Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Obama: What will Moving Forward Look Like?

Washington, DC -- There was a very interesting article in yesterday's New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/26/us/politics/26grassroots.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=todayspaper) about how President Obama is going to move forward and utilize the tremendous asset of his campaign supporters, volunteers and new media techniques.

A couple of things strike me as intriguing about this story. One, how does Organizing For America, already fairly well-branded by the "Obama" name achieve its grassroots organizing and community engagement goals without being perceived too much as an arm of the President himself? And two, how do the campaign's volunteers stay engaged over the course of the long-term without experiencing fatigue and without the direct connection to Barack Obama himself that was such a motivator during the campaign?

One thing is certain from these questions, the talent, effort and dedication of the individuals that worked on and volunteered for the presidential campaign is great and is well-equipt to take on many challenges. Further, if the vision of an organization that can communicate and educate the general public becomes a reality, that entity could have long-term benefits to our national community as a public service institution.

It seems to me that the more we can continue to use technology and new media tools to connect and organize our communities, the more you will see these tools evolve and innovate. Remember, many of these techniques have never been used before so we are going to have a learning curve with successes and failures. Keep your eyes on how tools the campaign used to organize communities evolve into regular communication strategies and tactics for private companies, non-profits and other political candidates.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Thoughts from the Inside (Beltway and Otherwise)


This evening, as I was exiting the Gallery Place-Chinatown movie theater, my friend and I strolled past an Urban Outfitters. If you haven’t been to Gallery Place-Chinatown, Urban Outfitters is of course one of the dozen or so chain brand names populating this recently ‘redeveloped’ neighborhood of DC. Along with Legal Sea Foods, Potbelly Sandwiches, Starbucks, Fado and McDonalds, Urban Outfitters occupies its customary spot on the sidewalk menu of Main Street America. Anyhow, in its window dressings was a huge display of Obama shirts, posters, and other stuff. I was paused and scanned the entire window with a look of confusion and wonder. This is the place that sells those stupid “Ithaca is Gorges” shirts!

The window dressing at Urban Outfitters delivered a sudden dose of reality…Barack Obama has become a brand name. (http://search.urbanoutfitters.com/?q=obama)

Now, let me be clear about something: I have recognized and pontificated many times about this fact both during and after the Election – Barack Obama and barackobama.com are the most successful start-up business of the last 3 years. But, the Urban Outfitters display crystallized it into a sobering reality that prompted a trance of deep self evaluation and reflection.

What does it mean to have been one of the ‘early ones’, if you will?

How long will the Obama branding last?

Will the success of Obama branding help or hinder bringing the change we’ve sought to achieve?

Is anyone else having these same thoughts?

For those folks who dedicated themselves to Obama for America early in the primary season – those first 6 months – when Barack was down 20-25 points in every poll, seeing an Obama ’08 bumper sticker or t-shirt was like the highlight of our day…”maybe they can volunteer!” we would think to ourselves. Hell, that lasted really until Barack hit the hot streak in February. Now, you can’t go 10 minutes in Seattle, Denver, Chicago or Washington, DC without seeing an Obama sticker. The contrast is stark even across these many months.

The truth is, I don’t have answers to any of these questions. They are just questions that have popped up in my mind and found themselves as subtle themes in conversations we have around town.

Here is what I do know…

1. Case studies on OFA should be done in Business and MBA programs around the country for how to run a business, develop a brand and display executive leadership

2. The Obama brand seems to deliver a message of optimism and a mission to folks, which can only help continue the progress we are making and deliver the change we seek

3. There are about 6,812 different Obama t-shirt styles available on the streets of Washington, DC.

If you have any thoughts on this post or others, please feel free to post your comments. Storytelling is a collaborative relationship between narrator and audience.

-NFK

Inauguration: A Summary Account


It is challenging to accurately describe and encapsulate what Inauguration week and Washington, DC felt like, so I am going to turn to a metaphor to help capture some of the subtleties better than a general description.

