How To Connect Two People Who Don't Know Each Other

This business is all about networking. Time and time again on here and on YouTube I have stressed the importance of using your current connections to introduce you to more people to help broaden your horizons and propel your career. However there is a right way and a wrong way to make an introduction. It can be very irksome to get a connection email out of the blue or without a clear understanding of what the connection is asking for. I am not a super formal person, but I do wish we had some better etiquette as a community. Here is some advice for connecting two people who don't know each other professionally.

1) Ask first. It's jarring to get an email out of nowhere introducing me to a new person, especially if that person is going to be asking for my time or resources. You're essentially volunteering me for a job without my consent. There are very few circumstances in which I wouldn't help someone if it were in my ability to do so, but for example I may be dealing with something in my personal life that means I don't have a ton of capacity, I may be conflicted out of a specific conversation because of my job, or I might feel like I'm not the one to help with that particular task. Your ask doesn't have to be formal but it does have to exist. Depending on our relationship text or email me with a little relevant context and then wait for a response. It might look something like "Hey Nancy, my cousin's boyfriend is graduating college and is interested in working on a campaign. I told him you run a listserve and also have advice for people starting out. Would it be okay to connect you?"

2) Follow my preferred mode of conversation. If you connect me to someone via Facebook DM, I am unlikely to ever see it. I don't talk about partisan things on my work email and texting feels too personal for me so in the above example I would prefer to talk by email, but everyone and every situation is different so make sure to ask how I would prefer you introduce us. (You can simply ask "is email okay? Is it still ...") Even if I've agreed to have a conversation, it can be off-putting and inefficient to initiate the conversation on an unanticipated platform, so make sure to clarify before setting it up!

3) Provide accurate context on both sides.  I've spoken before about how it can feel disrespectful to get networking questions about which I have no expertise, but if you haven't adequately prepared the person you are introducing to me it's hardly their fault. Similarly, the advice I'd give to someone who has done several campaigns is very different to that which I would give a career switcher so its helpful for me to have context going in as well. It's good to brief us separately and then provide context when you actually connect us so that our expectations are aligned. I can't tell you how many calls I've had where the person wanted to ask me about how to work in a legislative office or be a journalist. It's fine for someone to want to know about multiple career paths but to set them up for success, they need to know which one I can help them with. Often intros are for people new to the space or fresh out of school so it is especially helpful to provide a little guidance so that they can make a good first impression with their new connection.

A good intro email might go like this:

Subject:   Ann <<>> Nancy (CampaignSick)

Hi Nancy, 

Introducing you to my former intern, Ann, who just graduated from Tufts. As I was telling you yesterday, Ann helped on our city council race last year but is looking to hop on the Presidential in 2024. I told her you might be able to talk her through what the different types of roles available to a new graduate might be and also sign her up for your listserve. 

Ann,

Nancy runs the CampaignSick blog and listserve and has written all sorts of advice on starting out on campaigns. I'll let you take it from here.

Best,

Jeff

I hope you find this useful and I wish you happy and productive connecting!

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy 

How To Leave A Job

Campaigns teach you many skills: time management, how to make a pitch, how to set and meet goals, but one thing they definitely don't teach you is how to leave a job of your own accord. That's because win or lose the job is over on Election Day. This means many of us find ourselves later in our careers in jobs that make us miserable or no longer serve us without a roadmap to get out. 

Here are some tips on what to do when you think you may need to move on from a gig that doesn't have a pre-set end date. 

1. Get clear on why you're leaving. You can't look for a new job until you know why you want one. Maybe you love your current employer but there's no room for growth there. Maybe your organization is under new leadership and you're no longer happy in the culture. By identifying why you want to leave you'll know what to look for, and what to avoid, in your next role. 

2. Give your job a chance to make it right (maybe). This one is optional and depends on your particular circumstances. If you know you gotta go and there's nothing your org can do to change that, then there's no reason to bang your head against the wall. But, if for example, you're thinking of leaving because you feel like you should be making more money, it's worth having a conversation with your boss about whether there's room in the budget and what you would need to do to up your compensation. Unlike campaigns, longer term organizations often have built in room in their budgets for raises and also have the runway to build a plan with you to develop toward a promotion and if not they won't be scratching their heads when you ultimately decide to go. 

3. Start looking earlier than you think you need to. My experience on most campaigns is that by the time they are ready to interview you, they needed someone yesterday. By contrast, interview processes in the non-profit sector/real world can take weeks and sometimes months. We are in a very competitive job market so even things that seem like they would be a fantastic fit based on job description won't necessarily call you back. Even while you are happily employed its a good idea to keep a casual eye on job postings and occasionally apply to things that feel like they would move your career forward. Applying, and even interviewing, doesn't mean you have to take the job if offered. Once you are positive you need to leave, you'll want to start applying almost like searching itself is a second job.

4. Continue to be a good employee. This is a huge one. I've known people who have become petulant and withdrawn at work once they are passed over for a promotion or leadership makes a decision with which they disagree. This is a losing strategy. First of all, our world is very small. Even if you don't list your current employer as a reference, it is very possible that potential future employers will do a soft reference check by asking one of your coworkers with whom they have a relationship what they think of you. Second, eventually almost everyone at your org will move on to other things and you don't want a lasting reputation as someone who is gruff or hard to work with. You want to leave your job on as good of terms as possible, so when you do leave make sure any projects you were working on have been handed off, files you owned have been shared, and you give appropriate notice.

5. Network (on the DL). It is totally fine and expected and necessary to ask friends and mentors to start keeping an eye out for you once you've decide you need to move on. In fact, you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't do this. However, make sure you choose your alliances carefully. Unless you are entirely confident that you have that kind of relationship, do not ask your coworkers or worse yet clients, vendors or partners with whom you currently work to help you leave the place you're working. Again, we live in a small world. Make sure when you do ask for help that you let people know you are not being public with your search out of respect for your current employer and don't post about your search on social media.

That's it for now! Let me know- have you left a job recently? If so what did you wish you had known?

CampaignShtick, Dos and Don'ts for Candidates Around the High Holidays

Shalom!

It's your favorite Jewish Campaign Bubbe! Year after year I see cringe-worthy posts from well-meaning non-Jewish candidates trying to be down with MOT, but ultimately swinging and missing. This year rather than simply mock these poorly constructed posts, (although I will definitely be doing that as well) I thought I would offer some proactive constructive advice for candidates wishing to be considerate and inclusive of their siblings in Sinai. I'm telling you ahead of time, so don't make these mistakes.

First of all, let's discuss my qualifications. I am a 17-year veteran of Democratic campaigns and non-profits having worked everywhere from Brooklyn, where my district included the Hassidic community of Boro Park to Beaumont, Texas where it...did not. I have worked and been a Jew on all kinds of campaigns all across the US with both Jewish and non-Jewish candidates. Religiously, I'm a moderately observant Reform Jew which means both that I am the most Jewishly observant person in my family and friend groups and that my observance would barely register to an Orthodox rabbi. All in all, take the disclaimer that I am lot more comfortable speaking for all campaign operatives than I am for all Jews (after all two Jews, three opinions) so if you are seeking Halaka, look elsewhere. 

Let's start with the basics: 

What are the High Holidays? Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, collectively known as "The High Holidays" or "High Holy Days" are the most important days on the Jewish religious calendar. The period, inclusive, between the two holidays is sometimes referred to as the Days of Awe or in transliterated Hebrew, Yamim Noraim. 

Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year and in addition to beginning a period of prayer and introspection it is also a time for celebration, food, and family. (Should I post my favorite Rosh Hashanah recipes? @ me if yes). 

Yom Kippur is the Jewish Day of Atonement.  It is a day for prayer, reflection, and repentance. Most even moderately observant Jewish adults fast on this day and many refrain from using electronics, showering or even brushing their teeth. If you see food associated with Yom Kippur, it is most likely for a break-the-fast which occurs on sundown at the end of the holiday. 

