Walking the Walkabout

The journey of transformation is a long, slow process. My experience in Willamina is certainly confirming that.

With a great burst of energy, we launched Innovate Willamina a few years back. But, as the months rolled on, we could not sustain the community energy, and people began to fall off, one at a time.

But each month, more of their new internet network is being built. Each month money is going into their Innovation Fund. You cannot have an innovation culture without the infrastructure of innovation. And that has to be build, foot by foot.

But the community development work to build this new future is exhausting. So Dave and I decided to take a step back. No more meetings in which we talking.

We decided that we are simply going to walk. Each week, take a neighborhood and do a "walkabout". When we bump into people, we talk with them. If no one is at home, we simply leave information about Willamina Together and the stories of innovation on their door knobs.

The story is being made. We are just going out and sharing the story.

We came back from our first walkabout energized. We plan to go out weekly.

Each time, we will be inviting others to join us. A lunch time stroll through the neighborhoods. A time to meet others, share our story and practice community.

Walkabout is an Australian term with an intriguing meaning: