In my last post I laid out the ultimate goal of talent attraction and retention strategies – a truly engaged citizenry. After all, you can’t expect outsiders to be more attached to your community than the people who are already there.
A little over a year ago I had a conversation with Annemarie Ciepiela Henton of Albuquerque Economic Development who impressed me when she said she was sick and tired of hearing about or participating in any conversations about what her town was lacking, because there was too much discussion to be had about all it had to offer. All her energy was going to go to elevating the conversation and facilitating engagement and expanding enthusiasm for Albuquerque. She knew that kind of effort had to go viral to work – economic development agencies can’t do it alone – so with friends and supporters she helped to birth “Stop Bagging, Start Bragging”. It has since taken on a life of its own, and you can read about it here: https://stopbaggingstartbragging.com/.