Leading With Joy
By Supervisor Joel Engardio
For Halloween, my staff had the idea to each wear a t-shirt representing the various cartoon character emotions from the classic Pixar movie Inside Out. There’s fear, anger, sadness, disgust — and of course, joy.
Yes, it takes all of those emotions to deal with the challenges facing San Francisco. What we feel depends on what we encounter on a given day.
There is a lot to fix in San Francisco and it can feel daunting. But we must recognize the joy in our city. There is plenty of it. Think of every gathering of your friends and family. Or how you feel when you experience the natural beauty, cuisine, and culture that defined San Francisco long before “doom loop” became a buzzword.
The problems in our city are real. So are the joyful things. We must keep that perspective. That’s why my supervisor newsletter will always feature something joyful and inspiring.
My newsletter is emailed to 25,000 people and I receive many replies after each edition. Most readers like the stories. But one or two angry readers will object to any positive article. They want my focus to be 100 percent on our troubles and problems. They demand I only write about the serious issues in our city because it’s frivolous to mention anything else.
I tell them I’m working on issues like crime and homelessness every day. That I’m focused on getting the basics right: safer streets, better schools, more housing, and vibrant small businesses. I say San Francisco’s best days are ahead if we’re willing to address our problems with equal doses of innovation and common sense.
But the energy it takes to fix things is not sustainable without hope. That’s why I believe we must always lead with joy.
As the city supervisor for the Sunset neighborhoods, I wore a t-shirt with the joy character to kick off a bike parade to the ocean.
Photo by Justin Katigbak/SF Standard
The eyes of the world were on San Francisco during the APEC Summit, which brought President Biden and many global leaders to our city. I hosted a “Summit to Sunset” to show the international media that we are more joy than doom loop.
I had planned a bike ride from Golden Gate Park to the Great Highway with a happy hour, live music, and a sunset viewing party. We had more than 500 RSVPs for the ride, but a rainstorm got in the way.
As I waited in the rain and wondered if anyone would show up, I was amazed to see nearly 100 people gather for the ride. They wouldn’t let anything dampen their spirit of joy. This is what the world must know about San Francisco. We are resilient, we tackle challenges, and we shine.
When I brought the first-ever night market to the Sunset, it was more than a party. It made the street a safe place to gather and gave small businesses a boost — exactly what we need more of in San Francisco.
Public safety is my top priority because families need to feel safe if they are going to stay in San Francisco — and our city's future depends on keeping families here. More than 10,000 people filled Irving Street at the inaugural Sunset Night Market in September. They were hungry, both literally and figuratively, for good food and a fun experience shared with the community. They were 10,000 doom loop antidotes who reclaimed the narrative of our city.
Look for a return of the Sunset Night Market in the spring.
The path to San Francisco’s future seems to run through neighborhoods like the Sunset. The New York Times has mentioned it in several recent articles:
“The Outer Sunset has flourished while downtown struggles.”
“Thousands of people packed Irving Street for the inaugural Sunset Night Market, eating Asian delicacies and watching ballerinas dance in the road.”
The Great Highway was named one of "52 places for a changed world" when used as a park.
I’m glad journalists are starting to notice how great the Sunset is. Residents have known it all along — and we still have lots of untapped potential. This holiday season we have much to be grateful for. Let’s encourage more joy as we work to create our best San Francisco.
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