on choirs and leads

It's about four years ago now that I first got turned back on to politics. I mean, I hadn't ever stopped following politics, or volunteering on campaigns, or reading political theory. But it's four years ago now that I finally set eyes on an individual who I thought had that spark. That drive. That vision to make politics meaningful again.

I had just moved from Vancouver after four and a half years there. I had just turned 30. I had just come back from a four day stop over in Nairobi and a safari around Tanzania, then a road trip round the south island of New Zealand with a friend I'd made in the country before.

And now I was firmly stationed in the nation's capital, ensconced in a grey cubicle, settled into government, ready to do some good.

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My mom called from Vancouver. In recent years she's become a bit of a CNN junkie. She called to ask if I'd seen the Democratic National Convention the night before. I hadn't.

"They had a black guy, Cher. A black guy gave the speech! You should have heard him - he was incredible. Just incredible!"

I was skeptical. My politics and my mom's politics don't always mesh. And so, with few expectations, I found a video clip of the DNC keynote address online.

And as I watched it, I cried.

My boss found me there. In my suit, in my cubicle, hunched close to the monitor, with my headphones on. Crying as Barack Obama spoke.

"I think...maybe...you shouldn't be in this job," she started. "I think, maybe, you should be doing something...more."

And watching him speak, I wanted to do something more.

What got me about his speech that night was that he spoke my language - me, a drifter who's lived in seven cities now since 1991. Me, who's black, but grew up in a largely white and Asian city, with little black community. Me, who'd attended a decidedly exclusive, WASPY, upper class, all-girls' school. Me, who's a bookworm and a club kid, both at the same time. Me, who's drawn to Jews and gays, both communities, in equal parts.

Somehow, this Obama guy, he spoke to all of that.

In the advocacy world, we place a premium on coalition-building. On stakeholder outreach and the development of support from non-traditional groups. After all, how much more impactful is it to have a broad coalition of voices making your ask, than to have your CEO pleading his case alone?

But because we lobbyists know this intuitively, it's easy to dismiss coalition-building as a mere tactic, and not as a fundamental root of a client's entire campaign. Maybe they can't afford to pay us to do stakeholder outreach. Maybe we know someone who knows someone who can help change a law, introduce new regulations, allocate funds in the next budget. And so we don't need a coalition to secure the client's ask.

But then, that's the difference between a Pied Piper and a Miles Davis, no?

Sure, there's a huge crowd behind the Piper, but Miles now, Miles is transforming the game.

Last night Hillary recounted to South Carolinians that the difference between a politician and a statesman is that the politician looks to the next election, but the statesman looks to the next generation.

Ironically, I think she just summed up the difference between herself and Barack.

Hillary Clinton is like that lobbyist-for-hire, constructing the most strategic, expedient, accessible (but credible) coalition of supporters available, because they are one arrow in the range of arsenal needed to win the immediate political goal.

But Barack Obama campaigns like a true-believer. Cultivating a coalition from the grassroots is his political goal.

Which is why he'll stand at Martin Luther King's old pulpit in Atlanta and call on the black community to be more supportive of gays and lesbians and not tolerate those who use anti-Semitism as a means to divide.

It's why he calls for an expansion in the number of soldiers and Marines, but also of Foreign Service officers, and suggests that language training is as important as weapons training if diplomacy is to precede military action in Iran.

It's why he places equal emphasis on the contributions of Asian-Americans and Native Americans, and doesn't just fall back on the usual rhetoric of blacks vs. whites.

Because he's trying to lead an America in which there's a setting for everyone at the table.

Hillary's just trying to lead. You get the feeling she'll worry about the guest list once she's confirmed that the table's hers.

And so, in our own everyday lives, what can we do to keep in touch with the original sparks that moved us to pursue our current goals? How can we avoid getting lost in the tactical manoeuvres required to bring us to those goals?

How can we make sure that the vision of the destination to which we aspire doesn't start to eclipse our view of where (or on whom) we're treading as we head towards our goals?

And if we get to the end line, and we find that there's nobody with us there, how can we develop the courage to go back and start all over again, to ensure that this time, we don't miss the point?

tipping points, influencers, leaders of the pack

A middle-aged aquaintance came back from vacation Monday and said the best thing about her vacation had been the chance to hang out with her 20 year old daughter. She said that at that age, the only way to know what was happening in your daughter's life was to spend time with her and hear accidental confessions throughout the day.

She said she was constantly surprised to hear her daughter had organised entire evening plans while they were watching tv - just by texting, IM-ing, and sending emails to friends.

And it occurred to me - my god, there is a generation gap caused by technology. And so I wondered what other trends boomers might be missing.

It's just after 10:30pm right now and Hillary Clinton is leading Obama by about 6,000 votes in New Hampshire. The Associated Press has called the vote in favour of Clinton, and we're waiting now to hear the call from CNN.

Again there's a blow by blow analysis underway of the woman vote and the youth vote, and what it all means for the two front runners.

But something strange - in reference to youth today, I heard one pundit refer to voters in their 30s...is that still considered young?

My question now is how many pundits are baby boomers and how big is the gap between them and us? When the Boomers were in their 30s, they had kids who were school aged. Gen X'ers and Gen Y'ers are waiting longer to get married and have kids. We communicate more widely, but more silently. And so, is it possible the Boomers still think of us as seen but not heard?

Certainly when it comes to Iowa and New Hampshire, the impact of the 35 and under vote seems to have taken the media by surprise.

If that's the case, then I wonder what other trends and influencers we might be missing if we're relying on media pundits to be our guides?

A colleague drew my attention today to the following book, which was written by the head of one of our sister companies in the States: Microtrends, by Mark Penn.

The book's described by Bill Clinton and Bill Gates as:

"The ideas in his book will help you see the world in a new way." -Bill Clinton

"Mark Penn has a keen mind and a fascinating sense of what makes America tick, and you see it on every page of Microtrends." -Bill Gates

And the publisher summarises its approach as:

In 1982, readers discovered Megatrends. In 2000, The Tipping Point entered the lexicon. Now, in Microtrends, one of the most respected and sought-after analysts in the world articulates a new way of understanding how we live. Mark Penn, the man who identified "Soccer Moms" as a crucial constituency in President Clinton''s 1996 reelection campaign, is known for his ability to detect relatively small patterns of behavior in our culture-microtrends that are wielding great influence on business, politics, and our personal lives. Only one percent of the public, or three million people, is enough to launch a business or social movement.

Relying on some of the best data available, Penn identifies more than 70 microtrends in religion, leisure, politics, and family life that are changing the way we live. Among them: People are retiring but continuing to work. Teens are turning to knitting. Geeks are becoming the most sociable people around. Women are driving technology. Dads are older than ever and spending more time with their kids than in the past.

You have to look at and interpret data to know what's going on, and that conventional wisdom is almost always wrong and outdated. The nation is no longer a melting pot. We are a collection of communities with many individual tastes and lifestyles. Those who recognize these emerging groups will prosper. Penn shows readers how to identify the microtrends that can transform a business enterprise, tip an election, spark a movement, or change your life. In today's world, small groups can have the biggest impact.

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Only one percent of the population is needed to start a movement?

If my aquaintance is any indication - or the media who questioned whether America could be ready for a black Commander in Chief - the Boomers may well be surprised in the not so distant future by a "silent" Gen X and Y coup.

am i smug?

Well, I hate to say I told you so, but....I never doubted Obama's broad-based support. Am watching CNN, where they are still talking about how many women, how many young people, and how many black people voted for Obama in the Iowa caucuses.

Irrelevant!!!

Primaries are about getting out the vote. For months now, Obama has been reporting that he doesn't accept funding from PACs or lobby groups. Which means that he was raising roughly the same amount of money as Clinton - but from a larger group of people.

Still the pundits focused on gender, age and race. Keep your eye on the ball people - he had more individuals supporting him than Clinton. Less rich maybe, than her supporters, but more of them.

Wolf is calling the win dramatic. How can having more supporters pre-vote, direct experience as a community organiser (and therefore of getting people off the couch and into the street/voting booth) possibly result in a dramatic win?

Only dramatic if you're not paying attention because you don't think a 40-something black man could possibly win.

But wait - isn't that what they said about a 40-something Catholic called Kennedy?