I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jason Dorsey this morning in Roanoke about his work as Generation Y’s voice in communicating with older generations. His book - My Reality Check Bounced - is a wonderful read about how 20somethings can cash in on their real-world dreams.

Jason repeatedly mentioned how fantastic a city Roanoke is from the times he has visited. He lives in Austin, Texas and tells a story of how it grew from 100,000 in population in the 80s to now 700,000. It’s growth can be attributed to a number of things, but it is known for its information technology industry, music scene, University of Texas, entrepreneurial spirit and a destination for young adults.

Jason feels Roanoke is prime and ready for growth and it has many attributes young adults are looking for in a destination city - like outdoors, cost of living, beautiful setting, nice people, etc. He gave us some good ideas and thoughts on how to make this happen. We need ambassadors like Jason who carry the torch for us in other cities he is speaking. This perception from afar can go a long ways in promoting the region to young adults.   

Thanks for your good work Jason. All of you reading, get a copy of his book.