When are the High Holidays? This year, the secular calendar year of 2023 (on the Hebrew calendar it will be 5784) Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown of September 15th and ends at sundown on either the 16th or 17th depending on an individual's tradition. Yom Kippur begins on sundown of September 24th and lasts until sundown on the 25th. Note, Jewish holidays begin and end at sundown which means if you want Jewish constituents to see your social media post about their holiday you should share it during the day preceding the evening on which that holiday begins. 

Now let's discuss campaign events. What should or shouldn't your campaign do during the High Holidays? Although it is in no way a perfect corollary, in general when considering whether to hold an event think of the High Holidays the way you would Thanksgiving on the secular calendar or Christmas or Easter on the Christian one. 

Can I host campaign events or fundraisers on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? If you have a sizable Jewish population in your district or your donor base or are just trying to err on the side of being respectful, I would refrain from hosting rallies or holding fundraisers on either of these holidays. As a Jew I will tell you it feels insensitive and I feel excluded if an organization I work with plans a once-a-season happy hour, conference, or major action on one of the holiest days of the year because you have a whole year of warning and I am guaranteed to be unable to participate. As a campaign I would avoid scheduling one-off events like fundraisers, surrogate visits or meet and greets with a candidate. Personally, if your campaign has something like a recurring weekly phone bank, I would have no qualms with that continuing even if it falls on one of these days and long as you are taking care to exclude Jews from that day's voter contact universe. See next question. 

Can I include Jews in my voter contact or fundraising universes on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? Absolutely not. If you have heavily Jewish neighborhoods in your district do not call or canvass them on these days. If you have Jewish donors do not solicit them on these days. I would also instruct  canvassers to avoid doors with mezuzot and generally do what you can to avoid contacting Jews on these days. Again, imagine if someone canvassed you in the middle of Thanksgiving Dinner or called you during Easter Mass. 

Can I host campaign events between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? Eh, depends who you ask. Practically if you have a sizable Jewish population in your district or donor base, I would avoid the Days of Awe because you are just less likely to get a good turnout. Think about the time between Christmas and New Years. People are likely to be cooking, visiting family or recovering from doing one or both. If your district includes more observant Orthodox Jews I would avoid it out of respect. Otherwise, not your best option but from an optics perspective you are probably okay. 

Can/should I host Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur themed events? If you are Ruchie Freier  it's very possible you know a way of doing this that is contextually and community appropriate, but if you are reading this blog and you have to ask, the answer is no. 

Let's get down to brisket. How do you keep yourself looking more like a mensch and less like a schmuck when posting a holiday greeting on social media? As with all aspects of campaigning it comes down to research and authenticity. Do I want to see a post from a baptist preacher that reads "On this blessed day may HaShem subscribe you in the Book of Life?" I do not, nor do I want to see a Yom Kippur post that is full of pictures of menorahs and challah. 

Appropriate symbols to include in a High Holiday graphic:
Doves

Shofar
Star of David 

Apples and Honey*

Pomegranate*

Wine*

Challah*

*= Rosh Hashanah only, no food on Yom Kippur! 

Inappropriate symbols to include in a High Holiday graphic and why:

Food/Wine for Yom Kippur (It's a day of fasting.) 

Menorahs, dreidels, latkes, gelt (These are associated specifically with Hanukah, not all Jewish holidays.)

Matzo, seder plates (These are associated specifically with Passover, all not Jewish holidays.)

Random Hebrew letters (Would you put a mishmash of the Roman alphabet on your 4th of July post?)

Fireworks and champagne glasses (Jewish New Year is not the same as secular New Year.) 

Appropriate Greetings to post on Rosh Hashanah 

Happy Rosh Hashanah 

Chag Sameach 

Shana Tova or L'Shanah Tova 

Appropriate Greetings to post for Yom Kippur

G'mar Chatima Tovah

May God inscribe you in the Book of Life or May you be inscribed the the Book of Life

Wishing you a meaningful fast or wishing you a meaningful Yom Kippur 

What not to say

We don't say "Happy Yom Kippur" because while it is among my personal favorite holidays it's less a time of celebration and more a time of introspection. This may be more of a personal pet peeve but I really hate when non-Jews end Jewish holiday greetings with "to all those who celebrate." You wouldn't post "Happy New Year to all those who celebrate" and rarely see "Happy Easter to all those who celebrate" so adding this qualifier feels othering to me. It's as if you are going out of your way to point out "it is weird or abnormal to celebrate this holiday and so I am distancing myself from it and don't want to offend people who don't celebrate this holiday by implying that they might." So just do me a favor and leave it out. Finally, don't add your own theology in an attempt to dress up a greeting. Last Hanukah I saw a post that said "may love and peace reign among your household during this festival of lights" which while not awful...is a weird thing to post for a holiday predicated on a military victory. When in doubt just keep it simple. 

And because they didn't fit elsewhere...some miscellaneous questions:

How do I pronounced these things? Good news for you, because these are Hebrew words that are thousands of years old and have been spoken in hundreds of languages there are myriad of ways of slicing this honey-covered apple. I will spare you the indignity of linking to a pronunciation site and assume if you wanted to do that you would have done so. When referring to Rosh Hashanah in Hebrew or a liturgical sense you may hear Jews put an accent on a different syllable than we do in casual conversation. The most common pronunciation I would suggest you use sounds like "Rush Hush On Ah."  While you may hear Yom Kippur pronounced such that it rhymes with "Tom Clipper" the most common (and my suggested for the layman gentile) pronunciation is such that it rhymes with "Foam Flip Four." 

Should I give my Jewish staff the day off? Would you ask your Christian staff to work on Christmas? Since "Jewish" is a religion, a culture, and an ethnicity, different staff members may or may not choose to take off based on the religious or cultural significance of these holidays to them. You should make it known that the option is available and that their choice to do will be regarded neutrally by the campaign's management. For many years in New York City we had September primary elections. People took off for High Holidays and everyone lived to tell the tale. If your campaign is so weak that it's going to crumble from a handful of staff taking off for a religious observance you probably weren't going to win anyway. 

That's all she inscribed! Fellow Jews, tweet me and let me know what I missed. I hope this helped and look forward to seeing your culturally appropriate holiday posts. Until then...

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

Help! I Just Got Laid Off! Now What?

 

There seems to be an epidemic of layoffs in progressive sphere. Obviously if you are working on the ground on a campaign you were expecting an end date but if you have taken a job in the broader campaign-aligned world with the express desire for some job security this can come as a bit of a shock. Before you embark on a brief but well-earned pity party here are some steps to take to make sure you are set up for success when you're ready to move on. 

1) Be clear on what the company is offering you. How long will you continue to have health insurance? When is your last paycheck? Are they offering you resources like access to career coaching to find your next gig? (This is something I am seeing more and more in the progressive non-profit space.)

2) Gather any important metrics that you will need for your resume. This might include number of volunteers trained, size of a rallies organized, amount of grant money secured etc. Download any documents you created that you might want to use as a writing sample or portfolio. 

3) Thank your boss and let them know you would love the opportunity to work with them again when funding and your skill set are aligned. If this is truly about eliminating a position or a department it is helpful to let them know you'd like to be considered for future opportunities with the organization.

4) Ask if you can rely on their help. It can feel daunting and embarrassing to reach out two weeks later to a boss who has just let you go but if/when you are in an emotional place where you feel comfortable doing so you can say something like, "I am really sad to hear that but I understand. As you know I am passionate about this work and I know you are really respected in the community. Is it okay if I reach out to you for some networking help while I'm looking for my next thing?"

