News story published on 5/12/2006

Speaker warns against complacency

By JOHN MORGAN
Published in the Star-Tribune

When Howard Benson spoke at the first Outlook Forum in 1996, he said some things that shook business and government leaders in the state and led to the creation of the Wyoming Business Council.

"Wyoming, I don't think you are hungry enough for economic development!" Benson said in 1996.

Returning to the Outlook 2006 Forum in Casper on Tuesday, Benson said the state has made very good progress at keeping things moving, but cautioned against settling into that comfortable sense of complacency again.

"Things are really good in Wyoming for a lot of people, but not everybody," Benson said. "Wyoming reminds me of the type of people we all know who were born on third base, but act like they hit a triple. Too many people in this state make just getting by into a high art."

Benson said living in Wyoming shouldn't be so hard.

"Local communities can provide an energy boom of their own that's not minerals-based," he said. "These communities can swim against the tide of complacency to seek balance and diversification in their local communities by setting measurable goals and getting about doing them."

Benson said that Wyoming's long-term outlook seems sustainable, so long as the state can address its shortage of an available work force.

"Leadership is the antidote to a complacent community," he said. "Leaders set themselves up to be measurable and accountable to themselves. It's good to keep that fuse lit and stay focused."

Benson is the president of Atlanta-based National Community Development Services. The forum was sponsored by the Wyoming Business Alliance and the Wyoming Heritage Foundation.