My Anti-Fluoridation Journal

About my journal:

I thought it might be a useful exercise to start logging my thoughts and my actions about my favourite causes. The first journal I would like to keep is on my participation in the struggle against the fluoridation of municipal drinking water. To make it more useful as a future reference tool I will be focusing on what worked, what made a difference,

May 5th, 2010, will always be an important day for me to remember. On that day the mayor and the different representatives of the 18 districts of Gatineau, Quebec, decided against fluoridation with a vote of 71 against fluoridation and 2 for fluoridation. What I and several people had done over a period of a few days just prior to the vote made all the difference in the world since before our involvement the majority of council members were for the proposal to fluoridate our drinking water for years to come. It also taught me many invaluable lessons which I will share in this ongoing journal since the formulas for social successes should be shared everywhere if we are to have any real social progress in this world. below are my lessons learned from my anti-fluoridation struggle.

Lessons Learned About Influencing Leaders and People in General:

1. People do not like the prefix "Anti". Regardless of all your good intentions, even if these intentions better people's lives in a significant way, people do not like the prefix "Anti". Regardless of this fact, "Anti" campaigns (such as anti-slavery, anti-racism...) do succeed but when every vote counts then we should all pay attention to this point.

2. Few people get involved, so make these few your special friends. Even though the majority of people may believe in your cause, only an infinitesimal minority will get involved or support you, even though this might be a critical matter for them. This does not mean to focus on contacting a great number of people. The quality of your campaign must still be your first consideration. Quality ultimately attracts quantity, but one must be patient and persistent.

3. The best way to reach people in a lasting way is with public speaking and direct one-on-one communications. It is not with emails, not with online chats, not with social networks.