This weekend I was asked to speak at Maple Grove United Church in Oakville, Ontario about some of my reflections working in the social change sector over the past few years. This offered me a great opportunity to think deeply about my journey so far and opened up some amazing conversations with Oakville residents about taking on complex challenges in our community.
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I never understood “don’t shoot the messenger” as the stereotypical retort the messenger must use to defend her delivery of a message. Maybe we need a new cultural utterance like “You know how the messenger shoots those who don’t listen.”
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I have a tolerate/hate relationship with community needs assessments. I really wanted to write that I have a love/hate relationship with them but that would be dishonest. I do not love them at all, but I do understand their importance and will tolerate them...barely. In fact, I have designed them, conducted them, and used them to inform and guide work on community projects and initiatives.
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At every community meeting, at every step in the process, we have seen some version of these traps arise and threaten progress. If you keep them in mind, you can see them a mile off and avoid falling into them. Even better, we’ve seen communities where, at every meeting, they designate someone to be “Sergeant At Arms” who will point out when such traps emerge and help everyone steer clear.
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"Vision without execution is hallucination." This quote by Thomas Edison has particular resonance in our Working Differently / Collective Impact communities. For in many ways, these communities seek to accomplish transformative change by building on two visions: the aspirational outcome and the cross-sectoral means of achieving that outcome. For this reason, carefully considering "how" this can be accomplished is vital.
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This week the Toronto Star featured an article on the newest Ashoka Fellows – the visionaries in our midst, the people with bold ideas, the trailblazers – and we at Tamarack are so proud that Paul Born has been recognized for his approach to addressing complex social issues by capitalizing on the power of local collaboration.
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