We know in business that strategic advantage can make the difference between success and failure. Identifying the one thing about your company that no one else does as well as you do is what will attract customers, if it is marketed effectively. I've seen this in both Kansas City and now Austin Texas which is where I've traveled over the past week as a participant in the US Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).
Not only have I seen businesses in these American cities that have successfully identified their uniqueness, but the cities themselves seem to know who they are. Like the wisdom that comes with age, ask anyone from Austin to describe their city and they will all tell you the same thing...Austin is weird. From the abundance of bright psychedelic food trucks parked on empty lots on every street corner to an admirable culture of support for ecofriendly initiatives like the Smart car system, the thing I love most about the people of Austin is their openness. The individuals that I've encountered so far are the most non-judgemental people I've ever met. It seems that if you choose to present yourself or your abilities in an odd way, that may get you shot in other parts of Texas, in Austin they'll give you a standing ovation and invite you over for dinner.
The paradox is that, while the people of Austin celebrate just about every artist, environmentalist, or otherwise eclectic person who makes Austin their home, they protect their 'weirdness' and liberalism with fierce resolve. All Texans are not made equal in the minds of the people of Austin and as long as the rest of Texas stays outside of the city boundaries, life is good. Austin is a blue city within a red state and their residents have all drunk the Kool-Aid of liberal adherence. In the end it seems that judgement is reserved for outsiders only.
What I bring back to my hometown from this encounter with Austin, and all its weirdness, is hope that Prince George may one day come to understand its strategic advantage. Perhaps, a few decades from now, we too will know how to describe ourselves with terms that are convincing, enticing and different from every other Northern Canadian town. We're getting there but, in our youth, I believe we still have a ways to travel down the road to identity.
Looking at the Austin, Texas example, the first step is to recognize the quirky things we love about our city and amplify them. Next, we must identify our successes and duplicate them. And finally, we must look to our future, set some BIG goals and run with them. This is what Kansas City and Austin Texas have done. This is what Prince George could do to.
If you wish to follow my journey more closely as I travel across the U.S., please follow my travel blog by subscribing to the RSS feed off my blog site: http://blog.travelpod.com/members/jbrandlemccall
Until next week, which will be from Denver, Colorado, stay in the black and keep coming back. Jennifer Brandle-McCall is CEO of the Prince George Chamber of Commerce.
