It turns out many young adults are sticking around the big cities longer than before. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, young folks have historically descended upon the country’s largest metropolitan areas “to build careers before taking their talent and spending power elsewhere to raise families.” Now, thanks to an overreaching government induced recession, that trend is slowing dramatically and many people are “stuck” in the big cities.
As one Los Angeles writer put it, it’s like the Eagles’ “Hotel California.” 
So, why is it that young adults can check-out any time they like but never leave? Well, for a variety of reasons, including the obvious: well-paying jobs are usually easier to come by in bigger cities.
And this creates quite a conundrum for free-market organizations outside of major metropolitan areas: finding talent. Specifically, the once steady flow of liberty-minded talent coming out of Washington, DC has slowed a bit.
Case in point, I talk to candidates everyday who are hesitant to leave our nation’s capital. They recognize that opportunities are more plentiful there, and they are nervous to move to a place with only one or two free-market options.
So, what’s a state-based think tank to do in order to maximize talent options? Hire virtually!
You know I’m a fan of remote work, and this is just one more opportunity to suggest it as a beneficial option.
In fact, one of my state-based clients recently hired an accomplished policy director who will likely remain in the DC metro area and travel to the state as needed.
It was a win-win situation that required only entrepreneurial thinking, phone lines, computers, and occasional plane tickets. Not to mention, the state-based group gets more DC exposure – a bonus!
Of course, remote work won’t work for every role; but it’s certainly something to consider. More and more of my clients are jumping on the remote train, and all of them seem pleased with the results.
So, I say…
Welcome to the Hotel California
It’s a lovely place with remote working space.
There’s plenty of room at the Hotel California
Anytime of year you can work from anywhere.
