We asked one of our favorite people, Tommy Pacello, now of Austin, Texas, but a native Memphian and booster of his city for his thoughts for 2011.

Here are his thoughts:

Two New Years thoughts for Memphians:

(1)    Travel more

Get out and see what other cities are doing and learn from them. Pay attention to their successes and failures and think about how to implement new ideas at home. Just as often as you see cities doing smart things you will see cities unsuccessfully trying to capture the texture, culture and beauty that come so natural to Memphians. It can be both inspirational and encouraging.

(2)    Stop Squelching New Ideas

For a city with a proven history of innovation, Memphians of late seem more prone to squelching them. All too often I hear or read reasons why new ideas, restaurants, businesses, or approaches conceived in Memphis by Memphians will fail. One thing I’ve noticed while living in Austin is that the Austinites tend to do all that is in their power to support each other. The community genuinely wants innovative ideas and concepts not only to work but to thrive and there is a collective sense of pride from their success. Perhaps we could all take a note from this and try supporting new ideas this year.