I spent a week traveling to two conferences across Florida. Two completely different cities, yet the perception of Tallahassee was the same: We don’t like nor want change. We don’t have talent. We have a hard time attracting people and keeping the ones we have. We don’t pay well. That is the perception of Tallahassee in a nutshell. I knew these things; I just didn’t know the rest of the state felt that way, too, about the community I have called home for 30 years. It saddened me, yet it didn’t surprise me. For years, I have worked to try to make an impact in this community. Some efforts have fallen on deaf ears. Others have made temporary changes that simply can’t be sustained by a small group of people. As I look ahead, I ask myself: do I pack up and leave, or do I give it one more try? One of the things I say when I speak about Tallahassee is that it took a Puerto Rican to write the book 100 Things to Do in Tallahassee Before You Die. The most uttered words from people are: “There’s nothing to do in Tallahassee.” Yet for those of us who have taken the time to learn and explore this community, we know that’s not the case. So many people want this community to be something it isn't, and we continue to compare it to cities we simply can’t be. We don’t have a river running through downtown. We don’t have beaches. We don’t have an 18-hour downtown or endless shopping districts. But what we do have is something many other cities don’t: an almost unmatched outdoor community. If your love for the outdoors is limited and you’re unwilling to explore, then this may not be the city for you. But if having an active lifestyle matters to you, hang on and enjoy the ride because we have plenty of that. Nobody is going to beat Orlando at entertainment. Nobody is going to beat Miami at nightlife. Nobody is going to beat Tampa in major league sports. Stop competing where we can’t win. Tallahassee could own the identity of being Florida’s outdoor capital. We have world-class trails, canopy roads, springs, paddling, cycling, running, hunting, fishing, and public green space. Most residents don’t even know half of what exists within an hour of downtown. Instead of apologizing for what Tallahassee isn’t, market what it already is. Build events around it. Create experiences around it. Recruit businesses and workers who value that lifestyle. Cities win when they embrace what makes them different, not when they chase what makes them look like everyone else. The same is true for people. The moment we stop apologizing for what Tallahassee isn’t and start investing in what it already is, everything changes. As a city, we struggle to attract new private businesses. Yet the companies that are already here have the power to change that. What does everyone want when looking for a job and deciding whether to stay in a city? A good salary and opportunities to excel. If we want to attract exceptional talent, we need to start paying exceptional wages. But it doesn’t end there. We need to provide continued training and support so people can grow rather than stagnate. We need to expose them to what other businesses and communities are doing—not out of fear that they will leave, but with the excitement that they will help us reach the next level. For the past 20 years, I’ve kept FSU graduates working with me long after graduation. I’ve even convinced one to move back to Tallahassee. How? I paid them well. I invested in their growth. I exposed them to ideas, businesses, and communities outside of Tallahassee. I encouraged them to spread their wings, not clip them. Most importantly, I helped them discover a side of Tallahassee they didn’t know existed. I introduced them to trails, rivers, paddling trips, local events, road trips, hidden gems, and experiences that made this city feel like home. People stay where they can build a life, not just earn a paycheck. If we want our community to grow, we must invest in it. Business owners have a responsibility to stop saying, “That’s more than what I made when I was their age,” and start saying, “I recognize things have changed.” Your business will be one of the things that suffer if you don’t. Every year, we lose talented graduates, entrepreneurs, and professionals to other cities. Some leave because of opportunity. Others leave because they’ve been told for years that opportunity doesn’t exist here. If we continue to underpay talent, resist change, and speak negatively about our own community, we shouldn’t be surprised when people choose to build their future somewhere else. The truth is, Tallahassee doesn’t need saving. It needs belief. It needs business owners willing to invest in people. It needs leaders willing to embrace change. It needs residents willing to explore what already exists instead of constantly comparing us to somewhere else. I’ve spent 30 years in this community. I’ve seen incredible people build incredible things here. I’ve watched graduates stay, raise families, start businesses, and create lives they never expected. I’ve also watched us talk ourselves out of our own potential. If Tallahassee is going to become something more, it won’t happen because a government agency, university, or economic development organization makes it happen. It will happen because thousands of individual decisions made by business owners, community leaders, and residents begin moving in the same direction. The question isn’t whether Tallahassee can change. The question is whether we’re willing to.