5) Apply for unemployment. Where I grew up there was a definite stigma about receiving unemployment benefits so I want to be very clear. This scenario is exactly is what unemployment exists for. I credit my husband for really helping me understand how bizarre that stigma was. You have been paying into these benefits so take advantage of them. 

6) Take a moment for yourself. Feel your feelings. Relax. Not having a job can be super stressful but if you are able take some time while you are looking go ahead and visit friends, get some exercise, enjoy nature, journal, whatever sparks joy for you. It is true that when you have time you don't have money and when you have money you don't have time so if you do have a little bit of money saved up, make the most of your time so you can go into your next adventure as the best version of yourself.

7) Let other people know you are looking. The further along you get in your career the harder it can feel to ask for help. Each of the last couple times I have been between things I have had the distinct pit in the stomach feeling of "Ugh I shouldn't have to be doing this." But here's the thing: EVERYBODY does. Literally no one in this business has gotten where they are without networking (incidentally what that means for equity in our industry is a whole other kettle of wax, but it's the truth). In fact, if the people you're networking with are consultants, no matter how fancy and important they are they are doing this all the time. So truly do not feel gross about doing this and if people make you feel gross, they are gross.

8) When you are telling people you're looking make sure to be as specific as possible. When people tell me "hey I'm looking let me know if you hear anything" I am likely to just invite them to join my listserve. But if someone tells me "I'm looking for a job working in LGBTQ+ politics" or "I want to be based in Nevada" then I'll think of them when those jobs come up and send them along. If you have a close relationship with the person passing along opportunities consider giving them feedback on the jobs they're sharing with you. For example "thanks so much. That would be a significant pay cut from what I had been making I'm really looking for a salary of at least X." 

I'm sorry you are in this position and I hope this post is helpful! Until next time.

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy 

What No One Told Me About Navigating DC Political World

 

Growing up, I always wanted a big sister. Someone who had been to high school dances, for example and could tell me what people wore, what to expect etc. This would have saved me a lot of grief when I showed up in a bridesmaid dress from the Nordstrom Rack sale section to an event where everyone else was wearing baby tees and jeans. (Keep in mind this was in the earlier days of the Internet when there was no YouTube or Instagram to tell me how to "dress my aesthetic.")  This feeling continued well into my 20's when I did find mentors who were well-intentioned but I soon discovered victims of the same myths and pressures I was battling myself. What I would have given for some straight talk from someone who has been and there and was willing to admit, nay declare, that the Emperor is often without clothes. As my favorite British comedian Joe Lycett would say "sometimes if you want something to exist you have to make it yourself." 

If you have ever felt like you missed the day of school where they taught you how to "be" in politics this post is for you. This is not tips for networking, or resume writing or job searching. Rather this is about the smoke and mirrors I wish someone had discussed with me when I was intimidated and more or less navigating our unique social structure on my own. Let's go! 

1) Being a "consultant" doesn't mean shit. Okay maybe you all are a lot smarter than I am but when I was in my early to even mid-twenties working on campaigns and doing informational interviews in DC I assumed campaign consultants were all hyper-successful-know-it-alls joining conference calls when they deigned to from their second beach house. The truth is being a campaign consultant can mean a wide array of things. In the first place any asshole can set up a website and hang out a shingle and put up a front but that doesn't mean they are either exceptionally qualified or exceptionally successful at it. In the second place, junior associates or account executives even at well established and respected firms are not necessarily making more money than an RFD on a statewide or a manager on a city council race. (Though they should still take you out to dinner on the company's dime if they come to visit.) This also means that they last minute help that you may be lucky to get from your TV or mail firm is not necessarily deserving of the disdain with which you might be tempted to treat them (and I speak now in retrospect to my asshole of a past self) sure a lot of these DC ship-ins can have chips on their shoulders but some of them are there to earnestly learn what goes on on the ground. TL; DR all "consultants" are not equal. 

2) Campaign awards are basically a giant circle jerk. I love and respect my friends on every 40 Under 40 List, recipients of Pollies, and Reed awards. I will be excited for them every time they are nominated, slightly wistful that I am not there myself, and wholeheartedly post about how deserving they are. That said, these awards like everything else are lower case "p", political. Awards go to managers and consultants who are nominated by big firms, and those that are paying members or sponsors of the lists, publications, or organizations that are issuing them. They are great for marketing and a great way to recognize quality or enterprising work but you are not finding your way on to these lists based on merit alone. Conversely while awards are nice for marketing no one serious is counting awards when it comes to which firms to bring in on a project.

3) Selfies with principals are proof of...having access to a cell phone. My grandson, Organizer Memes, recently posted the lament of an anonymous reader who was worried they were falling behind because their contemporaries were taking pictures with "important politicians" while the poster was on the ground doing what I might call "the real work." While having your picture taken with a Member of Congress who you admire can be fun and meaningful, what it doesn't mean is anything about your relative importance. Back in my day when I had to walk uphill both ways to canvass and had exactly 0 days off a month, we were taught "no star fucking." Essentially, pictures with candidate or their surrogates are for donors and volunteers and you are there to work and MAYBE get a pic along with the rest of the staff if you are lucky.  Taking a picture with a politician means that you were there and you asked them. This could be at a rally, a fundraiser or even when you bumped into them with you boss after returning with his Dunkin' order. But just like having your picture with Mickey Mouse in Disneyland does not make you an Imagineer, having a picture with AOC on its own says only that you have a picture with AOC. 

To drive home my point,  here are some pictures of me in 2007 with Howard Dean while campaigning for disgraced Senator John Edwards and maybe the worst picture of my face in existence with Senator Tammy Baldwin when she visited the MN DFL Headquarters in 2019. 

4) Confidence does not equal competence. Maybe it is how I was raised or more likely how I was socialized but if I don't know what I'm talking about I tend not to speak on a subject. If I care to, I try to learn and ask questions. Not so for a lot, and I mean A LOT, of people in our industry. (I will leave you to infer the race and gender of most of them.) When I would visit DC in my younger times, because I was a beautiful naive ingenue, I would marvel at the way that acquaintances would casually drop the names of congressional committees and the bills before them and even more so self-assuredly offer opinions on their sponsors' potential career trajectories. It look me years (read: way longer than it should have) to realize that most of these predictions were ripped straight off of Politico and 538 at best and more likely straight out of their asses. I can't tell you how many people came to me for advice during the 2020 primaries saying "I want to work for X candidate but someone is telling me that only Y can win and I will be burned if I don't work for them." If the past several election cycles have taught us anything it's that nobody knows anything for certain and in many ways conventional wisdom is overrated. The longer I spend in this town the more I recognize overconfidence and lack of curiosity for the red flag toward Losertown that it is.  

5) All the above this advice boils down to the following: take the work seriously, don't yourself so seriously! This is not House of Cards or West Wing and anyone acting like it is, is in fact themselves desperately insecure. While the stakes of our collective work are literally life or death, the stakes of your particular career are not. Don't drive yourself crazy over your "career trajectory." Do what lights you up, that makes you feel passionate and excited to go to work with people you enjoy working with. This is the best way to gain a good reputation, make a real difference and ultimately advance your career. 

Join The CampaignSick March Madness Bracket

March Madness is upon us! 

March Madness was wildly popular when I was starting out on campaigns and I was never really into it. Then my husband (then boyfriend) was away running a Congressional and I wanted something in common to talk to him about every evening other than work so I gave it a shot. If you are a doubter I am here to tell you March Madness is mad fun. If you feel like you can't participate because you don't follow college basketball the thing you need to know is that no one does! Last year, 15 seed* St. Peter's led by friend of the blog, Shaheen Hollway*, beat number 2 seed Kentucky and made it all the way to the Elite Eight*.  So no one knows. All you need is basic knowledge of basketball and the willingness to lose your mind over $20.*

So with that in mind I have created a CampaignSick March Madness Bracket! There is no entry fee and as such no monetary prize but there are bragging rights! I created this bracket group specifically for the campaign and progressive community because I thought it would be fun but you don't need to be part of the community to participate. I invite you to participate especially if this is not generally your thing but you want to give it a shot in a supportive low-stakes environment.

