ABSTRACT
Community leaders often approach the community development process with a “let’s get started” mentality. “We know what’s wrong. Why delay getting started? We have talked about this for years; that’s all we do is talk.” They believe that an assessment is not needed to decide when to begin implementing changes in their community. They are anxious to get started and usually want to begin by creating a strategic plan or implementing some very specific initiatives. These often address the most visible of problems, to improve the community. While they may be correct, sometimes they may not be. Whether or not their actions will result in positive change is another matter.
