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Picture a serene evening in Louisiana. A town hall meeting is in full swing as the mayor narrates the trials and triumphs of the community. The next morning’s headline magnifies the trials, but skips the triumphs, giving the impression that the mayor and council are doing nothing and leaving lawmakers feeling like the state needs to have more influence to make progress. I know too many of you are reading this and nodding in agreement, because it has happened to you, but how do you avoid it? If you’ve never heard me say this before, I’m going to give you a simple truth that will help you, so grab a pen, quote me, and post this on your bathroom mirror: If you don’t tell your own story, someone else will tell their version of your story for you. Let’s get one thing clear. Your story, your community’s narrative, is the bedrock of your advocacy. Each city, town, and village in Louisiana is a unique tapestry woven from a blend of history, culture, and individual experiences. Our uniqueness is our strength and narrating that distinctness accurately and compellingly can move mountains, or at least, turn heads in Baton Rouge, Washington D.C., and in your local communities. You not only have the authority to tell your own story, but you have a responsibility to do it. To effectively advocate for your community’s needs, you must become the storyteller-in-chief, a role which brings to mind an idiom that drives the work we do: find your voice, own your narrative, and captivate your audience. When you take control of your narrative, you can drive the conversation, influencing public perception and, most importantly, policy-making. In today’s 24-hour news cycle, the term “advocacy” takes on new significance. It’s no longer enough to simply exist as a city, town, or village in Louisiana; it’s vital to actively promote your narratives, your achievements, and your needs. Advocacy, in this context, is about carving out your own space in the vast expanse of information, ensuring your voice is heard. LMA provides a unified voice for our local governments, magnifying our influence on key issues impacting our communities. By aligning our interests, we can effect change at a higher level, affecting policies on infrastructure, taxation, and quality of life that are vital to our communities. With effective communication, the association becomes a powerful platform for advocacy, propelling the narratives of our members to the top of state government and into the halls of Congress. When it comes to persuading the higher powers, be it state or federal, to heed our communities’ needs, the proverbial pen is often mightier than the sword. However, wielding this mighty pen requires skill, strategy, and a story worth telling. With avenues like the Louisiana Municipal Review magazine, our weekly e-newsletter, From the Piney Woods to the Bayous podcast, and our social media channels, the LMA ensures our voices echo far and wide, resonating with the right ears. As our communities continue to evolve, so do our means of communication. In the past, our narratives were bound by ink and paper, relayed through newspapers and journals. Today, we have entered <strong>LMR</strong> | JUNE <strong>2023</strong> Page 17