You as a Candidate

FOCUS – The woman who attends this workshop should catch the image of being elected to public office and how to prepare for that role

She should walk out of this workshop thinking she can do this – where before she may have been hesitant or just never thought of herself as a candidate. She should learn in this workshop how to prepare herself in the areas of:

  • Education – from all sources; formal, self-taught, experience, training, etc
  • Experience – what experiences is she having now those, even though she hasn’t realized it, are preparing her to be a candidate one day?
  • Community Service – making a name for herself
  • Interest and knowledge of issues – stay current – a strong position on an issue can lead her into elected office. US Representative (retired) Jim Hansen’s political career began when he entered the race for the Farmington City Council because he became aware of cattle walking thru the source for community drinking water. No one wanted to touch the problem, so he ran on that issue – he ended up as the 10th most influential man in Washington DC.
  • Learn the legislative process – understand how laws are made, defeated, etc.
  • Understand coalitions and networks
  • Why not run for office – consider the possibility rather than thinking she could never do it.
  • The impact on her family (pros and cons) of being a candidate
  • Why do we need more influence of women in government? This area is real important.
  • How she can start to prepare herself (even though the right time for her to be a candidate might not be until several years from now); PTA, town/city council, board or commission, officer of a club or organization, any leadership role

Thepurpose, again, is to conduct a workshop that will open her eyes to the possibility of being a candidate and how they can prepare themselves to be ready when that opportunity arises – to prepare her with new experiences and to recognize the value of her accomplishments to this point.

She may not be thinking of herself as a candidate and may not at this time be aware of what may be currently preparing her for candidacy in the future. The workshop should help her identify what has prepared her to be able to accept the opportunity to run should it present itself – and once she decides to run, recognize she will rely heavily on all she has accomplished and experienced previously in her life.