Election Results - Motivating Politicians

Posted by Vince Poscente on Wed, Nov 07, 2012 @ 05:30 AM

We either ignore, complain or take action when our politicians make a choice. There is one more option: Stay on their horribly-low-approval-rated-butts and make sure they make choices for the people, not the political party or self-interests. This involves a new order of involvement (easier offered than accomplished - but still doable and ultimately necessary in today’s environment of distrusted politicians).

Before the economy turned south in 2008, yours truly hated looking at the numbers. My motivational speaker filtered eyeballs would glaze over at a P&L statement. With a form of numerical dyslexia… words like “budget” actually spelled “snore.” Tax forms made noises like “blah, blah, blah.” Bank statements resembled leaflets for garage doors or lawn care.

That all changed when we had to get serious about finances. The luxury of sitting on the unaccountable porch swing, sipping the sweet ice tea of ignorance was no longer an option.

In the last four years my order of involvement surrounding numbers and finance changed… for the better. It was as if a new sheriff was in town. I got accountable on accounting.

The same, order of involvement surrounding politician accountability and the elimination of citizen ignorance is waiting for us. Do this and your representative will know there’s a new sheriff in town – that sheriff is you.

Here are 3 Do’s to monitor what your political representative(s) are doing for you:

  1. Track your representative on Google Alerts . You will be able to follow what he or she is being reported on. If they are representing your interests, you’ll know pretty quickly. If they are blocking progress, climb all over that low-approval-rated-butt. In the US – here is the link to find who your representatives are .
  2. Follow your representative on Social Media. Facebook Pages and Twitter work well. If you see something amiss, write them. Post questions about it. Ask questions without publicly jumping to conclusions. Be forceful in getting right with the answers you hear.
  3. Get on two email subscriber lists – the representative’s and the political watchdog of your choice. Again, question without judgment. Keep asking questions to get answers. Make those answers public in your own way.

Here are the 3 Don’ts:

  1. Do not follow media outlets with political agendas. You’ll only be hearing a biased point of view. Let’s leave brainwashing up to the North Korean government.
  2. Don’t trust pundits who use anecdotal evidence or sound bites as universal fact. If you fall into their narrative you’ll be limiting your own voice.
  3. Absolutely do not forward emails that polarize or demean. Keep your eye on the prize: Positive results are the solutions you seek. Choosing to destroy someone’s character only throws gasoline on fires of distrust and fear.

Those in the free world have a freedom of rights but not a freedom from responsibility. Hop off the porch swing. Put down the sweet iced tea. Jump into a new order of involvement and seek true, sustained election results.

Please "Like" us on Facebook

Tags: Goals, Business Leadership