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The power of place – What do you think?

It was a few months ago when I thought I might leave Madison, WI to move to Chicago where my boyfriend lived. Long story short, I went to visit him, we broke up, and I rode home on the bus, trying to decipher all that had happened in such a short weekend.

When I got home, however – poof! Everything was okay.

As if the city had enveloped me in between its two lakes and brought the east and west side together to meet, and there in the middle, I stood, a bright light shining like a fool, excited merely just to be home. If I were a pedestrian approaching, I would have crossed the street to avoid me. Definitely.

Back to normalcy, I now sit outside a coffee shop. The sun is shining and the sound of cars accelerating from the intersection is absorbed by the tall trees in front of the street. A bicycle’s gears coast down the sidewalk while flip flops playfully smack the pavement. I’ve pulled up my pant legs and the denim folds uncomfortably around my knees. A group of suits has moved their meeting to this coffee shop and the woman across from me acts as a mirror: laptop out, papers on the table, sunglasses propped atop her head. A few blocks away, State Street is alive with its teenagers shopping and homeless begging and street performers entertaining.

A breeze arrives on my back and spreads to my arms just when the sun is too warm. The breeze brings with it the freshness of the lakes and the aroma of sundrenched grass. I breathe in, deeply now, and I smell my lotion, with the unmistakable hint of sun block, and then slightly, delicately, the smell of fresh flowers. A bus squeaks to a stop and a motorcycle guzzles loudly past. There is a dog sprawled underneath a table with a man – a musician? – who writes on one slice of yellow notebook paper with two glasses of water sitting next to him.

This is Madison and it’s the city that I love. And I sit here and wonder how I could consider leaving something I love.

Madison defines who I am. I live here because it shows me where I was, who I am, and where I will go. There is much discussion on the influence of Generation Y and Generation X on the workforce, but attention is increasingly being shined on the power of place. Two-thirds of college-educated young adults 25-34, in fact, say they will pick a place to live first. Work comes second.

Certainly for me, place has become the nascent factor over other odds such as timing, stress, and responsibility. As careers take a back seat to relationships, and as it becomes easier to connect with those we care about, it is place that drives our decisions.

You’ve chosen your place to live for a multitude of good reasons. Your city is working really hard to keep you there. Now, why do you live there in the first place? How did you choose? Do you put place before work? Relationships? What are you going to do to give back? How can you, or do you, contribute to your city? Who or what keeps you there?

Let me know your ideas in the comments!

Keeping it in the ‘hood.

By Rebecca Healy

My goal is to help you find meaningful work, enjoy the heck out of it, and earn more money.

51 replies on “The power of place – What do you think?”

I live in Atlanta, mostly because it’s where I happen to have been born once upon a time.

My wife and I have discussed living elsewhere, but she is very family-centric and we’d have a hard time not seeing our little nieces and nephews as they are growing up.

I still think it’d be fun to live elsewhere for a while because when you live somewhere, it transforms that place for you–you see it differently.

I came back to Nashville much sooner than I ever thought I would. And while the work I do now could technically be done from anywhere, I enjoy the city and all it has to offer. If I were in the job market, I’d stay put.

Landlines connect places whereas cell phones connect people, independent of location. The internet connects people to tools and resources that once were outside their immediate sphere of influence. Increasingly, the power of the web has allowed people to choose their professions independent of location and choose their home based on the characteristics of the natural and built-up environment, culture and people of a given area. The web is our new geography.

@ Chuck: It sounds like you chose to stay in Atlanta because of existing relationships you have. I’ve done something similar. My family is a short four (five if my mother is driving) hours away. I’m a Midwestern girl through and through ;)

@ Sam: This is exactly what I was saying. When you can do work anywhere, it’s interesting to me why people will choose certain places to live. I wonder what about Nashville’s offerings makes you stay? Is it the street life? The networking contacts? The third-places?

@ David: Fantastic point. I certainly chose Madison for all of those reasons. And while I understand your point regarding web being the new geography, I think that we are increasingly looking for great places to live because we strive to have hyper-local experiences. Information is global, and certainly web based, but geography I see, in terms of interaction and engagement, as remaining local. Certainly I can build relationships on the web, but how I interact with my city and how that city supports me is a big determinant of my success. Agree? Disagree?

The term geography can be defined in many ways. From cultural and physical geographies to the emerging geographies of the net. In the choices we make that define our life path (job, location..), each geography carries a different weight. For instance, I satiated my need for a hyper-local experience this morning by walking out my front-door to the farmer’s market. I then spent the rest of the morning collaborating with colleagues from around the world on various projects. It is the combination of these experiences (and geographic realms) that we find in real life, second life and other non-physical geographies, where we fulfill the mix of ingredients that are needed for happiness.

