If You Love Your City So Much, Why Don’t You Marry It? (Maybe You Should)

I fell in love with Iowa City, my city, in 2013. I moved here in 2009, but it wasn’t until four years later that the love affair began. I can’t pinpoint the exact moment, but I can describe the feeling. 

Think about sitting at a restaurant. Maybe a patio. You’re with someone you love. There’s a slight breeze, it’s warm and it smells sweet, like flowers. The restaurant is busy but not crowded. Then your food comes. It’s perfect. Every bite is satisfying. Every grain of salt, perfectly placed. Every spear of asparagus, perfectly blanched. Every cocktail, perfectly mixed. You’re all laughing — in fact, your cheeks hurt a little. You get the picture. You’ve been there.

Now, think about the feeling you get AFTER that meal. When you get in the car, and take a deep breath. You look over at the person next to you, and you smile. You’re perfectly content. You’re fulfilled (and full), basking in the afterglow of a truly perfect evening. 

When I fell in love with Iowa City, my day-to-day life here started to embody that moment: I’m satisfied. I’m fulfilled. I’m surrounded by loved ones. I feel really, really lucky.

And I want everyone — Every. Single. Person. — to fall in love with their city this way.

What I’m describing isn’t just hometown pride. It’s bigger than that, and cities who help their residents cultivate this feeling are setting themselves up for long-term success. Gallup says that cities with higher levels of emotional engagement in their citizens almost always have higher economic vitality. So, this is really important stuff. 

In fact, it’s important enough that in March 2011, residents of Durham, North Carolina, married their city. More than 2,000 residents showed up to pledge their love to their home. How cool is that? Aside from being a neat idea, imagine how much more involved and engaged those people were. Cities need to be finding ways to “marry” their citizens all the time. Make it a love affair from the second they move in, and it’ll always be happily ever after.

People fall in love with cities for many different reasons, and the reasons are all very personal. A few of mine? I love the colorful storefronts downtown. I love seeing friends and colleagues at the grocery store. I love our food scene, our walkability, and our rural/urban beauty. For some people, it’s a specific shop, or a bike trail, or a museum. Your list almost certainly looks different than mine. Your city looks different than mine. That’s a good thing. The point is, these personal reasons are unique ingredients that, when combined, create a universally desired feeling. The feeling is what matters. 

And if you want the world to know how good it feels to live in your city, you need to tell the whole world about the ingredients you have to offer — and invite them to come enjoy a sample. 

Find the things that make your city special. Ask your people. They’ll tell you, and they’ll fall even deeper in love. And when you share the love, other people will notice — outsiders, people who’ve left, graduating college students — they’ll see it and feel it and WANT it. 

There are millions of people out there living in big, expensive, anonymous cities they feel no connection to. They’re feeling unsatisfied and restless. They’re wondering how it feels to love and be loved by a city. They’re wondering if there’s a place out there they could fall in love with. 

Imagine if you could attract them with this type of messaging. You can, and you will. And they’ll stay, and they’ll engage, and the ripple effect will benefit and grow your city for generations. 

And someday soon, when you’re sitting on a restaurant patio on a breezy, perfect evening, you might notice them at the next table, laughing and eating, satisfied and fulfilled and joyful. And you’ll smile, because you know exactly how they feel.  

Want to learn more about attracting qualified talent to your city? Shoot us an email and let’s talk.