes on blacksmithing, rope making,
             wool spinning, etc.? These are suddenly very hip.

 - Outdoor recreation that focuses on groups

Building something significant--even reaching critical mass--takes a long, long, long time. So starting soon is a good idea.

CAVEs

Most communities have what are called "CAVEs," or Citizens Against Virtually Everything. These intractable folk oppose any initiative, even those in their own best interest.

Let's try to learn about them.

I hear progressive people (the opposite of CAVEs) refer to them as Republicans. That is actually not accurate. The CAVEs in my town are generally Democrats. That is important because being inaccurate is not useful. Here are my observations for why someone might be an intentional continual show stopper.

  -  Personality or character issues (this is irrelevant to political
     leaning...)
  -  Childhood trauma, which causes mistrustful sentiments
  -  Some might just need to be heard. They want their feelings
     and concerns to be acknowledged.

Trying to change hearts and minds through debate is rarely productive. "Seek first to understand, then to be understood," as Stephen Covey would advise, is a better strategy.  

What we CAN do to improve our community

The interplay of diverse types of people can spark innovation.

Do you want an innovative rural community? Creating more ethnic and religious diversity (etc.) would be ideal. But can we realistically recruit people to a boring town without jobs? Can we force them to join us?

They might choose to move here, after we reach critical mass of progress, but that would mean we had already solved the problem without them. They might come, however, after we prime the pump, using people we already have.

We can make the citizenry as diverse as we can, simply by first focusing on age diversity.

Start now, by convincing at least some youth to stay put and start micro-ventures after graduation, and by encouraging younger professionals to return to town after they have gone into the world and learned a skill.

Building the type of amenities that younger people like will help. 

The Lowest Common Denominator

To build excitement in your market, you need to do something remarkable and original.

Unfortunately, many companies (and especially media companies) struggle to create something original. So they resort to shock value.

Shocking people doesn't build, edify, or in any way make the world a better place. It does get people talking about you for a short time, and the short term has become our sole focus. Most organizations have given up on building long term value.

The market is full of Lindsay Lohans, doing egregious things just for attention. "Our product is lousy, so we'll keep you interested with prurient appeal." It creates a spark of interest that burns out fast, and puts you at the bottom of the rubbish heap even quicker.

Our advice: instead of appealing to the lowest common denominator, shoot for the stars. That will make you unique.

Rural-city Disparity

In the city, people have the opportunity to make use of all of their talents.

If my daughter is a sufficient singer, she can participate in the opera. I can hone my persuasion skills by competing for time in front of legislators or before boards. We can get noticed by talent gatekeepers. Most importantly, I am able to rub shoulders with other talented people. We encourage each other and share ideas, creating better ideas through our combined efforts.

And in the city, people see more possibilities, so they raise their aspirations.

In here the country, people might be just as smart, but we have fewer opportunities. We have fewer of everything except open spaces. So people are less likely to excel.

Obviously the lifestyle has many advantages. The air is clean, the nights are quiet, and less energy is wasted by various annoyances.

But in terms of personal development, the lifestyle does have limits. Can we change this? Can we replicate the city advantages while keeping life simple?

The answer is: maybe. We might be able to, but we won't. It takes too long, we don't have the will, and one or two "show stoppers" in a community can scuttle any progress.

But let's keep talking anyway.

Dear Nebraska

Dear Nebraska,

Warren Buffett won't live forever, so you might consider re-branding your state.

The entrance to the state in Interstate 15 indicates you are the home of Arbor Day. But we don't observe more trees than in Iowa or Missouri (you certainly have more than Wyoming, but Wyoming has meticulously landscaped the entire state east of the Tetons to resemble the moon's surface. The effect is chilling but remarkable, and few states have the resources to replicate such a grand scheme.)

Do you have other trees we cannot see from the interstate? Why don't we know about them? You cannot compete with naturally forested regions in tree numbers, but you CAN be the state that plants more.  ...or claims to plant more.

Part of your job is to tell us you are special.

The world's most basic industry

This is something your community can do.


You can start up a kitchen for people to rent so they can start a food business without the initial investment of a commercial kitchen. The cost could be US$150,000. That's where you can help: you build it and they share it. That would satisfy the Nauvoo Commuter's philosophy of bootstrapping until the business concept is proven. Also, we encourage food-related entrepreneurship.


Ten years ago, 30 multi-use kitchens--or Shared-Food Processors--existed in the United States. Now the number is over 100 and growing. These shared-use kitchens are operated by faith groups, universities, non-profits, and for-profits.


Mary Pat Carlson, a super star in the field, has created a food-business incubator in Wisconsin. The non-profit helps individuals start food-related businesses, which includes allowing use of their commercial kitchen on an hourly basis. The system has been so successful that she is now traveling the U.S., helping others develop the same type of incubators.


