Guest Commentator: Tyrone Scott, Director of Government and External Affairs, First Up @FirstUpEarlyEd
How can leaders empower their teams to support organization-driven advocacy efforts that generate real impact?
For people to advocate effectively, they need to understand why the issue is important to them personally. As someone working in early childhood, I always say, “You either have a kid, know a kid, or were a kid.” Start with the big picture, then zoom in on its importance to that person, whether they know it or not. At some point, people who were in preschool are going to affect your life, if only in the hand-washing habits of the waiter at your favorite restaurant.
You have to understand the group’s interests, motivation, and what they want to support. If you’re trying to get them to advocate for a cause or an organization they don’t believe in, you’re not going to get much traction. In a way, it’s like sales. You must figure out a way to sell to your audience if you want them to buy in. You can start with the whole team, but ultimately you must find a way to move an individual to see this as something worth their time.
Then, don’t just tell them what to do; get them to ask how they can help. Treat adults the same way we want teachers and parents to treat children. Ask open-ended questions. “What would you like to do?” Take their answers and create some possibilities if they need guide rails. Since not everybody has the same depth of experience or available time, I already have an array of choices in mind, from clicking on a link to social media posts to speaking at a press conference in Harrisburg.
It’s also important to not require everybody to engage. Then they will just do it to get the boss off their back. Ask them what real impact means to them and what they can do to generate it. It’s like working on business questions or metrics for a team: What do we want to achieve and how can we get there? Let the team offer ways to make things happen so they—and not the bosses—are driving the effort.
Having everyone sign a petition or show up on Martin Luther King Jr. Day is something. But when the team is leading and continuing an effort, that’s real success. Successful advocacy efforts need to be led by a team that is asking, “What comes next? How can we continue to be helpful to this cause?”
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