Being a Main Street Director: 90% great, 10% not-so-hot
When I started this blog, it was with the intention of doing a podcast and that’s about it. I found, like many people do with great ideas, that a podcast takes a lot of work in ways that I don’t find very interesting. I loved interviewing the guests and finding out how they created an event or ran their Main Street program, but the editing and the time it took to post the episode drained my little ADHS brain something fierce!
It’s not hard to do, with this brain. But being diagnosed at almost 50 means that I’m wise enough to know that how I think about how my brain works best can be the difference between feeling like it’s super power to be harnessed or a disability to be managed.
It isn’t lost on me that my ADHS brain loves the work I get to do in my downtown. No day is ever the same. I have an amazing team that helps implement and execute the ideas that flow so freely to me. We create programs and projects that make a difference in the lives of the residents and visitors.
I absolutely love 90% of the work I get to do.
But let’s talk about the 10% for just one minute. It’s hard. Budgets get cut. City Councils change and City Staff determine new priorities.
Sometimes it feels like the more successful we are, the harder we have to fight for resources.
But I’m a fighter. And so are the partners and the team we have working on downtown issues in Red Wing.
But I really think that the reason why Main Street Coordinators don’t usually stay for more than a few years is because no one realizes how political this role is. I’m using the broad definition of political here: (From the Google: It entails understanding political ideas, ideologies, institutions, policies, processes, and behavior, as well as groups, classes, government, diplomacy, law, strategy, and war.) This isn’t necessarily about Democrat vs. Republican. That can plan a part, but it’s more about understanding all the other things at play.
The number of people and groups that touch our downtowns is vast. I have come to understand that my job is not to make sure all of them are happy. That would be futile. My job is to determine a direction and then move forward with small, low hanging fruit first, building consensus and finding out who actually follows through. Who is a real partner? Who just talks a good game? Who goes to bat for downtown? Who says they will show up but then don’t? When we get to the more complicated projects and programs, we have a better idea of who we can count on.
Brene Brown says the people we can fit on a one-inch by one-inch square represent the people whose opinions matter most. These people earn the right to be on our square. This is how I think of who’s opinion matters to me about downtown, too. Certainly it’s a different list than my life’s square, but it is important to figure out who is on that list, or you will be driven mad trying to keep everyone satisfied.
And don’t be surprised went someone has to get removed from the list. This is when I most question what I’m doing. When a City Councilor I trusted and felt was on our side changes their vote, that hurts. When a downtown business owner is supercritical and talks about you behind your back without gathering the information that might help them better understand a decision, that really stings. Those people get removed and that makes me really sad and sometimes really angry. But pretty soon a new name will get added and I’l be reenergized.
I’m sure there are people in Main Street roles that everyone likes. I am not one of them. I’m feisty and opinionated. I’m great at boundaries, which means that a lot of people are uncomfortable. But, they always know where I stand.
So take out a piece of paper and write the names of people in your downtown that matter to you. Who’s opinion matters the most. Who makes the list?