So give it a shot! Feel free to share widely and tweet me @CampaignSick with how your bracket is doing!

Campaign Love and Mine!

Nancy 

*seed indicates how highly ranked a team is 

*current coach and alum of Seton Hall, where my husband went 

*the final 8 teams left in the tournament 

*I find wagering even a little on the games gets me really passionate about them but you can also just enter brackets for fun, like this one! 

Tips For Campaign People Interviewing At Non-Profits

Happy New Year! Long time no blog! As you may have seen in some of my YouTube videos I had crappy year, health-wise. BUT I am feeling much better and ready to share more job search wisdom post-2022 cycle. I did a poll on Twitter and you all said you would rather have this information in written blog form rather than YouTube or TikTok. In truth, nothing about my views and engagement leads me to believe that's the case BUT since I've never been able to monetize any of this and blogging doesn't require me to put on makeup on my last day of vacation, let's do it! 

I've already done posts and videos on topics like what to ask on an informational interview (video version here), job search frustrations and writing a campaign resume. You can find lots of other advice here in my archives. 

In searching for a topic that a) I haven't written about before b) would be helpful to job searchers and c) I am better equipped to write about now than I was 5-10 years ago when I wrote most of the advice referenced above (TEN YEARS? I am officially ancient), I thought of a question I get asked a lot. It's usually some variation of  "How do I make the leap from campaigns to X campaign-adjacent field?" Today,  I'm going to talk about progressive non-profits because that's what I've done and it is also where most of the opportunity to do this switching is. Specifically I want to talk about job interviews because it's something I haven't covered before and as a hiring manager I have seen my share of mistakes. Below you will find my tips for campaign staff interviewing for jobs at a non-profit. 

 

1. Don't sound lazy.  In the past I have asked a former campaign staffer "why do you want to switch from campaigns to non-profits?" and gotten some version of "I am burnt out on campaigns" or "the campaign lifestyle is too intense/crazy hours." These, in my opinion, are bad answers. They are not wrong answers. No one knows better than I do the lure of stability, work-life balance and ability to plan for the future that pulls a person from campaigns- but they're not what a hiring manager wants to hear. 

The problem is that you are essentially saying "I want to do something that is less difficult, less time- consuming and/or less work" and when you are trying to get a job it is unwise to tell the person with the job to give that you are looking to do less work. 

Regardless of how the question is phrased, you want to use every opportunity to discuss what excites you about this new role and what you can bring to the new organization - not what you've disliked about the things you've done in the past. 

I believe in my interview for my current job I answered this question with something like: 

"I've been doing this for a long time and jumped around a lot. I am looking to use what I've learned to grow a program over the long-term and make my mark on something." 

Some other examples might include: 

"The time constraint of campaigns doesn't always give you the opportunity to be as intentional as you'd like to be when making decisions. I'm really passionate about X (healthcare, voting rights, whatever this organization works on) and I want to be a space where I can work strategically on it." 

"Because of the way they're structured organizing on campaigns can be very transactional, I love the idea of being able to take my time to invest and build relationships in the community here." 

Of course your answer will depend on the job/organization but the point is your can still get across wanting more stability or a slower pace in a way that highlights what excites you about the job and what you can bring to the table.

As an addendum to this point, don't insult my best friend, campaign work.  As you can tell from this blog, my social media presence and the everything about me, I friggin' love campaigns. Not every hiring manager at a non-profit will have a campaign background and fewer will be as enamored of the lifestyle as I am but especially if you are looking to work somewhere politically oriented, they may be. I have had applicants straight up diss campaign life is a misguided effort to I don't know what...bond? I had one candidate (and when I say candidate in this context I mean job candidate not candidate for office) say to me, "The campaign lifestyle is just unsustainable. No one could do it for more than a few cycles unless you're crazy." (Umm hi, hello, me, I did that.) 

2. Know why you want to work here. This sounds like interview 101, right? But if you think about it candidate campaigns are all pretty similar in that the answer, at least in a general election, to "why do you want to work here" is often "Democrats good, Republicans bad. I want to elect Democrats." Even in a primary a simple "I saw the Senator speak and I was really inspired" or "I come from a working class background and it's really important to me that we nominate someone who will focus on income inequality" will do the trick. 

When it comes to non-profits you may not have even been aware of the organization before you saw the job posting, so it is important to do your research and not just superficially. A meh answer is "You work on abortion and I am passionate about abortion rights." A great answer is "Well I am passionate about abortion rights because of X succinct experience/identity/reason and I am specifically drawn to your organization because you are at the forefront of on organizing for rights at the state legislative level." A thoughtful, researched answer demonstrates that you are excited about the job (even if you aren't) and managers want to hire applicants who are excited to work there because they're more fun to be around and do a better job. At worst I have seen applicants answer this question with what amounts to "I care about this issue and I don't want to work on campaigns anymore" and we have already discussed why that is no good.  

3. Spell it out.  I've mentioned the possibility that your interviewer could be a campaign veteran, but the opposite could be true as well. Even in at a politically oriented non-profit you may be interviewing with someone who has never step foot in a field office. Make sure to explain tasks and job-specific terminology. Make the bridge between your past experience and what you'll be doing in your new role. Your interviewer might not realize the amount of responsibility that goes into running a GOTV operation for a whole region, so include details about how many other staff and volunteers you oversaw, what they (and you) were doing and how that contributed to the campaign's overall success. Unless you know your interviewer has a campaign background define terms like staging location, Votebuilder, or caucus captain. If it turns out the person interviewing you does have a campaign background, they should let you know pretty quick in their response. 

4. Demonstrate that you understand the difference between this new role and campaign work. One thing I always ask an applicant who is coming from campaign world is "how do you think working at this organization will be different from working on campaigns?" While it is true that (generally, certainly in my current role) non-profits offer greater stability and better work-life balance, they also lack some of the things I love about campaign work and have their own frustrations. For example, in comparison to campaigns where every moment is of the essence, decisions at non-profits tend to be made slooooooowly and often by committee. Campaigns, while hierarchical, also tend to give a lot of responsibility to relatively junior staff (where else in my first job out of college would I have overseen 200 people across three offices?), non-profits not so much. If you are used to, and have an affinity for, campaign life I want to make sure you're not going to be bored in a role that will be a slower burn. 

In addition, even titles like "organizer" or "manager" can mean wildly different things from campaigns and  even within the progressive non-profit space. Make sure you read the job description and ask  questions about what the role entails so that you give thoughtful, informed answers. 

5. Let's talk about salaries. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be comparing any industry's salaries as unfavorable to campaigns'. However, campaign salaries, especially on federal campaigns, have skyrocketed in the past couple of years. Primarily we can credit a) the ridiculous number of candidates and therefore higher demand for talent during the 2020 primary and b) campaign staff unions. This is great news! But, it does mean you may be taking a pay cut to move over to the world of non-profits. 

That doesn't mean you won't be as well or better compensated when you factor in things like benefits and work-life balance. For example, I've never heard of a campaign with a 401k match and progressive non-profits usually have excellent and highly subsidized healthcare, not to mention accrued vacation. Unless you are applying for a cyclical position, you also won't have to account for a period of unemployment every November and December. 

Your mileage may vary in either direction; I've certainly heard horror stories about toxic and exploitative workplace cultures across the progressive non-profit sector and some non-profits do pay very well, but I say all this to encourage you to do your research and think holistically about an offer and an organization when negotiating your acceptance and deciding where to apply.

