I’ve had some 36 years of local government experience, with more than 32 years of it in Uwchlan Township, Pennsylvania. When I’m asked for advice on what I have learned during my career and if any of it is entertaining and humorous, I immediately think, “There isn’t anything funny about this job.” This, from a manager who was a real optimist back in 1978, when I started as a management intern at Derry Township (Hershey, Pennsylvania).

Sweet and Sour

I must say that over the years, the management profession can wear on you as all managers must plan for potential negative outcomes in any given situation and deal with the outcomes when they occur. This practice naturally can turn you into a pessimist.

I’m surprised by my colleagues who, when leaving the profession, say how much they have liked specific aspects of their positions, along with the people with whom they have worked. When you’re in the real trenches of local government where residents can actually reach out and touch you, you get to see some bad aspects of human behavior.

I’m not going to focus on the standard “does the good outweigh the bad” question as it relates to management. Managers probably have heard or tried to answer it before. I will say, however, that older managers like me do soldier on, do keep the faith, and do persevere, these being more important at times than talent, intelligence, or education.

One piece of advice, however, is to never burn a bridge, because you don’t know when you’ll meet and perhaps need the person who is on the other side. Also, count your blessings. I have a great family, including my wife and three kids, and my management jobs have been truly rewarding during the past 36 years.

Recalling Memorable Complaints

At times, it is remarkable what people will call or complain about to a manager and this is a good topic of conversation with my colleagues. Here are a few complaints I’ve encountered:

After a somewhat lengthy rain event, one resident who was a tennis player called to complain that worms had come out of their holes and had crawled up onto the tennis courts in a sufficient number so that it prevented play at a particular community court one day.

The player felt that township personnel should come to the court, clean off the worms, and then put little fences around the courts to prevent this from ever occurring again. Even the board of supervisors couldn’t believe the resident’s idea.

Another time a resident, who the township staff knew was in complete control of his faculties, claimed he saw a goat boy running down one of the main state roadways. Seriously, he related the half boy, half goat story but, unfortunately for the resident, police couldn’t find him.

And yet another resident many years ago complained that the government was bombarding his home with microwaves and radioactive materials so they could harass him and listen in on all his conversations. Perhaps it was a foreshadowing of today’s NSA activities?

We’ve been told—not asked—by our residents that we have to come out and remove mice from basements or bats from attics; asked how to bury a dead horse; and been told our snow plows were going so fast that the snow coming off the end of the barrel knocked down people while they were walking on the sidewalk. We’ve even had residents throw their snow shovels at township trucks.

These few examples show you that sometimes we do hear and see it all at the local government level. It’s been an interesting and at times incredible ride for me. After all, nurturing a community to maturity is a lot like raising teenagers. Just like them, when they graduate, get a good job and finally pay for your dinner, it makes it all worthwhile.

It’s similar to staying the course until success is achieved on a large community project that is difficult and time-consuming, just like the one we most recently completed—the widening of Route 100 in Exton, Pennsylvania, to six lanes. Believe it or not, it took 15 years to complete, from the initial kick-off meeting to the bid letting in December 2013.