Just Do It!

There was an amusing but disturbing post on the Wisbech 'discussion' forum this morning. Certainly not from a person wishing to discuss anything, he was just demanding that his idea should go to the front of the queue for attention from our local councillors. He had an idea and his idea was the best possible use of our elected representative's time. I can only think that this person had never experienced an idea before and was acting from shock, without conscious thought at all.

His choice of words intimated that he felt nothing other than his project was a worthwhile use of civic resource, because he alone had the answer to anti-social behaviour from young people. To be fair he did appear to have some on-line supporters, but he didn't appear to have any intention of actually doing anything himself . He wanted our councillors to do something.

We can all have ideas, they may appeal to us for many reasons, but unless we have a critical mass of supporters then it is unfair to expect funding or resources from those elected to administer on behalf of the whole community.

In 2011 the town where I lived, Karridale, Western Australia was due to commemorate the 50th anniversary of bushfires that destroyed the townsite. The residents fought bravely and we wanted to recognise this terrific effort, especially as it demonstrated self-reliance and resilience within the community. In 2008 we spent many hours canvassing the opinions of community members, and then drafted a fully costed proposal to produce a book and a video. This then gained support from community members and the proposal and supporting documents were delivered to our councillors and members of parliament.

Our elected members discussed the project and then provided us with letters of support.

We could then approach the WA Lottery Commission and also Gerry Harvey, head of a major electrical retailer in Australia, to request their consideration of our proposal. Gerry Harvey's office rang us almost immediately and advised that we could collect the video equipment we needed from our nearest retail store at our earliest convenience. The Lottery board shortlisted us and requested a project plan with more detail for the final selection stage.

We were successful, and our book and film were both completed in time for the anniversary.

(the book can be downloaded here )

During my time involved with our community group we undertook many other projects, but always we recognised that we must present our funding case as well as possible. Always we must understand that other people will also have needs and maybe we might not always be a finalist, we may have to be patient, and occasionally we may have to accept that our idea just isn't something the majority want. 

What we must never do is assume that others must do all the leg work to make our ideas come to fruition.