The Secret Talents of Strong Citizens

Emma Durand-Wood is a Strong Towns member and advocate in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Look forward to seeing her writing regularly on Thursday mornings!

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“Everybody has a talent, everybody’s got something to give.”

I’ve heard those lyrics from Metric dozens of times. In my neighborhood, there’s an artist who runs the most wonderful summer art camps for kids, and she uses this song as the soundtrack to the highlight video she creates for each group of campers. The song is the perfect accompaniment to the reel of photos of smiling, creative, and gloriously paint- and glitter-covered kids making art with their friends. The feel-good soundtrack reminds us that “all of us have something we're good at / all of us have a gift that makes us special and unique.”

It’s funny: as a parent, it’s easy for me to honestly and enthusiastically praise my kids and see their particular strengths and skills. But reflect upon my own talents? Um… I guess I’m good at making popcorn?? I can hold my own at Scattergories. But no one is coming to me for gardening advice or help choosing a new phone.

As adults, many of us focus on the skills and tendencies we wish we had, and overlook the many things we are naturally good at and come easily to us.

More than anything, the thing that amazes and inspires me about the power that everyday people have to make their places better is this: Everyone has something to contribute, and when you get even just a handful of skills and talents working toward the same goal, remarkable things can happen.

I’ve thought about this a lot over the past few years, as I’ve been involved with a hodgepodge of grassroots groups that have formed to do everything from planting street trees and fighting for safer streets, to hosting neighborhood picnics and promoting infill housing. 

In every group, I’ve found myself marveling at how people bring so many different talents, skills, and strengths to the table so generously and passionately. And yet, often these same folks downplay their contributions or don’t realize what an asset they are. The fact is, when it comes to building stronger towns, everybody has a talent they can bring!  

When we think about problems in our neighborhoods, towns, or cities, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed—partly by the scale of the problems, partly by the skills we think will be needed to address them. We assume things are going to be hard to resolve, because if they weren’t, then wouldn’t someone have resolved them already? 

But here’s where things get interesting. “Hard” is in the eye of the beholder.

For example, these are some common traits that I think serve an advocate well: 

• Being assertive, and maybe even a little authoritative.

• Being a confident public speaker.

• Being OK with pushing back on the status quo.

• Being comfortable with conflict.

Guess how many of these traits I have? None! These are things I marvel at and admire so much in others, because they don’t come naturally to me. Frankly, I’d rather get my wisdom teeth removed than give a speech or debate anyone in front of a group.

Now, depending on your interest in self-improvement, some of these you can beef up (hello, Strong Towns Toastmasters group!); others, you may decide are not a priority for your own personal growth. But either way, there’s good news: They are really just the tip of the skills iceberg. 

While it’s true that all those things are big assets, it’s also true that there are a ton of other equally essential skills that make grassroots groups or projects successful. I’ll break them down into a few personas. How many do you fall into?

The Organized One 

One of the biggest assets anyone can bring to a ragtag group of energetic and optimistic citizens is organizational skills. 

• Set meetings and send meeting reminders.

• Lead a meeting (and keep people on topic) or take minutes/notes.

• Be willing to pick up the phone and make calls to gather information, set meetings, get quotes, etc. (I hate the phone as much as the next person, but sometimes it really is the most efficient form of communication!)

• Keep track of paperwork, fill out forms, etc.

These abilities might seem sort of hum-drum and mundane, but they are essential, and not everyone’s got ‘em.

The Tech Whiz

No need for generational stereotypes here. Young or old, a person who knows their way around Microsoft Office or always seems to know of a cool, free tool to do x will have the respect, appreciation, and awe of the less tech-savvy.

• Are you good at managing spreadsheets or databases?

• Could you create a PowerPoint in your sleep?

• Is it no big deal to throw together a basic website?

• Can you hook up a projector without breaking out in a cold sweat?

You likely have desperately needed tech skills to share! 

The Comms Pro

If your group wants to engage the public, then conventional and social media are essential tools. A person with experience (or just confidence) in these aspects of communication is a big asset:

• Writing content for websites, flyers, posters, press releases, etc.

• Running social media accounts.

• Talking to media.

The Person with Time and Space

Often the dearest resources are a product of circumstance, season of life, or privilege. Here are two assets that can be incredibly valuable to a group:

• A home that’s large enough to host a meeting of a half-dozen people, or access to free meeting space.

• Daytime availability: this is one that may or may not seem obvious, but the ability to go to meetings or take calls from media during the traditional weekday work hours is often a rare commodity among volunteers who have full-time jobs or caregiving responsibilities. 

The Artistic Soul

Doesn’t matter if you do art or design for a living or just have a strong creative streak and access to Canva. If you can make things visually interesting and attractive, you’ll be in high demand. Think:

• Basic graphic design skills.

• A knack for taking great photos—or just a phone with a good camera!

The Deep Thinker

When you get a bunch of energetic but also frustrated people in one room, it can be easy to lose sight of the goal and the big picture. If you’re lucky, your group will include someone (maybe it’s you!) who is a great listener and will pipe up with a deep and helpful insight. This is someone who’s: 

• Skilled at reflective listening and synthesizing ideas.

• Sees the big picture.

• Helps build consensus.

Maybe this person will never stand up and make a presentation to city council, but their ability to bring clarity to a complex situation is invaluable.

If all else fails? 

This will sound trite, but there is nothing like a home-baked treat to show volunteers they are valued, or to sustain a crew hard at work. It might seem silly, but the person who brings the Tupperware container of  cookies or modestly explains away the cake they just whipped up (“I was drowning in zucchini!”)  is often deemed the hero of the meeting. If all you do is show up with a smile, a snack to share, and a desire to get involved, you will be valued.

Those are just some of the strengths you could bring to the table. For me, one of the coolest things is when folks share the specific skills they use on the job (let’s call them transferable professional skills). In one group I’m involved with, one volunteer used his data visualization training to create incredibly powerful and easy-to-digest maps and infographics using an open dataset. In another group, we happen to have two people who used to work as census enumerators: they’re always the first to sign up for any projects that require door-knocking, because it’s not at all intimidating to them. Personally, I’ve often been the go-to research person—something that’s easy and fun for me, given my education in library and information technology. I have no doubt that there’s something you do in your job that you could put to good use for your community.

I’ve given many examples of valuable skills, both hard and soft. Did you see yourself somewhere in this list? 

If you take one thing away from this article, let it be this: Your skills and talents may seem like no big deal to you, but they can be a huge asset in the quest to build a stronger town. 

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