That's what I have for you. What else do you want to know about? More career switching? Interview tips? What I wish I had known in X situation? Hit me up! And until next time...

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

New YouTube Video: I Was Almost A Spy!

Do you have a topic you'd like me to cover? Leave it in the comments!

New Video: Answering Questions from a Frustrated Career Switcher

 

Introducing The CampaignSick YouTube Channel

Y'all I'm very excited to announce that CampaignSick now has a YouTube channel! The first two videos are up and while I am still learning I think I can confidently say I improved between the two. If you like this type of content (and you do if you're reading my blog) please like and subscribe...you don't realize how much it helps until you start YouTubing! 

The first topics are "What to Ask on Informational Interviews" and "My Experience Living With Chronic Illness on Campaigns".  What else do you want to see/hear about? Let me know in video comments or by tweeting @CampaignSick! 

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy 

Two New Trainings! Campaign Staff Management and Finding and Managing Consultants

You all have already heard me wax poetic about how much I love a good training opportunity and how much I loved working with National Democratic Training Committee so you will be unsurprised to hear how grateful I am to be able to teach on two of the topics about which I am most passionate: managing campaign staff and managing consultants.

Please check them out on NDTC's site!

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy 

Campaign Staff Hiring 101- My Training for National Democratic Training Committee

If you know one thing about me it is that I absolutely love training other people to run campaigns well. It is, in fact, the premise of this very blog. So imagine my joy at getting to write the curricula and train for three course with National Democratic Training Committee. 

The first, Campaign Staff Hiring 101 has been posted here.  Note you may have to make a profile/login but it's free and gives you access to tons of wonderful resources, even if I didn't write them!

Enjoy learning from my wisdom and seeing what happens when I misapply my eyebrow makeup.

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

Combating Burnout with Wellness Coach, Lacey Connelly

When my friend Lacey posted that she was starting a new business to help political operatives deal with burnout, I knew I had to bring this to you. Learn more about Lacey's business and an exclusive CampaignSick discount below!

1) Who are you? Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got here.

My name is Lacey Connelly and I have been working on political campaigns for 18 years. 2022 will be my 9th campaign cycle! 

My first experience on campaigns was an internship in college working as the tracker for an Illinois Senate primary. After graduation, I got my first full time campaign job working for John Edwards in Iowa during the 2008 presidential primary (added bonus fact for your readers is that's where we met!). Since then, I have been on a nearly non-stop roller coaster of highs and lows: campaign victories and losses; meaningful employment and unemployment; good physical/mental/emotional health and not-so-good. I have been a field organizer, a direct mail production assistant, a compliance manager, a finance director, a campaign manager, a training director, and a caucus director, so I have a LOT of lived experience.

In 2018, I was the Caucus Director for the WV Democratic House Caucus and within the span of a month, I (1) helped the Caucus see its greatest gains in a decade, (2) graduated with my Yoga Teacher certification, and (3) married my best friend, Adam. I credit the time I gave myself for my yoga practice during that election cycle to being able to manage all of those tasks simultaneously; it was the first time I personally experienced balance during a campaign season and it set this whole business idea into motion. 

2) What inspired you to focus on self care?

I had a major health crisis brought about by the stress of campaigns after the 2010 election cycle. I was a compliance manager in California, working long hours to make sure my clients' financial reports had all the necessary amendments filed. I had moved to California in 2008, after Edwards withdrew from the presidential race, and it had taken me months to land steady work that paid for the cost of living increase. I was struggling and, in response to the stress, my autoimmune disease (which I had been diagnosed with back in 2000) flared up. I ignored the flare and kept pushing until my body literally shut me down. I got so sick that I had to go on disability, move back to WV to live with my parents, and get IVIG treatments to reset my immune system.  

The fact that I had allowed myself to become so stressed out that I lost an entire year was a wake up call. During my treatments, I started reading about stress management and autoimmune recovery. Once the treatments were over, I found a yoga teacher in my area that taught yoga for immune support. I prioritized sleep and started to go to trivia nights with friends so that I had something to look forward to each week. 

Then I moved to North Dakota, worked for Heidi Heitkamp's Senate campaign for two months and came back with a severe Vitamin D deficiency. I knew better, but without someone keeping me accountable, I struggled to do better. Eventually, my commitment to my yoga practice and getting my certification gave me the support and accountability that I needed to have a balanced life during a campaign cycle, which is what I'm offering to others through my coaching program. 

3) What are the services you’re offering?

Right now, I am offering 1:1 coaching services to political operatives, volunteers, and candidates who feel like they are either burned out or on the edge of burning out. There are three different options, all with varying levels of support: (1) a one time session that consists of an hour-long Zoom call; (2) a monthly option that includes 4 hour-long Zoom calls and unlimited text/voice message support via Voxer; or (3) a three month offer that gives you three months of the monthly support at a discounted rate. 

If someone is interested in working with me, the first step is to sign up for a free 20-minute "Vibe Check" Zoom call where we can chat about what they need, how I can help, and if we hit it off where we'll work well together. Your readers can sign up for one of those calls here: https://bit.ly/20MinVibeCheckCalendar. Make sure they answer the question "How did you learn about my coaching services?" by writing in CampaignSick!

I also have a newsletter that goes out every other week, and I will be using that to announce some exciting new offers soon (including a 4-week course on mindful media consumption). If your readers are interested, they can sign up for that here: https://bit.ly/SustainableMovementsNews.

4) Who would benefit from this work? Who’s your ideal client?

My ideal client is someone who feels passionate about the work that they do and, as a result, have a habit of putting their work before their physical, mental, and emotional well being. It doesn't matter if they're on their first campaign or if they're running an entire organization -- the people who do the kind of work that we do have a tendency to martyr themselves for the "greater good." I feel like my calling in this space is to work with these folx to show them that living in such a prolonged state of stress is actually counter-productive to the results they are trying to achieve and that there are ways that they can be both impactful and happy. 

5) What does a session entail? Give us a sense of what we’d be signing up for.

I start each 1:1 coaching session with a breathing practice and some stretching. It helps my client and me let go of whatever else we've been dealing with in the moments leading up to the call so we can be fully present with each other. I then ask them what's on their mind and the session builds itself from there. My goal is to lead them towards the root of what is making them stressed so that we can address it together. I'm not a therapist, but I would say 90% of the issues my clients have brought up have been issues that I've dealt with personally, which makes addressing the problem much easier. After our session is over, I send them an email with a practice that will help them deal with their unique stress and, for monthly clients, a "homework" assignment so that we can dig even deeper the next week.

6) What general advice do you have for people in the campaign and progressive community to avoid burnout?

It's important to understand that the modern campaign environment is not built for long term sustainability -- and it's less productive as a result! Research shows that taking breaks from work is important for maxing out your job performance. Energy is limited and, just like football players take a halftime break in the middle of the Super Bowl, we need to take breaks in order to do our best work. This could be as big as giving organizers a full day off each week or it could be smaller, like encouraging our colleagues to take a lunch break (and walking the walk with them). 

If we don't address the negative energy exchange between campaigns / organizations and their employees, we will continue to burn through organizers as if they were an easily replaceable resource -- which they aren't! Any time an organizer "retires" from politics due to burnout, we're losing valuable institutional knowledge for whatever fight they were fighting. 

 

7) Why do you think these industries are especially prone to burnout?

I think they were built that way. The cyclical nature of our work allowed managers and leaders early on to ignore the fact that investing in worker's well-being brings about better results. They simply had to push their workers to get to Election Day and then the recovery was out of their purview. Once this culture was set and then glamorized in movies and TV shows (I'm going to date myself with a West Wing shout out here), we didn't stand a chance.

