Steve Dahlstrom of Spokane Teachers Credit Union in Congressman Reichert's chair.
Mark Minickiello running the show...
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
From the Congressman's Desk...
Top 10 Observations
Here my top 10 observations when we were meeting with Members of Congress and the Senators or their aides.
1. No matter how much information you have, if you can't make a concise argument in 2 minutes you won't make as much of an impact.
2. The best argument consists of what you bring as far as real life situations or anecdotes. If you can personalize the argument and have the member or aide connect with how it affects your members, you have a better chance of them remembering.
3. No matter how much you study the issue, or study the talking points, you won't have all of the answers. The staff, Mark Minickiello, Stacy Augustine, and Colleen Kelly, were very knowledgeable and able to answer the tough questions that came up. The unanswered questions were great opportunities for a follow-up with the member.
4. If you work on the hill you are either under 25, or over 50...
5. Grappa is great!
6. The length of time the member meets with you is directly related to the fear of not getting re-elected.
7. Many times you are not the first to have approached the issue to the Member, which reinforces the need to share your point of view as this will be the first time they have heard your thoughts on the issue.
8. Washington D.C. has very beautiful buildings, and is definitely "recession proof" in the construction industry.
9. Ethiopian Injera bread is very filling (thanks for the warning Christine)
10. Often times meeting with the aide or the policy advisor is the best way to ensure your voice is heard. You cannot expect every Member to know every issue and be up on every topic. Often times you have more influence with relationship with the aides and the advisors and it is so great that we have a presence in D.C. to help with that.(Thanks Colleen!)
1. No matter how much information you have, if you can't make a concise argument in 2 minutes you won't make as much of an impact.
2. The best argument consists of what you bring as far as real life situations or anecdotes. If you can personalize the argument and have the member or aide connect with how it affects your members, you have a better chance of them remembering.
3. No matter how much you study the issue, or study the talking points, you won't have all of the answers. The staff, Mark Minickiello, Stacy Augustine, and Colleen Kelly, were very knowledgeable and able to answer the tough questions that came up. The unanswered questions were great opportunities for a follow-up with the member.
4. If you work on the hill you are either under 25, or over 50...
5. Grappa is great!
6. The length of time the member meets with you is directly related to the fear of not getting re-elected.
7. Many times you are not the first to have approached the issue to the Member, which reinforces the need to share your point of view as this will be the first time they have heard your thoughts on the issue.
8. Washington D.C. has very beautiful buildings, and is definitely "recession proof" in the construction industry.
9. Ethiopian Injera bread is very filling (thanks for the warning Christine)
10. Often times meeting with the aide or the policy advisor is the best way to ensure your voice is heard. You cannot expect every Member to know every issue and be up on every topic. Often times you have more influence with relationship with the aides and the advisors and it is so great that we have a presence in D.C. to help with that.(Thanks Colleen!)
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