Welcome back, Saturday Campaign D.I.Y.ers! For those who tune in, welcome to the Nuts & Bolts of a Democratic campaign. Each week we discuss issues that help drive successful campaigns. If you’ve missed prior diaries, please visit our group or follow Nuts & Bolts Guide.
This week, I’m in Atlanta, Georgia, as activists from all over the country attend Netroots Nation, one of the larger events held yearly designed to help activists share their stories with others and build their efforts. This direct download of activists informing other activists, can be critical in making sure that our efforts have the best shot at success in an election cycle.
This week on Nuts & Bolts, we’re going to talk about why your efforts in activism need to interview a few organizers from other organizations to help build a running start.
How often do you hear “let’s not re-invent the wheel” which is immediately followed by an effort that effectively re-invents the wheel with all new people, guidance, and structure? It happens far too frequently. One of the big reasons for this is that activists like to feel as though their efforts are so unique that lessons learned by another group’s efforts aren’t really translatable, and therefore, too much of their new effort is an all-new, ground up approach.
Bringing in the voices of those who have been active in other efforts, though, can save you a great deal of work and increase the chance that your localized efforts are successful. Let’s talk about how to interview other organizers to get the information you need.
Many advocacy groups are eager to share
While groups may have some information and data that they cannot or will not share with your new efforts, you’ll find that almost all of them are willing to discuss with you a lot of information on what has been successful and not successful within their community. Events like Netroots Nation, of course, are prime examples of organizations participating in exactly that process.
Pictured above is the Labor Caucus, where labor organizations and often local communications teams, spoke frankly about how to talk with rank and file members, what had worked and not worked. These exchanges aren’t just about building the rolodex of attendees, they are primarily about building a stronger base to support the advocacy of all groups by making sure information on tactics and tools are up to date.
But even without an event like Netroots Nation, local activists can find many local organizations—from unions to issue advocates—to discuss how to make their advocacy successful.
Interview from a narrative-based perspective
When you discuss how to build your successful advocacy with another organization, it isn’t about a media interview looking for a few soundbytes. Instead, you are hoping to lead a conversation where the person you are talking to uses the majority of the time to expand on your questions and direct the flow of your conversation.
The most important questions are likely not the questions you have on paper or even in mind when your discussion begins, but are built only through conversation with the other advocates and as you gain understanding of the information they are trying to relay to you.
If the process is a large one, sit and listen, but if your group is small, participate with open-ended commentary that welcomes an expansion of the discussion you are having and the opportunity to bring in new topics.
Instead of asking a question like: “Have you had success with (XYZ)”, ask, “What was the most effective effort your group participated in?” This allows for other advocates to expand the conversation and gives you an opportunity to learn about the process without a singular focus on your efforts.
You know nothing, Jon Snow
Keep track of your conversations with other advocates in your area and you can start to build an understanding of how to give your new efforts the best chance at success. Whether you keep a journal, an online discussion group, or you save digitally, give yourself a chance to build up your group’s knowledge base through these conversations so you have a starting point.
No matter how well prepared you think you are to launch your activist efforts, in comparison to those with in the field experience in your local market, you’ll find you have a lot to learn. Instead of seeing this as daunting or threatening to your efforts, embrace it as a chance to learn about the advocacy of others and build your own allied efforts thanks to the interview process.
Final thoughts: the interviews and discussions should be fun.
Every few weeks I try to remind readers of Nuts & Bolts that if you don’t enjoy the efforts you are part of, it is hard to be successful. Remind yourself of this when you are talking to other groups and advocates. Their information can be important for your success, but these conversations can also be really entertaining and can help introduce you to new friends within your efforts.
Building your social network out of your efforts is something that is one of the great benefits of being involved in advocacy. If you embrace that portion, you should be able to walk out of a lot of meetings and discussions not just with information, but with connections to new personal friends in the community.
Next Week: Meetings that aren’t a chore