It was early 2016. I was working for a member of Congress, and all the visitors to our office that day wanted to talk about was a political candidate they didn’t like. A candidate who wasn’t my boss.
They were passionate, concerned people who wanted to be heard. But in the midst of their opportunity to speak to their issues, they got bogged down in the political chaos of the moment.
And that’s about par for the course.
When people think about politics, they usually think of it in the context of the current moment. We talk about who is leading who in the polls. We rush to argue the case for or against one of the contenders. And we respond to the news of the day by forming – and sharing – an opinion on something we may have just learned about five minutes ago.
We do all of this because we think it’s what we have to do in order to stay relevant. But it’s not. In reality, political staff don’t expect you to be an expert on the ebb and flow of campaigns. By letting go of a few hangups we commonly encounter, you can remain just as credible this year as any other.
We don’t have to make the same mistakes in 2024 that many of us did in 2020, 2016, or any other presidential election pressure cooker of a year. When I’m training advocates this year, I’ll remind them of a few things they don’t have to do this year to stay relevant. Maybe you, and a few of them, will be able to break the cycle.
If you can cut out the common, unnecessary energy sinks, you may just have a chance of making a bigger impact for your cause, while burning less of your own patience along the way. So, in 2024, don’t…
Don’t … Follow the Polls
I’m writing this the night after the Iowa caucuses. And like so many of you, I’ve spent the day bombarded by pundits breaking down the numbers, trying to read the tea leaves to determine just what those results mean for the rest of this presidential election cycle.
After months and months of polling data, we now have an entire industry dissecting last night’s caucus results. But to what end?
This same process is going to unfold again in every state, the District of Columbia, and US territories for months. And over that time, pundits, influencers, and candidates alike will be telling you how they read those polls and the results that follow.
You don’t have to care about that to make an impact in 2024. And I say that knowing full well I’ve done the same in nearly every election cycle of my adult life.
What a dweeb.
This kind of poll tracking can be informative. It also lands you into caring about things entirely out of your control. Your most dearly held issue – and how you show up for it – have almost nothing to do with the outcome of the primaries or the general election.
How can I say that?
Because an election isn’t the end of your ability to engage, it’s just another checkpoint along the way. You don’t have to track the polls, or polish your crystal ball this year. Instead, circle November 6th on your calendar. That’s the day after the election, and the first day of your next phase of engagement.
Everything else about the horse race until then is just noise.
Don’t … Voice Opinions on Issues that Aren’t Your Main Thing
Speaking of noise, you don’t, have to create more noise along the way this year. Primary after primary, debate after debate we will all have an opportunity to voice our opinions on the latest dust-up. We will have kerfuffles aplenty.
Don’t feel compelled to add to the cacophony.
I’ve spent a lot of time lately reminding folks they always have the option to not hold an opinion. It’s one of the great lessons of stoicism. You never have to react to those trying to compel you to care about something. It’s on them to convince you.
I know it’s unpopular (and often framed as unkind) to not speak up when an issue – any issue really – takes center stage. In a world increasingly hastened to react by social media culture, you won’t gain followers by staying quiet about the hot topic of the day.
But you will gain time, and preserve the energy you need to focus on your main thing.
In the words of Stephen Covey (author, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People): “the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” In 2024 this will be your biggest challenge. Can you willfully say no to taking a stance on every issue that comes out of the woodwork?
If so, you can spend more time focusing on what matters most to you, and find better ways to help others focus on – and succeed in – what matters most to them.
Don’t … Tell People Who You Plan to Support
Your ballot is anonymous and secret for a reason. I could write volumes on this, but let me be direct here: in issue advocacy your goal is to grow your base of support, and the moment you frame your issue in relation to a candidate for President (however tangentially) you’re opening up a window for half of the country to walk away from your cause.
Keep your vote secret if you can, because you don’t owe anyone that information.
American presidential politics becomes personal. We put the candidates forward to represent a platform, and we turn them into surrogate champions for some of our most deeply held beliefs. Needless to say, “the other guy” isn’t likely to be held in our highest esteem. AND WE ARE ALL SUSCEPTIBLE TO THIS – even the other elected officials we need to actually champion our cause inside other branches or levels of government.
Want to open the tent wide? Want to grow a larger base of support? Have the courage to keep your ballot as yours alone. If more of us did, we’d probably get along a lot better.
Bottom line:
If you didn’t pick up on it yet, the themes for making an impact in 2024 are the same as you’ll hear from me in 2025: only try to control what you can control; stay focused on proactively fighting for your main thing; and avoid petty personal conflicts.
But it’s a tough standard to live up to all three of these. The pressures are often overpowering to react like everyone else is reacting. But you have to remember you aren’t like everyone else. If you care enough to be reading posts like this, you’re already in a different league. You’re focused on preparing yourself to keep going when others can’t.
The rewards of resisting that pressure can be huge. You can open new relationships with candidates; you can give yourself the gift of more quality work; and you can save yourself a great many headaches. That’s a recipe for building the endurance you’ll need to show up on November 6th when everyone else shuts down on November 5th.
And you’ll have a head start on what’s next.
BONUS: Here’s How to Talk About the Presidential Election…
“But wait, how CAN I talk about the presidential election if I feel like I have to say something?”
Yeah sure, it’s easy for me to write this piece tonight and tell you to rise above. But what about the times when the opportunity is right to talk, publicly that is, about the presidential election? What about the times when doing so can bring attention to your issue?
Great question: do it.
Just don’t talk about the candidates and how they are campaigning today. Paint a picture for your audience – whatever size it may be – about an ideal world where your issue has been resolved. What does that world look like? If you can tell them that, then you can convey how you’re going to evaluate the candidates and their commitment to that changed world.
Give your audience the scorecard you’ll use, but don’t tell them the score. I’ve seen tremendously successful advocacy teams do just this. Those kinds of conversations opened the door for each of them to come away as a more credible organization.
Do this right, and you’ll still be able to keep your vote secret. You’ll still be able to keep your main thing as your main thing. You won’t be using the candidates as a proxy for your issue. And you’ll be able to set context and establish yourself as a reasonable authority. If you want examples on how I will do this in 2024, leave a comment here or on the social platform where you found this post!
Part of the Possible 