Yesterday I shared my ideas on how diversity of thought can help smaller communities. A buddy responded with a few of his:

• Insular – He used this word instead of “smaller,” and it got me thinking. The size of the community likely isn’t the right way to describe what I’m referring to. Lots of progressive, innovative communities aren’t huge. Though small, they’re generally receptive to new ideas, even from outsiders. “Insular” is a better adjective.
• Conduit – He’s noticed that he has a different network than most in his hometown, an insular community. He’s credible in both communities and can lend credibility to both sides. Start-ups and people from the insular community that he introduces to his network are embraced with open arms and may even get opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t. And he’s able to convince people from his network to visit his hometown. When they do, they’re embraced with open arms by locals because of their connection with my buddy. If he didn’t act as a conduit, the two communities would tend to distrust one another. When he does, though, the people in both have open minds and generally have a great experience and positive impression of each other when all is said and done.

I’m glad my buddy shared his thoughts with me. I think he made some great points. The conduit role he described is a great third way to foster diversity of thought and help insular communities thrive. I’m looking forward to my thoughts evolving more around this topic.

Years ago, a buddy told me that one of the problems with second- and third-tier cities was that people left after graduation for better opportunities in bigger cities. I think he called it a brain drain. He believed the solution was to convince graduates to never leave. As someone who left Louisiana for Atlanta, I did the exact opposite of what he was advocating for. I agreed that a solution is needed to help less-progressive communities keep up with the pace of change and stay economically competitive—but not his solution.

Exposure to new ways of thinking and doing is an important part of helping these communities evolve. Instead of convincing graduates to never leave, let’s encourage them to go to larger markets to gain exposure with the goal of returning home. To bring back those new approaches and ways of thinking. And to combine them with their understanding of the cultural norms in their home community to help create bespoke solutions that their community can rally behind.

All graduates who transition to larger markets won’t move back home, and that’s OK. They can still play an important role. Because they understand two different communities, they have a unique perspective that qualifies them to be a bridge between them. They can help make others aware of opportunities in larger markets and ease the transition for those who aspire to move.

Exposure can lead to diversity of thought, a powerful change agent for a smaller community. It seems to me that making diversity of thought more accessible is a better path than limiting it. These are just two rough ideas about how to encourage diversity of thought, make it more accessible, and hopefully empower people to change the communities they care about.

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Over the last year, I’ve chatted with a few founders who are relocating to Atlanta. I’m bullish on the city and believe the best is yet to come, so I’m glad others are recognizing its value and moving here. I sat down with one of these founders, who just solidified his move date. I wanted to better understand his decision.

This founder shared a lot of things, and one of them especially resonated with me: he’s too comfortable. He doesn’t feel challenged and isn’t growing. He isn’t around people who are pushing the envelope, so he hasn’t been pushing as hard as he could, either. He’s hungry and knows he can go further as an entrepreneur but isn’t in the right environment.

During his visits to Atlanta, he found the community welcoming, and entrepreneurs were willing to share their experiences and relationships. The variety in the types of industries entrepreneurs operated in was refreshing.

Atlanta isn’t the only place founders are migrating to. Miami, Austin, and other cities are also attracting great founders. I do believe that Atlanta is unique, though, in that many founders who relocate see themselves putting down roots and calling Atlanta home for the long term. I’m excited about this movement and can’t wait to see what’s in store for Atlanta. I hope it will be known as—among other things—the place entrepreneurs call home.

I’ve lived in Atlanta for many years, and I’m a proponent of the city. Atlanta has a lot to offer, but I think that for a long time, people haven’t realized how great a city it is or where it’s headed. That’s starting to change, though. People are paying close attention to the city’s upward trajectory, and many are choosing to make it their home.