That’s a great clarification, David. I love how you’ve described the different geographies and that each carries it’s own weight. I think one of the points I was trying to get across in the post- perhaps unsuccessfully- is that the geography of place, the real-world-go-to-the-farmers-market-in-the-morning place, is increasingly carrying a heavier weight in a our decisions regarding everything- especially work and oftentimes relationships. If we have a job that requires us to be in the office, we oftentimes look for a place to live before the job, and especially if we are able to work from anywhere, it becomes increasingly interesting to see how people choose those places and decide to stay!

I purposefully moved to Seattle-land. In the hundreds of cities I’ve been to (mostly for work…), only two cities have ever given me energy: Madison and Seattle (I lived in Madison for about seven years).

I’m at the point in my life where the place that I live has a lot more to do with my decision-making. I perfectly understand the need to be close to family; I don’t have that consideration as my family is spread out all over the place.

Combine place with the ability to work remotely or independently via the Internet and knowledge workers now have a lot of choices.

And, by the way, as one who lived in Madison, what Rebecca so eloquently describes as Madison is spot on.

Thanks, Scot! My extended family is spread out all over too- I like that because then I have good places to vacation! ;) I wonder how you can define “energy,” because I think that’s an accurate description of a great city to live, but I wonder if it’s different to you than me?

As creative class knowledge workers, we do have a lot of choices, and I think it’s time to give back to the cities that give us energy. I wonder does anyone do anything to keep their city a “cool” place to be?

I love Madison as much as you do and reading this post was like reading my own diary. The reason I first moved down there was a relationship, then that ended and a little while later I had a cause to go back to my hometown, so I moved back home to Green Bay. I had the full intention of coming back to Madison and I knew a little time away would really crystallize my feelings about the city.

It has.

To me, Madison is just the biggest city I can still feel at home in. I needed to live in a town with a thriving arts scene and that certainly isn’t Green Bay. Though there wasn’t much of a comedy scene when I first came to Madison, I think I’ve been building one and I already know what’s been built is among the best in the nation. I’ve been to other cities that are supposed to be better for comedy and they just aren’t. Everybody is against one another, but not in Madison where one comic sees another comic having success as a good thing.

August 15th I am back and this time I’ll be living alone and in the middle of town. Like you did, I’ll be fully embracing it and after reading his post, I can’t say I am worried about what it will give back to me.

I’m glad you liked my description, Nick! I was just discussing what a powerful place Madison is. It’s hard to pick out the specifics, but it’s truly a great place to be. In my Gen Y leadership post, I talked some about how competitors need to be partners nowadays and I think that’s a big reason why Madison feels so friendly- everyone tries to help each other out. I know Madison is surely looking forward to having Wisconsin’s Funniest Comedian back in town! ;)

Great post. Where you live can make all the difference.

I recently moved to the suburbs of Chicago to be closer to family, and, in my case, work did come as a second consideration.

What gets me is that I always feel the place I am currently is “the best.” While living in San Francisco, I felt it was special because of restaurants and nice produce selection. Now, back in Illinois, I am discovering all these great restuarants and supermakerts that slipped my attention before.

Yes, there are special things about cities (it is harder to find sushi in the Midwest than in San Francisco), but I suspect some of the reasons we choose a place are invented self-justifications. So make sure the reason is really true–like having family near by or enjoying going to a sports team’s games.

Presh, I find the same when I travel. I love the places I go so much and I think wow! maybe I should move here! But then I get home and am happy to be home. I also find it interesting that you’ve concentrated on food (supermarkets and restaurants) to make a place special. Food is such a basic thing that we all connect over. The restaurants, supermarkets and farmers markets here in Madison certainly have a huge effect on the quality of the city. I agree we need to evaluate our decisions on why we live where we do. Place is your foundation to everything else.

Last year, at the age of 41, this DC-area native sold her house and moved to Madison, after evaluating a number of northeastern and midwestern cities. Neither my partner nor I had employment in Madison, but we were seeking a better quality of life. We found more of that than we’d dreamed of, and the jobs too.

I know we are fortunate to be able to make such a big change at this time in our lives. But I also know a lot of people who envied us, though they could have made the leap themselves, if they /really/ wanted to. Don’t delay — jobs, economy, so many factors can wreak havoc on your dreams. If you can do it, take the chance!

[…] Modite Madison defines who I am. I live here because it shows me where I was, who I am, and where I will go. There is much discussion on the influence of Generation Y and Generation X on the workforce, but attention is increasingly being shined on the power of place. Two-thirds of college-educated young adults 25-34, in fact, say they will pick a place to live first. Work comes second. […]

How great you were able to find a place to call “home”. That in itself is a reason to celebrate. My parents lived within 50 miles of their extended families. In todays world, we are lucky to live within a 1,000 miles of family. Thank goodness for technology that allows us to remain close to our families and friends, no matter how far away we are.

