Political

How to survive a campaign and not sell your soul

The successful (and at times rather controversial) Australian pollster Mark Textor has a great piece in the Sydney Morning Herald about how to survive election campaigns. It includes these tips:

The biggest mistake you can make is to not tell someone you have made a mistake. Campaigns are planning machines. There is a process and a meeting for everything, including dealing with crises. But there is no machinery for the crises you don’t know about and the worst thing in politics is the surprise that bites you in the arse on a Tuesday morning…

Eat well. You don’t win a race on McDonald’s. Nor do you win a campaign on it. A colleague was once even diagnosed with scurvy during a campaign…

Unshowered staffers, bad coffee, crap hours, crowded offices, rubbish food, people wandering around in their socks as well as lonely fathers, partners and any semblance of a normal life temporarily trashed. It ain’t the West Wing but it is an experience to remember fondly, especially if you win.

The full piece (including a rather different Australian attitude to betting from that in British political circles) is well worth a read.

And of course if you are looking for some further campaign advice, I can suggest 101 Ways To Win An Election

Hat-tip: Phil Cowley and Matt Chorley.

 

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