By Dr. J. David Jackson

Every day we decide, consciously or unconsciously what we are going to do, based on information we believe is true. As an example, would your actions change if you were supplied inside information that suggested Water Street would become the next Beale Street (Memphis’s trendy jazz street) and new entertainment businesses would be incented to guarantee success?

If you step back and take a big picture view of Selma, it’s perplexing why there is so much potential that is unrealized and unrecognized.

All of the foundational pieces are in place for a great city: natural resources, history, and people. Is it possible that Selma could be a victim of the pain and pleasure cycle? Could it be that some individuals are experiencing pleasure (benefits) by supplying self-serving information that masks the true potential of this wonderful city?

In the information age we live in, we are literally on overload with facts from television, radio, print material and the Internet. Information is power.  How do you sort the facts from fiction?

Great leaders learn how to cut through the plethora of information to get to the absolute facts needed to act on possibilities and to understand when its right to change.

One criterion that I have seen them use is, “change will only take place when the pain of a certain event exceeds the pleasure.”

How many times have you seen an innocent person hurt because someone has misinformed them who has ulterior motives and gains at the expense of someone else’s pain?

Take Bernie Madoff the jilted financer and others like him who bilk people for millions, who change only when exposure brings pain. Think about the 84-year-old individual I know who recently lost his home when self-serving suppliers convinced him about winning a jackpot if he contributed his entire pension payment every month.

An interesting attribute of the pain and pleasure cycle is generally a minority will gain while a majority will lose.

From a leadership perspective think about this vision for Selma; the economy is thriving, a top-ranked education system is in place, and people are experiencing ma  ximum social harmony. Who would experience pleasure or benefit and who would experience pain?

The vision for Selma can be achieved when you diligently seek the right information to answer this question. You will then establish the basis for positive breakthroughs by sorting the facts from fiction.