On top of that, the people I have had the pleasure of working with on progressive issues have all been idealists who see injustice in the world and are willing to sacrifice their own wellbeing in order to make the world a better place for others. I've seen plenty of campaigns and political organizations take advantage of that - not always consciously, but not always unconsciously either. 

8) I heard there’s a special deal for CampaignSickles. Tell me about that.

Yes! I am offering your readers 25% off of their first coaching session, whether they choose a one time coaching session (normally $150), the monthly option (normally $500), or the three month program (normally $1200). They simply need to tell me that you sent them when they sign up for their free 20 minute "Vibe Check" call. 

They will also be among the first to know about new programs that I create in response to the work I do with my 1:1 coaching clients. I've found a lot of similarities among the stressors that our folx are struggling with right now in my two months of coaching, so whenever possible, I want to take the practices that I give those folx and make them available to a bigger population.

9) How do we sign up?

The link for the 20 minute "Vibe Check" is https://bit.ly/20MinVibeCheckCalendar.

The link to sign up for the newsletter is https://bit.ly/SustainableMovementsNews. 

You can also follow me on Instagram or Linked In for smaller nuggets and links to the articles and books about stress management that I'm finding to be relevant to campaign folx.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lacey.a.connelly/   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laceyannconnelly/ 

10) Anything else you’d like us to know?

I appreciate everything that you do, Nancy, as well as the things that your readers are out there doing. Whether they are still working on campaigns or for progressive organizations or they've "retired" to a more stable career, the people who read CampaignSick have spent time doing something to make the world a better place. And that's the only way things will ever change. 

How to Write a Cover Letter, If You Must

Several weeks ago I shared my quest to eliminate cover letters and the reasoning behind it. Having done so, I recognize the reality is that cover letters are likely here for a while. Below is my best cover letter (and a little resume) advice in two parts. Note: Some of this advice can be found in this post from 2012 about writing a campaign resume, but it bears repeating.

Part One

Stuff you should do

1. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Every time I review applications I make a note to remind myself how little time I spend pouring over cover letters next time I am the one applying. Yes, your cover letter should be coherent, edited, and professional (see below) but it doesn't have to be a great work of literature. The sad truth is that a hiring manager is likely to just skim your cover letter, if they read it at all. So although I have been known to obsess over word choice, I promise you no one is going to notice if you use the word "managed" 3 times or care about the order in which you describe the projects you managed at your last job.

2. Prove that you understand the job. Hiring managers want to see that you are excited about the specific position for which you are applying and not just a) serving up a generic application or b) expecting the job to be something it isn't. Customize your cover letter for each application to show why you are the right fit for that particular role.

3. Use your cover letter to draw the connection between your experience and the job (especially if you think there might be questions.) 

4. Address your cover letter to a real person. If the job description instructs you to send your application to an email address with a name in it, address your cover letter to that person. If the job description has the role you'll be reporting to, google who currently holds that position.  If not, take your best guess based on the department in which the position resides. 

5. Show don't tell. Don't just regurgitate what's in your resume. Use the cover letter to expound on the points of your resume that you believe to be particularly salient. For example rather than simply saying "I managed a $560,000 dollar budget" you might want to talk about how you raised the money, what you spent it on,  how made decisions on where to invest that money and any notable challenges you faced and overcame in the process. If you tell me you are "passionate" about whatever my organization does you better explain how you've demonstrated that passion. 

6. Create a stable of cover letters. Just because you are going to customize doesn't mean you can't be smart about it. After you've written the first couple of cover letters for your job search you'll start to see patterns emerge. Maybe you reference campaign experience for some of the jobs you apply for and legislative experience for others. Maybe you emphasize working with constituents and voters when you apply for certain types of positions and working with candidates and elected officials for others. Pretty soon you'll have a variety of paragraphs you can tweak, mix, and match rather than reinventing the wheel every time.  

Part Two 

Stuff that drives me crazy as a hiring manager and I don't understand why people do it

1. For the love of all that is pizza, proofread your cover letter. The number one reason I look at a cover letter is to see if the author is a coherent, intelligent writer. Even if a resume seems like a too-good-to-be-true match for the position, if the cover letter is sloppy they won't even get an interview. This is not about quality prose, this is fundamental professionalism and respect for your audience. If I feel like you didn't put the time in to give your application a once over edit, that speaks volumes to me about the kind of work ethic and attention to detail you'll have on the job. 

2. Follow directions. If I ask you to include salary requirements in the job description (I wouldn't but someone might), include them. If I ask you to share how you found the listing, do that. Again this isn't just bout the actual information it's about whether you are willing and able to read carefully and follow simple instructions.

3. If I don't ask for salary requirements, don't include them. Unless I specifically ask, it is weird for you to tell me what you would need in order to take the job before it has been offered to you. Would you put "I require 3 weeks paid vacation and employer sponsored healthcare" in your cover letter? No. Don't get me wrong it is 100% okay and good to require those things but this is not the time. 

4. "References available upon request." Don't put this on your resume or in your cover letter. Like yeah no kidding you'll provide references if I ask for them, that's how this process works. If I ask for your references, provide them. Until I do, you don't need to bring them up. This isn't something that will automatically ding your application but it does smack of inexperience.

5. Your resume does not need an objective.  As I have oft heard Biden Campaign Manager/Deputy COS Jen O'Malley Dillon say "your objective is to get a job." Ditto with a "summary" at the top. Your resume is your summary. 

6. There is absolutely no reason your entry-level resume needs to be more than one page. The rule is one page per 10 years of experience. I have been in this business for 15 years and just begrudgingly let it spill on to another page. Spreading things out doesn't make you look more experienced, quite the opposite in fact.

7. Along with that don't list extracurricular activities or GPA if you are 3+ years out of college and never list "hobbies" on your resume. Unless you are applying for the first ever regatta/political campaign I don't care if you were on crew or enjoy standup comedy.  If you have hobbies and a 2-page resume, forget it. If for some reason you believe your personal interests are relevant to this particular job or campaign, that's a great thing to discuss toward the end of your cover letter. 

8. Don't lie. This should be obvious, but experience tells me it is not. The campaign/progressive infrastructure is small. Multiple times I have had a friend call me and say "I saw so and so was your field director, she's applying for a job here" and I have never heard of this person in my life. I even once received a resume for someone who claimed he was the campaign manager on a campaign I managed. This doesn't mean don't put your best foot forward but don't flat out change your job title unless you have had a specific conversation with your former manager. 

Look, job searching sucks and I hope I have made it a little less painful. How else can I help? Tweet me @CampaignSick.

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy 

Cover Letters are Bullsh*t and We Should Replace Them

I recently finished a bout of hiring and in my midway through frustration resolved to write a post about common cover letter and resume mistakes that drive me up a wall as a hiring manager. But there is something I felt I needed to address first: cover letters, as a concept, kind of suck. 

In the theory, cover letters are a way to make your application stand out. They should be a way to draw a connection between your experience and the job for which you are applying.  In reality, the only thing cover letters really do is judge your ability to write cover letters. If your parents are professionals and/or if you went to college you've probably received coaching or advice on how to apply to jobs. If not, well then not. 

As I've said, as a frequent reviewer of cover letters I can easily get frustrated with their authors. The rules of writing them feel so basic to me (edit for grammar and spelling!) that I often wind up penalizing applicants who write bad ones but very, very rarely move an applicant forward based their cover letter alone. As an applicant myself I've often found cover letters to be a stumbling block, obsessing over creative ways to rephrase information that I feel should be obvious from my resume and googling synonyms for "oversaw" and "managed." 

And please don't even start me on campaigns that refuse to divulge their candidate or district but still ask for cover letters in a job description. 

For all these reasons many organizations in the progressive jobosphere have been moving away from cover letters in favor of short answer questions usually around 250 words each. These questions provide three distinct advantages:

           1) Short answer questions cut out the superfluous window dressing that a cover letter entails ( "I was so excited when I saw your listing for....as a 15 year veteran of campaigns and non-profits...I look forward to the opportunity to further discuss how my skills can match your needs.) You don't want to write it, and I don't want to read it. 

