By Ken Pulskamp

The nobility of public service. It’s not a commonly heard phrase these days.

When candidates run for public office, they regularly play up the ineptitude of public servants, raging about government waste. People are told this each and every election cycle by virtually every candidate.

It is one of the few topics upon which politicians all agree. When was the last time you heard a politician, either an incumbent or one who wants to run for office, rallying their supporters about how great government and government employees are?

I Beg to Differ

My experience after almost four decades in local government is profoundly different. I have met hundreds and hundreds of bright, creative people with strong work ethics and hearts of gold. I hold my head high and am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with them.

I also am proud of my work, my accomplishments, and, more importantly, the collective work and accomplishments of my fellow public servants. At a time when our future as a nation and our credibility in the world are dependent upon winning over hearts and minds, we need the best people in public service.

We should be proud of and promote our outstanding track record. Think about it: Historically, government has achieved a tremendous amount, and government provides everyday services and programs upon which people depend.

It was government that won World War II, created national parks, brought about Social Security, and put men on the moon. Government built the interstate highway system, the public education system, the postal system, and the public transportation system. Government polices our communities, builds our sewer treatment systems, and ensures that our food is safe to eat.

Regionally, government has built parks and pools, roads and recreation centers, and preserved beautiful land from development. The reality is this: Most government programs are successful most of the time.

By and large, the public sector does a great job of providing clean water to drink, keeping the peace, reducing workplace injuries, ensuring aircraft safety, feeding the hungry, putting out fires, protecting consumers, and on and on and on.

Testing One’s Mettle

One of my most gratifying experiences in public service occurred in 1994, when the Northridge earthquake devastated Santa Clarita where I was working at the time.

The roads in and out of Santa Clarita were destroyed. Homes were demolished. We had deaths, injuries, oil spills, and fires. We had more than $27 million in damage just to city-owned facilities.

To make matters worse, city hall was red-tagged. Our government organization was relocated to a parking lot under canopies and tents to stay out of the January rains.

A natural disaster really tests one’s mettle. In the aftermath of the quake, I found myself drawing on my total being—my experience; my relationships; my knowledge; my spiritual, physical, and emotional well-being; my education; my patience; and my leadership.

All levels of government were involved in the aftermath of the earthquake—from our own city employees to the National Guard. I am proud to say that my city filled a leadership void and stepped up to take our community through the disaster and onto a successful recovery.

I never thought that working 20-hour days, day after day, could bring such a sense of fulfillment. We were doing what the community wanted and needed and they let us know how much they appreciated it. This experience brought out the best in public service, and it brought out the best in me. I think it does this with each community and each manager who must be part of an emergency situation.

No Bed of Roses

Public service is noble, but it’s also hard. It has its ups and downs like any profession. After all, there is a reason why it’s called work. But if you want to make a difference in this world, in your communities, then public service is absolutely the place where you can truly affect great change.

It won’t be a bed of roses. Residents are diverse and they seldom agree on anything. I have been blamed for building a school right next to a house and blamed for having the same school too far from houses.

That was followed by a complaint that there aren’t enough schools and that they create nothing but traffic. Never mind the fact that cities have nothing to do with the placement of schools.

I have been blamed that there aren’t enough police and then blamed that there are police all over the place writing tickets to the wrong people. I have been blamed that there aren’t enough parks and then blamed because all the city does is build parks while completely ignoring the needs of the seniors.

I was blamed because the skate park was too small, and then while building the largest skate park in California, I received complaints about having to close the old one for six months during construction.

I got complaints for building a road and then complaints for temporarily closing the same road. If I had an ice cream festival where the entire community got free ice cream, surely I would receive complaints from the lactose intolerant.

The point of all this is not to disparage people. On the contrary, the residents managers serve should be listened to and treated with the utmost respect in their decision making.

No matter how demanding they are, remember that they are dependent upon you for their public safety and much of their quality of life. There really aren’t many higher honors than protecting a great quality of life for real people.

It’s hard. It’s complicated. It’s often seemingly impossible. That’s what keeps it interesting and rewarding for an entire career.

The original version of this article was presented at the annual conference of the Municipal Management Association of Southern California in October 2015.