Interestingly enough, I’m engaged in an internal debate on this topic now…. I have a location-independent job whereby I travel constantly and visit my HQ in California one per quarter. When I took the job my company asked me to move to Chicago, though they initially offered Chicago or Dallas. I’ve struggled for a year to fall in love with Chicago, but am inching closer to moving to Austin. Your post might have just ‘sealed the deal’ helping me realize I’m not 100% crazy for not wanting to live in Chicago.

[…] I started a new job on Wednesday. At 23 years old, I am now the Executive Director of a young professional organization whose mission is to attract and retain young talent and leadership in my area in order to contribute to the regions’ economic, civic, social, and public policy futures. Can’t get more Gen-Y Princess than that. […]

[…] In his book, The Rise of the Creative Class, Richard Florida argues that “weak ties are critical to the creative environment of a city or region because they allow for rapid entry of new people and rapid absorption of new ideas and are thus critical to the creative process.” We even choose where we live, in part, by how easy it is for us to maintain our quasi-anonymous lifestyle. […]

Rebecca,

I just discovered your blog and I love this post. This is exactly the place I’m in right now.

I live in Reno, NV. I moved here from Las Vegas six years ago to be with my (now) husband. At the time, I thought we would stay here until he completed his degree, then move back to LV or another major city. Then I got a great job and met some wonderful friends here and decided it wasn’t so bad. A few months ago I was walking my dogs at a park near my house. It was dawn, the grass was dewey, the sunlight speckled over the sierras and a flock of quail scattered from the bushes. I realized this beautiful place is my home and I never want to live anywhere else.

When people hear Reno, they think of Reno 911! and other negative stereotypes about this place, but the residents know of the beauty, the amazing events, the culture, the community pride, the quality of life.

Since then, I’ve been getting involved in the community in any and every way I can. I’m a junkie, high on making a difference. I love it.

Thank you.

[…] Big Brother and I talked a couple weeks ago perched atop Bascom Hill, the steepest hill in Madison, and I wore my steepest heels. The sun was bright with the resigned smile it holds between summer and fall, and I held on to the edge of my wrap dress, dangerously flirting with the wind. Big Brother stood simply, calmly. […]

[…] Hercules and I recently visited Janet, the Psychic. The Psychic Gallery has bright red carpets, a strange mix of leather couches and plastic lawn chairs, and the fee is $35 to get your palm read. She also offers tarot card readings and full on what-is-your-future readings sans the crystal ball. The entire atmosphere screams rip-off, and it is located a short block from the State Capitol. Only in Madison. […]

[…] Big Brother likes to keep such things hush-hush, and recommends that I don’t date anyone in my organization. An odd bit of advice, because our membership is made up of young professionals in Madison, and the ones that aren’t part of my organization, well, it’s my job to recruit them. That pretty much cuts out, oh, I don’t know, every good-looking young bachelor in the city. Every young, single, and eligible man in Madison is off-limits. It’s an impossible situation. […]

[…] I invite the naysayers to come and spend time with the young leaders in my community and tell me I’m wrong. Tell me that the resilience and passion and willingness to do whatever it takes, that the gut-wrenching work of pushing forward against all odds, is not occurring every day, every hour, in the lives of these young professionals. Because I promise it is. We are laid off, or dumped, or abused, or hate our jobs, or are involved in shootings, war, or tragedy, and still we show up. We have great ideas. We contribute. We’re the last to leave. We’re insanely passionate. […]

[…] I don’t have a special skill set to be a leader. I’ve never taken leadership classes, and while I’ve been in positions of leadership since high school, I don’t think this makes me more qualified to be one now. It’s just, I can’t imagine doing anything else. Like when I visited Madison to decide on where I would attend school, I felt in my bones that this was the right place to be. […]

Fantastic post! My family moved to Florida when I was 6, and I’ve never left. My wife is a 3rd generation (which is almost UNHEARD of) Tampa native, on both her Cuban and Sicilian sides. We’ve started a family here in St. Petersburg, which sounds a lot like Madison. With all our family within an hour’s drive, I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else, except possibly overseas.

Rebecca-
In New Orleans, people talk about themselves and the city as though its a romantic relationship we’re all involved it which ranges from supportive to sensual to abusive but is always present in everyone’s life. Being hopelessly, head-over heals in love with this city myself (and putting it sometimes painfully above relationships or career opportunities elsewhere) and being in the midst of this recovery/renaissance, I think a lot about the importance of place. When you are happy where you are you so much more produce. When you don’t have to spend that energy surviving or distracting yourself, but can simply be, change and creativity, as well as the ability to reach out and connect with others abound. Is there a statistic for how that 2/3 number has changed over the last decade or 20 years? Is that a substantial increase? What connection does it have with the rebirth of so many urban centers?

