For aspiring politicians, knowing how to engage and reach the masses with their ideas and beliefs is essential. But knowing what to say is just as important as how to say it.
Now that the campaign's over, and the President will be inaugurated in a matter of weeks, I am no longer a representative of Obama for America. And I have a few confessions to get off my chest about this summer.
The way AdWords is used isn't always ethical. The good news is that it's cheaper for a campaign to use AdWords in an ethical manner than it is for negative campaigns to try to destroy opponents with it.
While most people would not enjoy the process of analyzing and budgeting expenditures it is something that must be done. The inefficient and useless expenditure of money can be major impediments to accomplishing your financial goals.
Candidates must bridge these types, persuading voters to see them both as the big budget hero -- "He's all of us" - -and at the same time, as an indie-protagonist -- "He's one of us."
Frequently, citizens' votes have more to do with who they are as opposed to who the candidates are or what their ads say. That's why when it comes to winning elections in close races understanding psychographics trumps demographics.
While watching the 2012 political campaigns unfold, it reminds me of my ex's 1992 race for U.S. Congress. As a worrywart I multi-minutiae-worried my way through the entire campaign.
So how is it possible that Mitt Romney can even be considered for the most important job in the world? How can Paul Ryan even be considered for the spot next in line?
With ads like the one Courage Campaign insists on keeping up, which proclaims, "Every year my 'cokehead' brother ruins Christmas," society tells addicts and their loves ones that addicts, not addiction, are bad.
Crucially, the president himself must become a critic. One flop may not an election make, but a second one? Can't happen. At the next rumble -- er, debate -- Mr. Obama must pull off Mr. Romney's many masks and expose his contradictions.
Looking back, it's been fascinating to track the 60-year evolution of the political ads -- from the chirpy Eisenhower and Kennedy spots, complete with jingle-like campaign songs, to the more sophisticated and harder-hitting commercials we see today.
Typically, we see online video incorporated into political campaigns as advertisements and recordings of speeches. However, it can be much more.
Political campaigns demand levels of trust and commitment that are best generated face-to-face. Humans respond deeply and profoundly to the unique chemistry of community that arises when we gather together.
Somewhere along the way, the terms "campaigning" and "fundraising" have become inseparable. But can we imagine it any other way?
I only wish that candidates were held to the same standards of fact that CEO's of public companies are. If CEOs were as vague, fast and loose with the facts as our candidates are, they would be in big trouble.
If America was only about individual enterprise without a strong central government, we'd be a series of fiefdoms in search of a common mission and struggling to rise to even a third-world level.
You might think that with such low approval ratings, Americans would be stalking the ballot box, waiting to vote out their dysfunctional leaders, right?
For too long, the bright shiny object has been exploited by people for their own greed and corrupt agendas.
Ever since Nixon, Republicans have campaigned on the lessons they learned about TV back then. For a long time, those lessons served them well. The trouble is, TV is no longer our culture's dominant medium. It's being replaced by the Internet.
So, to Republicans, it doesn't matter what the Heritage Foundation or Mitt Romney actually did. As the Mad Men taught them, all that matters is the image a viewer sees at any given moment.
For awhile now, I've had some qualms about political incumbents, re-elections, and multiple terms. The whole concept just doesn't sit well with me.
It's time to demand more of our legislators, and the best time to do that is when they are candidates. Your time and your money are precious -- don't waste it on candidates who do not value diversity on a very deep level.
How can we combat lies, even from the side we favor? How do we hold our leaders responsible for the truth and stand up to the fictions perpetrated upon us by Supreme Court condoned Super PACs? The first step is simple if we think to do it. Ask questions, debate and challenge.
Barack Obama has made his mistakes as a politician and as a president, but here is one thing he indisputably did right: pummel Mitt Romney with a voll...
If leading is meaning-making, those who aspire to leadership have work to do. We need a story that helps us make sense of the realities we face, calls upon core values that bind us together, engages our best efforts and our collective sacrifice.
