Now that you are a grown-up, how often do you yearn for the past — the days when you didn’t have to make any tough decisions, serve as a chauffer, or make a house payment every month.
Somewhere along the line, there was a monumental shift in your understanding of what it means to be “grown up.”
When we’re young, we’re told some things are only for grown-ups. We’re told that we’ll understand when we’re older.
At other times, like when we’re out for a family dinner at a nice restaurant, we’re instructed to be on our best behavior and act like a grown-up. Our parents beam with pride at certain life events (grade school graduations, prom, etc.), commenting on how grown-up we look.
No wonder people get so confused and can’t agree on a singular definition.
Still, at some point — most likely unconsciously — we made the decision of what it meant to be a grown up. Perhaps that’s when we truly became grown-ups.
In the wind energy industry, we hear those words thrown around a lot — too often, really. It’s a favorite tactic of our detractors, used they can’t come up with a logical, coherent argument against wind energy.
The wind energy industry needs to grow up! We’ve spoon-fed them for too long!
It’s sometimes difficult to ignore this kind of senseless rhetoric — especially considering the hefty political and financial weight thrown it carries.
When the wind energy industry was in its infancy, it was easy for our opponents to dismiss wind as novel, fleeting, or even “cute.”
But as wind began to mature, their faces began to redden and their brows began to glisten with sweat. Cockiness gave way to concern. Simple dismissal gave way to baseless lies and schoolyard taunts.
But the person who shouts the loudest is not always the one who is right.
As an industry, let’s not base decisions about our own identity on the childish tactics of those who consider themselves to be the real grown-ups. After all, we’ve all been through this before.
Thanks for reading,
