Keeping Your Head on Election Day

But Election Day isn’t a finish line – it’s a starting block. It’s the anticipation of the starting gun for a foot race. It’s getting into position to act. Successful advocates distinguish themselves by realizing that, and visualizing how they’ll react when the starting gun fires.

Success in Advocacy: The Power Behind Your Personal Brand

Focus on serving your issue in a genuine way, with warmth and purpose and you will find your audience.

Success in Advocacy: Clear is Greater than Clever

Being too clever can shut the conversation down long before we ever finish talking

Moments of Leadership from the Marines – Respect and Expect; Two Sides of the Same Coin

His lack of pride in the moment helped me feel a little more pride in myself.

Success in Advocacy: “Just be Human”

These are the basics, the fundamentals, any advocate needs to find long term success. Basically, just be human.

Let me tell you about Sue

Much of what it takes to be a successful advocate is learning just how to reassess and move to the next mission when your efforts come to a halt. That’s probably also the most frustrating lesson to learn. And I have to talk about it a lot. In fact, I have a case study inContinue reading “Let me tell you about Sue”

Why You ALWAYS Need an “Ask”

The stories I could tell you. Over 8.5 years working for members of Congress, there were a LOT of constituent meetings. These were opportunities for concerned citizens to engage directly with their elected representative – or that representative’s staff – to share a slice of what was happening back in the district. Sometimes they wereContinue reading “Why You ALWAYS Need an “Ask””

Don’t Go It Alone

Have you ever heard this African proverb? The concept is pretty straightforward. We can accomplish a lot of great things through persistence and quick action. But we can overcome entirely different barriers when we opt into partnering with others. It’s how we’ve developed as a social species. Yet when it comes to engaging with politicsContinue reading “Don’t Go It Alone”

No One Will Give A Damn If You’re Not Genuine

What do you say to a Member of Congress – or their staff – when you finally have a chance to meet with them? Yesterday I had an opportunity to speak with a local Rotary club. I love these civic organizations that bring diverse individuals together. They are miniature demonstrations of our ability to workContinue reading “No One Will Give A Damn If You’re Not Genuine”

With All Due Respect, That’s Chicken Sh*t

There are a lot of great stories about former Speaker of the House, John Boehner. And as a fellow Ohioan, I’m contractually obligated to share great stories about Ohioans. With recent events in the Buckeye state, I felt there was no better time than the present to share. A number of years ago, I wasContinue reading “With All Due Respect, That’s Chicken Sh*t”