New Rules

There's a new sheriff in town: you. And me. And my neighbors and yours. We own this place, and it's time for us to talk about what we want here. What are our goals? What ground rules are necessary for us to achieve those goals? I'm going to name a couple of rules that will help overcome impediments to our success, then I'll tell you more about what they'll facilitate.

You are not entitled to anything. No one owes you or me anything. We will make our own future. Want it? Then make it happen. No one is going to give you a job for life, unless you've earned it every day. The old economy is no more. What happens in the new economy is based on innovation and energy. It's about how we connect to and engage with each other and resources. It's about collaboration. It's about quality. We have to create it.

There will be no white knight. There will be no big industry to swoop in and save the region's economy. We've waited for over twenty years now, and it hasn't happened. Let's face it: that's because it's not going to happen. Our new economy will be built small business by small business. They may grow large, but no ready-made corporation is coming to employ our unemployed army. So, it is up to us to create the conditions that will allow these new businesses to take root and flourish: brainpower, innovation, branding and quality places. Purposeful dialogue is at the center of the development of these pillars.

In the coming weeks, we're going to engage our community in civic forums and create shared goals. You're all invited. They're all invited. Anyone who wants to participate can come along. And why not? The destination is a place we've all imagined: a vital valley. And we'll take any help we can get, we'll need it.

Then, we're going to talk about how we can accomplish our goals. Read that again. We're going to talk about how WE can accomplish our goals. We're not going to leave it up to our elected officials. We're not going to leave it to faith-based organizations. We're not going to wait for the state or federal governments to take up our cause. We're not going to get distracted about every shiny object near our path that we lose sight of the baby steps necessary to get to our goal. In the words of Greater Ohio's Jim Converse: We are the people we've been waiting for.