           

          2) Short answer questions cut out the guesswork for less experienced applicants. A hiring manager can pose questions that ask for the information they would expect to learn in a cover letter but diminish bias against candidates who don't have that particular knowledge and skill. Some examples might be "How do your skills and experience make you a good fit for this position?" or "What excites you about working at our organization?" 

        3) Short answer questions also allow a hiring manager to request more specific and technical information than they'd normally glean from a cover letter. For example, "What advice would you give a candidate who is reluctant to ask friends and family for money?" or "A host's name is misspelled on an invitation for a fundraiser you sent out. How do you rectify the problem?" These type of questions can elicit insight into an applicant's thought process that a hiring manager normally wouldn't have until an interview stage. 

I hope you will seriously consider joining me in the cover letter revolution. But until then, I do have some tips. Part 2 coming soon!

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

There's a CampaignSick JobServe Now!

Ever since my Tumblr took off I've resisted suggestions to create a jobs listserve because there are so many good ones that already exist. The goal of CampaignSick has always been to add value to our community not to recreate the wheel. However recently I've gotten some renewed interest in doing so, particularly because Twitter followers have rightly identified the need for a jobserve that is free to both job seekers and posters. 

I want to be super clear: I'm trying to fill a need, not create competition. I don't fault any organization or individual for charging for their time. All this is to say...

The CampaignSick Jobserve is here!

To sign up: Follow this link and when you get there click "Ask to Join Group." I will approve you next time I check my email which, let's be real, is like every 5 minutes.

To post a job: Use this short and easy form.

Some rules and expectation setting:

1) I am going to do my best to keep up with this. As I alluded to, time is money, money is pizza and since I am doing this in my "free time" (a thing I have now that I work at a non-profit) you get what you pay for and I ask for your patience as I work out the kinks.

2) To that end, it is and always will be free to post and consume but if you find a job or new employee using CampaignSick jobserve or just find it useful please consider becoming a Patron or making a one-time donation via PayPal using the email address CampaignSick@gmail.com.

3) I reserve the right to post or not post jobs at my discretion. Reasons that something might be rejected include not being germane to our industry, not including salary ranges etc. (Sadly some of the heavy hitters in our industry still don't post salaries so this rule may not always stand but I want to set that as an expectation.) It goes without saying no unpaid internships. I may also pass along opportunities I find elsewhere that seem particularly exciting. 

This is still a work in progress so thank you for subscribing and passing along! 

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

The 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign: Where are they now?

(The 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Field Staff)

I don't like to mention specific jobs or projects I'm working on on the blog but in this case I will make an exception. As many of you know, during the 2020 cycle I had the extremely fortunate, rewarding. and exciting opportunity to be the Director and Senior Advisor to very campaign on which my career began, the Minnesota DFL Coordinated. While there were many differences between my first campaign and my most recent (please see, global pandemic) there were a lot of similarities including that they both ended with the question, "What now?"  

As I navigated and continue to navigate my own answers to that question I realized how helpful it would be for someone to help me draw a line between where I am now and where I might want to go. I thought that the brilliant, hard-working and fun to be around 2020 Minnesota Coordinated team might like the same thing. Using social media, a well-preserved t-shirt that just happened to have the 2006 Coordinated staff list on the back, and the 2006 DFL Coordinated Alumni Google group (probably like the year google groups were invented) I reached out to my former colleagues to ask them where they'd been.

Below are the results. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign?

Regional Field Director, CD-6

What is your current or most recent position?

Political Consultant/Campaign Manager for Rep. Dean Phillips 

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

RFD -> Pol Director for Rep. Tim Walz -> CM for Tim Walz (2010) -> Marriage Equality campaign (MN) -> starting my own consulting firm (and working for Rep. Dean Phillips)

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Working and managing a team of people. Volunteer recruitment and identifying volunteers who can lead recruiting others makes it all so much easier.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Showing up is so important - even when at first they don't pay you. Also, treat others the way you want to be treated.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? Regional Field Director, CD-1 (aka CampaignSick's first boss)

What is your current or most recent position? 

Chief of Staff to Congressman Jim Himes 

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?After a brief stint in DC helping set up Tim Walz's mail operation, went on a bunch of other campaigns around the country until I hit the campaigner's magic trifecta: liked the candidate, won, and there was a job afterward. After twoish years as Jim's district director, I moved down to DC.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Navigating difficult political situations and trying to unite diverse interests around common goals, and mitigating obstacles that can't be brought into the fold. Also first time as paid manager, learned a lot about how to support and develop talent.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Don't immediately hop at the next opportunity you see without checking in with mentors first. Conversely, don't agonize over making sure the next move is 'perfect.' If you're staying in politics, you have a long way to go, and there are a lot of different paths to get to your goal.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer, CD-2

What is your current or most recent position?

Field and Data Director, Environmental Voter Project

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

I continue to work MN elections and, briefly, was with the DCCC in IN08. I worked with the Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation for three years and then went to get an MPP from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at University of Minnesota. I joined my current organization in its infancy in 2016 and helped with it's expansion to a multi-state organization.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Nuts and bolts of organizing and elections, volunteer management, how to better work with supervisors, how to manage an intern program.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Think big - organizers can frequently be surprised at how quickly they can move into leadership positions. And don't be afraid to join the underdog campaign.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer, CD-3

What is your current or most recent position?

Director of Data & Communications Strategy for Eastman Music Company

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

After 2006, I worked for Obama in 2007 and 2008 moving all over the country. I then did various contract gigs for non-profits, the DNC, and other campaigns before moving into consulting, which brought me to Ohio and Michigan for wind energy advocacy for Axelrod's old public affairs company and then the wildest ride of my life consulting and living in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in 2012. After coming back to America, I worked back home in Minneapolis for a couple years before being recruited to a startup in Los Angeles, got laid off there after 1 year, and then luckily got picked up by a client I brought on prior to being laid off. That's my current job at Eastman, which is my longest-standing job, and I love it.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

There are so many small things you learn that translate to the working world: never fearing a phone conversation or a doorknock or in-person convo at an event, the importance of and various tactics to maximize signup data, the ability to operate inside an established database, persuasion and messaging techniques, telling your story, and so much more I'm not remembering right now.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

It wasn't until I found my current job at Eastman that I finally was able to live my life for me. After working at Eastman for a year, I discovered that this is ultimately what I wanted, and maybe it's something you'll come to realize if it's right for you. I was married to the campaigns and contracts and adventures, and while I wouldn't take back the experience for anything, I am so fucking happy I found a job I love that only requires 40ish hours per week from me. It allowed me to learn more about myself other than what I offer as an employee. With the job security and free time I was able to get healthy, save money, start a family, become a badass cook, experience all this amazing city (Los Angeles) has to offer, and so much more. It took over a decade for me to get here, and not every job any of us have is going to be our dream job (even this job that I love isn't my "dream job"), but it'll help us figure out what we want and what we don't want in our life. Good luck out there.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer

What is your current or most recent position?

Director, Sustainable Finance, S&P Global

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

I worked briefly for the DFL in the Comms office then as FD for Terri Bonoff’s Congressional Campaign. Then I got my MPA at the LBJ School at University of Texas, and worked part-time at Texas Impact, an interfaith social justice organization. After Austin, I moved to Washington DC, and worked for the Executive Office of the President at OMB, overseeing Federal credit programs and the Army Corps of Engineers budget for six and a half years. In 2016, I moved to the private sector but stayed in the area of infrastructure finance and environmental and social issues, first as a credit ratings analyst in the US Public Finance practice working on utilities, and now as a Director in our Sustainable Finance group.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Managing people and volunteers, crisis management, patience and perseverance, and I have been a stalwart defender of work-life balance since I left campaigns.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Be open to new ideas of fulfillment, but know that your skills are transferable and valuable wherever you are.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer

What is your current or most recent position? 

