-: When I interviewed for the job I currently have
what I told them is, I can learn your issues.
I can learn your issue area, I can learn what's important.
I can learn what it is that we need to accomplish.
That's all attainable. So don't worry so much
about specializing in any one subject matter area,
because all you're doing is pigeonholing yourself
moving forward. What you need to have
is a very broad skill set in things
that are important to this job.
For example, communicating. If you can't communicate,
you aren't gonna cut it. You have to be able to speak.
You have to be able to write.
You have to be able to recognize what you're saying
and who you're saying it to. And how you change those things
for audiences, because internal messaging
and external messaging are two different things.
External messaging to somebody who is
supportive of your position is different
than external messaging when you're dealing with
somebody who's undecided, or somebody who's
likely to oppose what it is you're pushing for.
So, communication is key.
Um, and it's all types of communication.
Now, I'm not necessarily a social media person,
I'm lucky I've got marketing folks who do that for me.
But, I do a lot of my own writing,
in terms of doing news updates, press releases,
outward facing documents that go to the government,
that go to other third parties.
You know, I take all of that on,
because I'm trying to synthesize
the what it is I'm trying to say,
with the how I'm going to say it.
And you have to understand both sides
to be able to get it right. So I think,
focusing on your writing, focusing on
composition, focusing on public speaking.
If you can't speak to a group,
If you can't - you know whether it's standing up
in front of several hundred, which I've done before,
and speaking at a conference session.
Or whether it's on a one-to-one basis,
in true interpersonal communication.
Those are things you have to have to be successful
in a government relations position. Because, that's the job.
You're relating to people on a day-to-day basis.
For a lot of people, it means start working
in a congressional office as a staffer,
and then branching out from there
and going into the private sector.
Or going into the association space.
You might start at a larger "Think Tank"
type organization or research organization.
And go from a pure policy prospective,
into advocating for those policies.
There's a lot of different ways to get here from there.
But, as long as you have those good core skills
that you can continue to develop as a professional,
I think that's the most important thing.
So again, focusing on communicating, writing,
expressing yourself thoughtfully, concisely.
Not, you know, being too caught up in
what you're trying to accomplish,
but also listening to those around you.
If you can develop those skills well,
before you ever set foot in a professional setting,
you're gonna be a step ahead of those peers
that haven't done that work.