We are all members of one or several communities. Examples include our country, our city, our neighborhood, and our residential building. Thus, we all need leaders to guide us and help us navigate through our daily lives.
As we consider that, let us explore four tips for local leaders to bring the best out of their communities.
Clarity of Information
In cases of both civil and criminal law, witnesses are brought to the stand to testify on events that happened before. The information these individuals provide is vital to determining whether a person, business, or social entity is guilty or innocent. As such, the need for transparency and accuracy is crucial.
There cannot be anything left to the interpretation, and testimonies have no room for vagueness. Thus, it is essential to have a reputable reporter of the court to handle all depositions clearly and effectively.
The same is true in the governance of local communities. If mayors, representatives, and other local figures want to gain the trust of the people they are in charge of leading, the information they provide to them must be straightforward and honest. If a new policy that will increase local taxes will be put in place, citizens have the right to know why this is happening and how they will be affected by it.
As long as there is clarity of information, most people will often be open to change and support it.
Member Participation
When it comes to communities, one key aspect to consider is that the word itself is not one predetermined by size. A community can be the more than 1.5 billion people living in the People’s Republic of China or the 20 members of your local neighborhood administrative office. For this article, we will be focusing on the latter.
Everyone in a community should have a voice in decision-making, and ideally, everything should be put to a vote. Of course, leaders are chosen for a reason, and some decisions should be made by them only. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be a need for these people.
Still, participation is something all communities can aim for. If you are the president of your neighborhood community, it is in your best interest to involve the people whenever there is a choice to be made.
This serves a dual purpose. First, members feel more valued and hence are more willing to contribute. Second, you might be able to find new ideas and solutions to problems that would have never crossed your mind.
Short and Long-term Goals
In the United States, a presidential term is four years. If the president is re-elected, he could serve an extra four years, making eight years the longest consecutive period a person can be in office in America.
Other democratic countries like Germany, the United Kingdom, and Canada have slightly different government systems. One thing they all have in common though is that neither a president nor a city mayor can govern forever.
At a local community level, leaders might be in office even shorter. Yet, this doesn’t mean that they should be short-sighted and focus only on immediate goals. Rather, they should put in place both short and long-term objectives.
For instance, a goal within your community is to enhance security. A short-term scheme would be to purchase a few security cameras connected to a public surveillance agency like the police. On the other hand, a long-term target would be to provide better education to citizens, so they can protect themselves.
Educational Exchanges
Let us imagine you are a highly-qualified IT engineer who specializes in cloud computing solutions for corporate clients. If you have achieved this level of expertise, it probably means that you know a lot about IT in general.
Your neighbor Paul works as a real estate agent and is familiar with all kinds of things related to home selling and buying, land appreciation, and property investments.
Wouldn’t it be great if once in a while you could get together and learn from each other? Wouldn’t it help both of you if this happened?
As a leader, a wonderful idea is to provide the necessary mechanisms for your community members to exchange knowledge and information. You could survey people to better understand their skills and then hold weekend seminars. You could also organize virtual learning events where people can share what they know with others.
Good governance is an essential factor in the success of any community. It starts with clarity of information, member participation, setting short and long-term goals, and providing the space for growth in education.
By doing this, local communities will flourish and pave the way for generations to come.
