A Man on a Mission

Bluffton Today Column, December 15

His stature is imposing.

His posture alone reflects his years as a Citadel man.

He is a man that every resident of Bluffton should meet.

He’ll tell you that he is a Southern boy and that some of us will probably only understand 80% of what he says … we’ll struggle through his dialect for the other 20%.

He has a great sense of humor. When I asked him if I could write about him this week he replied, with a smile, “Have at it girl.”

He has an enormous job ahead of him.

He is Bill Workman, Bluffton Town Manager.

I had the opportunity to hear Bill speak earlier this week on the topic of leadership. As any true leader would, he credits others for helping to define his philosophy on leadership.

He believes that somebody has to call a meeting – and they are heroes. For Bill, Bob Dylan said it best, “I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.”

Bill will tell you that leaders are responsible for self and responsible for others and he quotes Henry Miller, “The ordinary man is involved in action, the hero acts. An immense difference.”

And, Bill will tell you that to be effective leaders, we must: create and maintain a sense of community, get along, listen to each other, create a sense of urgency, be courageous, be committed, and seize opportunity to impact our destiny.

The bottom line is that the leaders of our community, Bill included, want and appreciate our input. But, they also want us to be diligent in our research of issues, and drawn conclusions from the facts.

Bill told a great Jerry Clower story during his presentation, which I find incredibly relevant to Bluffton. (Clower is a comedian dubbed “The Mouth of the South” – this Northerner, of course, had never heard of him until this week.)

It seems that Uncle Versies learned that the church was fixin’ to spend some money. So, Uncle Versies headed over to the church to hear what they had to say. The church leader declared to the congregation “we need to spend the money on buying the church a new chandelier.” Uncle Versies stood up to state his objections and said …

First, why would we buy a chandelier when I reckon that no one in this congregation can even spell chandelier.

Second, if we were to get a chandelier I am quite certain that none of us would even know how to play it.

And third, why are we talking about spending all this money on a new chandelier when what we really need are some lights in the church sanctuary?


It is no secret that Bluffton is growing by leaps and bounds. It is also no secret that our residents are largely apathetic and reluctant to be involved in the process of our town’s evolution. We hear and read a lot of anonymous criticism, but when it is time to step up to the plate – attend a meeting, or vote – our numbers are dismal.

Bill’s philosophy on the growth of Bluffton and how to achieve sustainability is inspiring. But, rather than let you read it here I challenge you to attend a Town Council meeting, a Planning Commission meeting, a Historical Preservation meeting, a Hospitality Tax meeting and learn first hand how our Town Manager and our town officials are working toward a better Bluffton.

When asked why a 66 year old man would want to commit to this undertaking in Bluffton, Bill quotes his wife who says, “I married you for better or for worse, but not for lunch.” Bill’s smile fades to stoic as he continues, “I like to see a good plan come together. This is an adventure – vision plus action equals adventure. I want to be part of the adventure.