I cannot agree more with this. Place for me is so incredibly important. For me, Los Angeles is home and where my heart lives. I fell in love before I even came to the city and when I did it was love at first sight. For one the weather is perfect, I want to live in a place where everyday is beautiful warm sunshine so I never have to feel the cold painful hell that is snow and winter that I lived in for 18 hellish years. I love the palm trees, the diversity of people and businesses, Hollywood and the industry (TV is my life-proudly), the beautiful architecture, the various nature on all sides including the wonderful ocean and most of all, the sense that anything is possible, the place where dreams come true and creativity shines in every direction as bright as the rays of the sun. Yes I put place ahead of work and relationship but thankfully my business is here and there are plenty of people around but I must find the ones that live here to interact with face to face. I want to give back to my community in every way I can through volunteering, getting involved politically and working towards possible solutions to the problems we face. Most of all I want to help make my city be the best LA it can be, to make every part beautiful.

I could never permanently leave Los Angeles. It’s like cutting my heart or brain or other important organ away. It’s my home, I’ve never felt more at home there than anyplace else. It makes me smile, it makes me happy (so much gratitude to my city) and I want to live here forever.

Now, why do you live there in the first place? How did you choose? Do you put place before work? Relationships? What are you going to do to give back? How can you, or do you, contribute to your city? Who or what keeps you there?

In journalism school, it was always strongly impressed upon us that in order to “get to the big leagues,” it was necessary to move to a small podunk town, work as a reporter at the local newspaper in order to “pay your dues” and constantly work your way up the chain. Well, as a late 20-something, I followed such advice and moved from a diverse, metropolitan city in the Northeast to a much smaller, very conservative town in Florida, leaving behind a relationship, friends, and family to “take the plunge.” Now, a year later, I question if I made the right choice. Why? Because as we know now, the Internet has changed the media landscape as we know it. Layoffs are biting the industry, journalism openings are scarce and no one seems to be hiring. I know i should just be thankful I have a job, period, but to add to this dialogue (rather tardily, I know) I would have definitely thought much harder about “place” as it factored into my own personal happiness and fulfillment before I jumped headfirst into something just for the sake of “career.” Some people can completely blend in to their new living habitats but I guess for others like me, quality of location and environment matter just as much as the job you decide to accept.

This is a really fantastic article. The place where you live is very important. It affects your relationships, your work environment, how much money you spend, and also your happiness. If you’re not happy with where you live, it’s going to have an effect on many other parts of your life.

I feel the same way about Austin that you feel about Madison. I’ve lived all over the country, too. Minneapolis, Seattle, Portland… There’s no place like home, I guess.

I am in the process of making a difficult decision regarding job versus city. I have lived in Madison for 9 years and love it here. However, I currently have a job that I don’t enjoy at all, in a way that I get sick to my stomach having to go to work. I don’t see it getting better because it’s pretty dead-end and despite what projects I take on and things I accomplish, I am never happy. I should say that I am also in a career that can’t be found just anywhere–it’s a specialized job in healthcare with around 15,000 professionals nationally.

Recently, I was given the opportunity to pursue the job of my dreams. I know this is ‘the job of my dreams’ because I spent some time there during grad school as an intern, and was invited back for a full-time position. Of course, the job is in a less-desirable city. I am young so this would be a great career move that could potentially launch my future to go wherever I want it to go. Despite knowing all this, I am still torn and don’t want to leave. Am I just trying to stay within my comfort zone or is this really where I am destine to live? How on Earth do I know?

well currently I live in Laurel Maryland. I like it because it’s close to Baltimore and Washington DC and there are a lot of opportunities & things to do. The problem I’m facing is that I can’t afford to live here unless I get a better job. I’m working so much right now that I don’t have time to participate in all the fun things that are available.

So “career” seems to be defining place instead of the other way around, at least for me. Although I would love to choose a place and have career work out great.

I just moved to New York from Mississippi. I love Mississippi, but the opportunities just weren’t there. Sure, it’s nice to be able to work for yourself and create your own opportunities, but a solid foundation (and resources) have to be available &I just didn’t have that back home. I sure miss the place, but I feel like a better person for making the move. I’m experiencing a total change of lifestlye with my change of surroundings and the learning process is priceless… it’s a reawaken of the senses if you will. For me moving was the best move.

Wow, your writing is really great in this one!

I’m just considering moving to Quito, Ecuador, from New York City with most of my friends and family telling me to stay in New York for the brilliant networking and career opportunities, totally missing the fact that quality of life is very low, and that I don’t want to live in New York City anymore. 

I pick my place based on lifestyle. Can I ride my bike?  Can I eat well? Can I go to a gym daily? Can I see the same group of friends consistently, or is everyone too tired to commute to see me? 

It’s okay, I think, to want to live in a place, even if it doesn’t make sense to anyone else. 

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