Next goal: Working in the White House?

I'm really excited about the job prospects for 2009. Last night, I attended a talk about the road to the White House for staffers. It was very interesting to hear about the speaker's own journey, and I loved that concrete steps and tips were shared. Once Obama gets sworn into office, I plan on putting my name out there for consideration (though, as I learned, my name has to be out there now). It would be an amazing honor to work for him even as a lowly staffer--definitely something to add to my resume and tell my kids.

But that brings me back to what I've been reminded at every event I've attended on the Hill: the importance of relationships. I've been working hard to plant seeds and make my presence on the Hill known. But I have so much further to go--so much further to go even in my own office. I've been in my office for 3 months now and I still don't know all of our staff. That has to change. I have all of August (yay, no interns!!) to get to know more staffers and share campaigning opportunities and Hill climbing strategies with my small circle of Hill allies.

It is so amazing to be on the Hill but the pressure is building to get myself positioned and to make the most out of my "short" time here. The key indicator is a feeling of ease. I feel comfortable in my position right now and as I learned at my last job, that is dangerous. During the first weeks of August, I plan on wiping out backlog tasks so that the next time the CoS asks if I need more to do, I will proudly say yes. Then, I'll be able to take on more, diverse tasks that will improve my skills and prove my value to the office.

I'll be sure to give you an update on my progress near the end of August. I know that there are at least a dozen lunches, fro-yo breaks, and informal pass-bys that need to be accomplished in the few weeks. It is intimidating to reach out to others (especially senior staff) but I know that it will be hard to move up on/off the Hill without those contacts.