This weekend, I read an article describing how Atlanta’s attractiveness caused more people to move to the city and drove a higher rate of inflation here than in any other city last year. A few takeaways from the article:

• Housing costs were the single largest driver of inflation in Atlanta. The shelter index rose 7.7% in Atlanta versus 4.1% nationwide.
• Atlanta attracted home buyers from more expensive markets like the Northeast and West Coast.
• The median sale price of homes in Atlanta rose 23% in a year, more than the 15.2% national average.
• Atlanta is still more affordable than coastal cities like San Francisco and New York, even though prices are rising quickly.
• Transportation costs, which include vehicle prices and gasoline, are up 29.3% in Atlanta (and up 21.1% nationally).  

I’m curious to see if this trend continues and will watch housing costs closely this year.

I wanted to take today to celebrate the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His contributions to society were foundational in moving our country closer to equality for all.

Hope everyone had a great MLK Day!

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Over the last two years, remote work has exploded. Absent the need to be in the office, many people have incorporated exploring new places into their work routine. I talk to founders regularly. During first calls, I’ve started asking where they’re calling from. Paris, one founder responded this week.

How we work won’t go back to pre-2020 norms anytime soon, if ever. This got me thinking about the intersection of vacation and work. Historically, people have scheduled vacation time to spend time away from their office and home city. During quarantine, many people camped out and worked remotely in new locations outside their home cities. From anecdotal evidence, it appears this trend is continuing.

How people work has changed for sure. But I think where people work will also change. I foresee some people early in their career (or without attachments) adopting more of a nomadic lifestyle. The line between work and vacation will start to blur a bit. They’ll spend a few weeks or months working remotely from a location that interests them or where they have community. When they want a change of scene, they’ll go to another location for a similar amount of time. They’ll have the opportunity to learn about new cultures or places, build or strengthen relationships, etc.

I think the people doing this now are hacking it together on their own. Going forward, I see an opportunity for employers to gain a recruiting advantage by supporting and even encouraging this work-from-wherever approach. I also see lots of entrepreneurial opportunities to help the nomads make the best of their experience.

I’ll be paying close attention to this trend this year to see how it unfolds.

I spent part of the day touring properties in various Atlanta neighborhoods with a friend who’s moving. I was able to chat with his agent. Here are a few takeaways:

• Inquiries from people relocating from outside Georgia remain brisk. Atlanta is a desirable city for a variety of reasons. People are recognizing the value it offers relative to other cities and making the move.
• Neighborhoods that are transitioning from undesirable to desirable are doing so at an accelerated pace.
• Inventory of single-family homes for rent and purchase remains very tight. Properties in desirable neighborhoods don’t last long.
• Construction of single-family homes and townhomes continues but isn’t keeping up with demand.
• Infrastructure may not be keeping pace with population growth. Traffic is likely to get worse before it gets better.
• Density is increasing in desirable neighborhoods inside the perimeter.

I enjoy talking with real estate agents. They’re on the front lines and always have interesting insights to share. Atlanta is a great city with lots to offer. I suspect we’ll continue to see people moving here for the foreseeable future.

I hope the new year is off to a great start for everyone!

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Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a safe and healthy holiday!

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This past week was a much-needed holiday. After not celebrating Thanksgiving or Christmas in 2020, I’ve been looking forward to this holiday season. I went into Thanksgiving excited and also focused on being more intentional. I was looking forward to spending time with others, and I wanted that time to be high quality—I wanted to be present and engaged. I tend to not be as engaged if I’m in work mode, so I decided to not look at anything work related through Saturday. Overall, I think the mission was accomplished. I enjoyed the holidays, was able to unplug a bit, and was mentally as well as physically present with people I care about.

Today I started to prepare for the coming week and noticed I wasn’t being very productive. It was taking me longer to get things done and I wasn’t as focused as usual. I guess I was having a bit of an off day during my holiday. Today is Sunday, and my brain refuses to leave holiday mode even though I wanted to put it in work mode. Instead of fighting it, I recognized what was happening and leaned into it. It’s been two years since I had Thanksgiving, and it’s clearly something I’ve missed. I decided to put the work away and enjoy the last day of my Thanksgiving holiday!