I met Mary at a conference last week and can verify that she also a very nice person. She really seems to like helping people.

Are you stupid?

If you say "our town has experienced brain drain," then you are saying "the people in our town are stupid. The smart people left, and only us idiots are left to breed, creating a downward spiral of stupid offspring."

When you verbalize the unspoken meaning, it sounds ridiculous. But we still say it.

From the 1840s until the 1950s, many of the smartest Germans immigrated to the United States. Thousands. Entrepreneurs, scientists, teachers. If you could look at the ship manifests, you would be surprised if any smart people stayed.

Yet Germany is still a first string player on the exclusive Economic All-Star Team.

So please stop using the term "brain drain." Take the people you have, and move forward. If you create an innovative community, the smart people and their capital will flood back to your region.

Generosity and Innovation

In this space we extensively discuss the idea of fostering entrepreneurship. But what if you are already an entrepreneur? Why should you direct energy away from your own business to help someone else compete with you?

We're not asking you to put your own expansion plans on hold, to make big sacrifices, or to create direct competitors. Having other entrepreneurs, especially in other industries, helps you.

  - they increase the tax base, so you're not covering municipal needs
   by yourself
  - they create customers--people who can afford to buy your stuff
  - it improves the "vibe,"the innovative spirit

So please, dear successful entrepreneur, be generous.

Resources for Communities

Community leaders and developers are not the only people interested in this topic. Professionals and politicians are also seeking to encourage entrepreneurship in their communities.

What can communities do to encourage entrepreneurship? Here are six things you can do as a community leader:

 1) Attract smart people (through publicity and lifestyle improvement)

 2) Remove barriers (many of the licensing and regulations you have in 

     place probably seem so vital, but might not in reality be worth the real cost)

 3) Provide entrepreneurship education, ideally for both adults and youth 

 4) Compile information resources

 5) Help potential entrepreneurs to network

 6) Improve infrastructure (not a first step, but a long-term goal)

See what Barb Fails is doing in Michigan: Land Policy Institute.

Curiosity can kill cats but can save you

“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”
                                                                       Voltaire


I like curious people. The really curious ones. I appreciate people who "like" my Facebook comments, but they make zero effort. A really curious person works hard and keeps asking questions. 


Do you think you can find a great solution for a problem? Do you think that the answer can be found by asking the right question? Then keep asking. Ask questions about questions. Question your own motives for asking the questions. Then ask more questions. 

Apologies from Bangalore

Someone in another country took your job. But he didn't do it to be cruel. He wanted to buy food and to pay rent, just like you do.

Please forgive him: you can get your job back. Or your customers back.

If your product, service, special combination of product and service, or delivery style are truly unique and compelling, then you don't have to compete on price. From where you sit, you can more easily engage with your customers.

Let Walmart compete on price. You should compete on trustworthiness, personal connection, and extraordinary user experience. 

We interrupt tonight's show to bring you the following news

The Nauvoo Commuter is excited to report finding from the IIRA conference, but can do nothing until the situation in Japan stabilizes.

One of my best friends has lost his home, and I still cannot confirm the situation for others. When the situation becomes clear, we will return to business as usual.

Your Town's Assets

"Why wouldn't you want to move here?" should be the appropriate question you ask everyone about your town. 

Asset Mapping is a popular tool for community development. You start by listing all the assets your town has. Go ahead, give it a try. 

You may not possess all of the following advantages, but here are some possibilities to help prime the pump on your brainstorming session (most are plagiarized from a session I was involved with today):

Volunteer organizations

Family ties

Work ethic

Revolving loan organizations

Development grant programs in place

Empty office space (glass is half full)

Strong ministerial associations

Food pantries

Natural environment and/or outdoor recreational options

Transportation and logistics facilities left from the smoke stack era

Adequate health care facilities

Low crime rate

Broadband Internet access

Reasonable access to an urban area

Child care availability

Trade schools

Entertainment options

Basic food sourcing options

Go ahead and try to make your own list.

Reminder to check out: www.TheSEP.org 

Economic Gardening

Economic Gardening is a concept we've mentioned in this space before. But today the Nauvoo Commuter attended a conference dealing with the issue.

The idea is that instead of futile recruiting of companies (to build factories or call centers), communities should build local talent. If the people are amazing, they will do amazing things.

Governments would often try to support certain businesses. They would pick a promising sector and support it. But can government people choose the next winner? Can anyone?

So you build the capacity of the people, and let them take risks. Some will succeed and create jobs.

Communities seeking to develop their economies should study the work of Chris Gibbons.

See http://www.littletongov.org/bia/economicgardening/default.asp for more details.