How to Kick Off Your Government Relations Career By Investing Just One Hour of Your Time Per Day Doing This

So you want to be in government relations? Well, this is a hot-topic career, and it is a career where you have to have your finger on the pulse 24/7 otherwise you’re likely to fall behind. Whether you are a lobbyist or work in government relations for an NGO, you need to spend 1 hour a day reading the news.

Why read the news?

You need to stay sharp in order to kick your career off. If you aren’t in the know, then you don’t exist. Reading the news will help your career because:

It can provide you with business opportunities

If you are just starting out in the field of government relations, you might not have discovered your niche. When you find an article that fires you up, or is foreign to you, this could be an opportunity in disguise.

It allows you to build and grow your network

Most of the op-ed’s written in D.C are by lobbyists so take the time to read what your colleagues are putting out, and contact them to introduce yourself and share your opinions on their pieces. With communication about the articles you can grow your knowledge and feel empowered to step out into the field of government relations.

It can give you insight into how other Lobbyists think and feel

There are many lobbyists out there. Some of the big names include folks like Brian Ballard and David Urban who has been lobbing since the early 2000s. David Urban works for CNN and is seen as the authority on the inner-workings of government relations. Reading the news and listening to Mr. Urban’s opinions will help you grow in your role, and maybe even provide you with an angle you hadn’t thought about in your own lobbying campaigns.

Lobbying is influenced by the media

The opinion of the masses is almost always dictated by the media. The media have a front-row seat in American homes so the information they put out is paramount in setting the tone of a subject. In watching the news for 1 hour a day, you can take stock in the opinions of Americans and figure out how you can manipulate that to bolster your budding government relations career. Lobbying is done behind closed doors and the general public don’t usually have a say in the matter, but their tone effects the congressmen and senators who make the decisions. In reading or watching the news, you can offer the politicians advice on the issue by referencing the overall tone of people’s opinions on the matter.

Reading or watching the news is the best way to launch your career because it allows you to think about your field, know what the hot button topics are and it allows you the valuable information you need to build a network, and it might even help you find your dream job as a government relations officer