Colin Plant - he is a role model for positive leadership in local government

In June of 2014, a friend suggested I meet Colin Plant who had decided to run for Saanich council. Over the last 20 years, I have sat down with a lot of people considering running for local government and talked with them about what it takes to win. Some have been good, most alright, a few bad and one actually rather scary. I looked at Colin's website and based on that I was expecting to meet another ok candidate.

I started our coffee with some very blunt comments that pushed him to explain why anyone should care about him being elected. Colin handled it well and quickly showed me that he has some very important virtues for anyone elected to a council. His core character is why he has been one of the best first-term councillors I have ever seen

Colin Listens
He really listens. He takes in what he hears and really considers it. Some people can act like they are listening and do all the right head movements but Colin really listens.

Colin not only listens to advice he also seeks it out. He considers the advice he receives and then decides for himself how to use it. As an example, in this election, I suggested he use his mornings to meet the public at various coffee shops in Saanich. He took this advice as a starting point and then decided he would invite his competition to join him at them. I told him that politically this may not a good idea, he heard what I had to say but trusted his vision would work. He was right.

Being a new councillor, Colin sought out experienced municipal elected officials to ask them about the process of local governance. He knew he needed to listen to learn.

Colin is Positive
Colin is someone that looks for a positive way forward. He has no time for the bad-mouthing of others. He believes a win-win solution something one should always strive for.

Colin wants everyone to be treated with respect and even chides me when I get negative about people.

Colin does not dismiss people because their political views are not his. He does not dismiss people that get emotional and angry; he treats them all with respect.

Colin is a Leader
Saanich has had a council without any leadership but Colin has been able to bring some by finding ways to work with people on the council.

He is the sort of person that can bring a group of people together and get them to cooperatively work on a project. His has a soft leadership style that makes people want to help out. A leadership that is without a lot of ego. A leadership that lets others own their success.

There are two clear actions he took in this election that show this. He livestreamed each of the all-candidate meetings because he knew many people would want to watch from home. Inviting his competition to join him in his morning coffee chat tour of Saanich shows his collaborative leadership style.

Colin makes decisions based on evidence and not ideology.
Colin will show up at the homes of Saanich residents who have issues in order to better understand the issue on the ground. He reads all relevant information before coming to the council chamber and is ready with questions or comments. In fact, he reads it far enough in advance that he can seek his own information or data.

Colin has come up to speed on how local governance works very quickly; this was crucial in order for him to be comfortable making the decisions he was presented with.

Colin Cares
This man is not cynical or blase about the world. His empathy for people and their situations are simply a part of who he is.

Please vote for Colin Plant.
I helped Colin in 2014 and again this time around. I can not think of a better candidate running anywhere in this region.and ask you in his own words "Please vote for Colin Plant"