Routine for you; Once in a lifetime for them

 Routine for you; Once in a lifetime for them


We had hopped on a small private plane after our business meetings in Vernon for a beautiful flight to Vancouver Island when the latch on the door I was sitting next to popped up.  “Don’t worry about that,” said the pilot, “happens all the time; just push it back down and you’ll be fine.”  So you bet I pushed it back down and I did so again when it popped up a few minutes later.  In fact, I pushed down hard on it for the rest of the flight.

‘Happens all the time’ meant that this was just routine for the pilot but obviously this was not routine for me – it was once in a lifetime and thankfully I’ve been able to talk about it for decades since.  This is also true for those in public office – just another council meeting, just another speech, just another greeting may be routine for you but you need to remember it may be once in a lifetime for others.

For example, I’m surprised when a parent comes up to me with their young children and says ‘when this man was Mayor he spoke at my high school graduation.’  There are several high schools in Saanich and I was Mayor for 18 years, so do the math – I was very lucky to give more than a few greetings at grad ceremonies.  But here we are decades later and a parent not only remembers that I spoke but often shares with me something that I said that stuck with them.  Not routine for them.

People will say ‘hello’ and say I threw out the pitch at their baseball park, was a regular at their lawn bowling club or cut the ribbon at their family business….and they will repeat to me something that I said!

And the most common example is from Council Meetings.  I was there every Monday and Tuesday, every week, every month of every one of those 28 years.  Yet sure enough citizens still come up to me to speak about the one time they were at a municipal council meeting, what I said and how I voted.

So that is the lesson I want to share with those of you in public office today.  As much as it is routine for you it is likely once in a lifetime for the people you serve – so be ‘on your game’, never just ‘go through the motions’, and be aware how long your remarks will live on. 


Check out my website at http://frankleonard.ca/ for information on Local Government and Consulting

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