Controller, Colorado's Office of the Governor

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?I kept on the campaign trail, working Senate races and a presidential. In 2012, I managed a Congressional race in S. Florida, won, and went to Capitol Hill. I left the Hill in 2015 and managed a US Senate Race. Since then I've been in Colorado on campaigns and currently in the Governor's Office.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Like many first time organizers, I was fresh out of college and excited to be on the campaign trail. What I didn't expect was to be in a rural area by myself for much of the campaign. That meant figuring things out on my own; from how to fix downed VOIP phones to the best way to cut rural turf using giant maps picked up from the county courthouses. The most important thing I learned was how to listen and empathize with my volunteers and their community. These were citizens desperate to make positive change in their community after 6 years of George W. Bush, but they didn't need to spend 10 hours a week in the field office. Empathy is a totally underrated skill and not taught in poli sci classes, but is what good politics should really be about. It really helped me connect and understand the needs of my vols and the turf. It helped me make solid canvass plans, recruit volunteers, and build lasting relationships. Trying to be emotionally smarter has helped me ever since.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path? 

Build relationships and don't stop learning.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Regional Field Director, CD-7

What is your current or most recent position? 

COO, Rise

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle? 

Obama primary and general election campaigns 07-08, USDA appointee 09-16, briefly jumped back into electoral politics in 2017, advocating for sexual assault survivors ever since

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Relationships matter and organizing works

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

If you love campaigns, do it until you can't any more. If you don't, there are plenty of ways to work in politics without working in politics. Keep up with every positive connection you have; everyone you work with, everyone you made an impact on, everyone that made an impact on you

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer, CD-1

What is your current or most recent position?

I'm a litigator in private practice at a law firm in New York.

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle? After the 2006 election, I moved to DC to work on the Hill for several years before heading to law school in California. I then clerked for two judges and moved to New York to practice law.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Being a field organizer taught me grit. It was a freeing realization when dialing for volunteers to learn firsthand that inevitably, after receiving 99 not-homes, wrong numbers, and rejections, I was bound to eventually find that person who desperately wanted to join our cause. The same is true in life -- stay strong through the not-homes and wrong numbers, and big goals are possible.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Be patient. Work hard. Never give up.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer, CD-4

What is your current or most recent position?

Assistant Attorney General for the State of Minnesota

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

After 06, I moved to Washington DC and worked for Amy Klobuchar and Jeff Merkley in the US Senate for about 5 years. Then returned to Minnesota and received my law degree from the University of Minnesota.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

There is no substitute for work. Field work is hard work but working together as a team helps lighten the load.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

If you like politics, go to DC. It's awesome when you're young. If you think you might want to be a lawyer, don't wait too long. It's way harder the longer you wait.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Regional Field Director, CD-5

What is your current or most recent position?

CEO, VoteRiders

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

Finished law school, 08 and 10 cycles in MN, 7+ years at DLCC, 3+ Years at VoteRiders

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Middle management is hard. Learned to a) be on time to everything, b) tell the truth always, c) advocate for the path that makes clearly drives reality toward your goals, d) implement the plan as written, e) stay in your lane, f) be kind to others

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

1) see above, 2) talk w everyone - learn how this all fits together, 3) follow your passion and be open to possibilities you may not have considered

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Organizer

What is your current or most recent position?

Nurse practitioner

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

Worked in education nonprofits for a couple of years then went to nursing school in 2010. Became an NP in 2013. Now work as a pediatric NP.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Long hours and hard work

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Time management skills and multitasking are key on campaigns as well as in medicine. Also teamwork.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Field Director

What is your current or most recent position?

Climate and energy policy professional

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

After '06, I helped launch a labor/environmental coalition called the BlueGreen Alliance, focused on clean energy job advocacy. I then got my MBA at the University of Minnesota and began working on environmental and corporate sustainability at a Fortune 500 company. However, I was lured back to the politics and spent five years as a senior advisor on environmental policy issues for Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges and Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, respectively.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Working on the '06 campaign was especially helpful when I worked in the Governor's office. Understanding the tensions that can happen within the DFL based on regional/local politics and how that can affect a statewide legislative agenda was critical to that role.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Try things! It may not lead you to that perfect career path, but you should not think of that path as linear. You will at times pick the wrong job - it will be OK. Being willing to try new things, take some reasonable risks, and being willing to move on when things aren't the right fit will help prevent looking back and feeling regret.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Intern, CD-1 

What is your current or most recent position?

Analytics director for advertising agency

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

Stayed active with politics through College Dems at American University in DC. Then worked as a pollster for 8 years, working on ballot initiatives, IEs, lobbying campaigns, and commercial clients. For example, spent five years doing reseach/ad testing for 2020 Census ad campaign on a federal contract. Currently working on an ad campaign for HHS to encourage COVID-19 vaccines. Jeez... sounds like a lot when I put it that way...

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Initiative-- it takes courage to just start a conversation with someone and trust that you'll be able to come through alright. Also, i learned that you have to LOOK for tasks that need doing rather than waiting for someone to task you. One more-- Election night 2006, I was GOTV by flashlight in Austin MN with a partnee. It was cold and windy. Every voter we'd talked to for the last hour had already voted. Polls closed in 15 minutes. My canvas partner (who had the car) wanted to go. I decided to knock one last door-- an elderly woman answered. She had called our campaign office to setup a ride for herself and her daughter, but the driver never came.... !!! We had them jump in the car and they got into line to vote with 5 minutes to spare. That extra door made all the tramping around in the dark worth it.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Be willing to do the little & boring things the right way. Everyone has a role to play and you want to gain a reputation as reliable. This is a people business, job titles don't matter long term. Watch people you admire (see Nancy on making every volunteer feel appriciated) and try to figure out their magic. Remember to say thank you as many times as possible.

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What was your position on the 2006 Minnesota DFL Coordinated Campaign? 

Intern, CD-1

What is your current or most recent position?

Deputy Director for Research, The White House

Please briefly tell us about your career path. What have you been up to since the 2006 election cycle?

I’ve worked in a variety of campaign and consulting jobs since moving to DC in 2011, interning and then working full time at two polling firms in the 2012 cycle, working at an opposition research consultant in the 14 and 16 cycles, Deputy Research Director / Research Director for the Independent Expenditure at the Democratic Governors Association in 2018. Biden for President Deputy Research Director 2019-2020, followed by the same position on the Biden-Harris transition and the White House.

What skills/lessons did you learn on the 2006 Coordinated Campaign that prepared you for your current or most recent position?

Keep working hard for strong candidates you believe in and (eventually) things will work out. Always ask questions if you’re not sure what you’re doing on a campaign — your supervisor would rather spend five minutes showing you how to do something than an hour fixing your mistake.

What advice do you have for someone coming off their first or second campaign who would like to follow your career path?

Never be afraid to ask your precious bosses for help applying to new jobs — they want to help you. Keep in touch with old bosses, committee (dccc dscc dnc dfl etc) staff and consultants. Never get despondent about [what you think is] your dream job not working out. Go out of your way to help people you manage with future endeavors. Build a diverse team. Try to absorb as much knowledge as possible about your boss’s record and positions so you/coworkers never contradict them. Never work late for the sake of looking like working late or you’ll burn yourself out. Take post election vacations and turn off twitter (and always remember it isn’t real life!).

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I know this is a hard time for a like of campaigners who are job searching or aware that they will be again soon. What advice/answers would be helpful to you as you reach for your goals? Tweet me @CampaignSick and let me knoe!

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy