Wanna be in the room?

~ intheroomwhereithappens

Welcome to In the Room Where It Happens, a place to explore the topic of women in leadership roles in post 2016 Election world.  Our democracy should be representative of the people it serves and we need more women in the room where it happens—where the decisions are being made!  This doesn’t mean that we just need more women in elected office, we also need them working on campaigns, leading industries, and getting involved in their community.

As I start this experiment I want to set a foundation that is truthful, and to make this a place where ALL points of view are welcomed and respected.

First, I will disclose I am a Democrat.  I believe in Democratic values and I am not ashamed to admit it.  I am also not ashamed to admit that I love when people question my values and engage me in a good dialogue.  The only way we are going to become more thoughtful and tolerant of each other, and move forward in a positive and productive way, is understand each other’s point of view.  This is my way of saying that I hope Republicans and non-partisans will feel welcome in this discussion.

Second, I have spent my entire professional life in politics.  My time has been spent on campaign strategy and lobbying.  This blog will be based on my experiences and the things that are on my mind after 18 years of doing this work.

Next, as someone who has been doing this for almost two decades I sometimes say things as if they are self-explanatory when they are not.  If you are new to political discussions please ask questions.  I want this to be approachable and understandable to everyone.  If there is a term, acronym or idea that is not clear, please don’t hesitate to say so.

And lastly, I am an extremely private person and the thought of starting a public blog is absolutely terrifying.  This is the first time I have ever dared to share my personal views in a public forum.  I am bound to mess this up.  I welcome suggestions to make this a safe environment that fosters a respectful dialogue about women in leadership roles.  In the end, I will have been successful at this endeavor if women embrace their value and find inspiration to use it.

The very insightful Tina Fey said “You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the water-slide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.” So, here goes…

19 thoughts on “Wanna be in the room?”

  5. Bravo. Looking forward to the discussion. I broke through a few glass ceilings on my way through a manufacturing during the 1989s & 90s. Ever forward and thanks for initiarmting this duscussion.

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    1. Hi, Judy. I’ll be honest, I don’t know how many other blogs are dedicated to women in leadership roles.
      I decided to start a blog now because I was inspired by Mika Brzezinski and encouraged by brother.
      I recently read a book by Brzezinski called “Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You’re Worth.” It’s a great book that I highly recommend all women read. It’s about advocating to get paid what your skills are worth, but it also got me thinking about appreciating my own value in terms of the knowledge I have to share.
      Not long after reading the book I was chatting with my brother about my how my work in politics has influenced my views on women in politics and he thought that there may be other women (and men) out there who would find value in what I was saying.
      As I said in my post, I am an extremely private person, but part of the reason I have never shared much publicly is because I never thought my opinion would matter to the masses. And, maybe it wont, but I am learning that I value what I have to say enough that I should share it and see what happens next.

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  9. Thank you for starting this! I heard about it through your brother, and was excited to share the link with friends and women legislator friends (who just started up their current year today). Good discussion is sometimes hard to come by, especially in this current political climate.

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  10. So excited to read your thoughts and insights! I am working on getting started on my own political career as a young woman in Chicago and could use all the advice you have to offer

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  11. As a very interested observer in your nation’s ‘moment’, and knowing that here in the U.K., we have a PM, Leader of the SNP (Scottish National Party) Leader of Plaid Cymru (Welsh National Party) all of whom are women. I am really interested to see how your blog and the responses develop . Thank you, Christine Dukes, Wales

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  13. Hi, like Christine Dukes I am from the UK. It will be interesting to share thoughts, comments, experiences etc. One active group in the UK, the 30% club, has the aim of getting women to be up to 30% on boards. But we also need to get visibility and participation up in other areas too.

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  14. Hooray!! I am thrilled to have found another like mind. Please start a Facebook page — it makes it easier to follow you and your posts. I look forward to being in The Room Where It Happens. We all have work to do together!

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  15. Your opening post is inviting and has made me curious. I am very new to political discussion, yet I’d like to understand it better. I’ve been caught up in attitudes towards women in the corporate world that left me bemused, angry and disempowered. Discussion, communication and sharing in the way you intend is a valuable thing. I look forward to reading more about your experience and your thoughts. I’m in the UK and signposted here by your brother; he’s right about the sharing, the value in it. I appreciate it. Sally

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  16. Thank you so much for starting this blog! I am very excited to see a blog about women in politics from an experienced politician!

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