Inauguration Week was like a honeymoon.

That is to say, the campaign and evolution of since the campaign started has been like a good relationship. The primary season was an intense, fast-paced, carefree existence. We followed our instincts, our goal was singular in nature but complex in execution and it was very, very fun. Then, the relationship became ‘official’ if you will, with the nomination victory. Then, we had a serious relationship during the general; a stable, stronger foundation, more conscientious of implications of our actions and certain we wanted to reach a goal we mutually shared. Election Night is kind of a like a synthesis of engagement and marriage at once – the commitment is sealed. Since the Election, it has been planning for the future and looking forward to the celebration of our achievement with Inauguration Week being the highlight of that honeymoon period. Now, we have finished the celebration; we are taking action and making decisions for the soundness and benefit of our long-term future. We focus on the strength and bonds of our relationship and look to make the future better for the younger generation.

Our nation’s capital was flooded with people from all over the country. I can only think of one word to describe it: Obama-Fest. Vendors, street sellers, parties, music, concerts and celebrations occurred in the streets, all for one man and his movement. I don’t think we’ll see anything like it again in our lifetimes. At 7:00 pm on Sunday, January 18, there were hundreds of people on the sidewalks of U Street in Northwest DC. A street that was destroyed in 1968 in the wake of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination and a neighborhood that has only just begun to repair itself in the last decade from that historical devastation. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U_Street)

On Monday, January 19, I helped at RFK Stadium in southeast DC for the National Day of Service (http://www.usaservice.org/content/home/). We assembled over 82,000 care packages in a tent that covered an entire football field. We stood on our feet non-stop for 12 hours, managing thousands of volunteers to complete our mission. Among the VIP’s who helped were Michelle Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Gov. Jennifer Granholm (MI), among others. It was one of the most impressive operations I’ve witnessed. You can’t imagine the logistics that went into coordinating this event. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/18/AR2009011802072.html)

On Tuesday, January 20, Inauguration Day itself, my cousin, Krista, and I woke up at 5:30 am to get in line at 6:45 am. We stood there fore 4 hours, moving a total of 15 feet before we got out of line and threw ourselves into the masses of people crowded around the entrance. Fortunately for us, we managed to squeeze our way in before the gates closed behind us. We were literally in the last two dozen folks to get in. Unfortunately, thousands of other ticket holders were unable to make it (http://voices.washingtonpost.com/sleuth/2009/01/three_days_after_the_inaugurat.html). By the time we got into our section, there was no real tangible benefit to our viewpoint over that which folks outside the gates would have had. However, the sense that “we made it” was powerful and it compelled a self-reflecting moment of achievement and finality to the months of work we put into the campaign.

Later that evening, we attended the Youth/MTV Ball (http://www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/obama_inauguration/series.jhtml) at the Washington Hilton on Connecticut Ave. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Hilton). Needless to say, we had a blast. Kid Rock and Kanye West performed and The President and First Lady stopped by to give a short speech and have a quick dance.

On Wednesday, January 21, after having barely recovered from the day previous activities, I attended the Obama for America staff ball at the DC Armory. The Arcade Fire and Jay-Z performed at-length and Vice President Joe Biden and President Obama spoke off-the-cuff about their appreciation for all the hard work we put in. The President also gave a specific shout-out to his field organizers, which was a great moment for all of us who had the privilege of supporting him in that capacity.

Here is a link to the full album of photographs from the week’s activities: http://picasaweb.google.com/nick.kowalski/InaugurationWeekendJan2009Public#

If you have any thoughts on this post or others, please feel free to post your comments. Storytelling is a collaborative relationship between narrator and audience.


Thursday, January 22, 2009

Someone said that, "nfkowalski" just wasn't creative, a "non-starter" I think the term was. I agree. So, here is the new name and now it has a purpose and mission.

Throughout the presidential campaign and since, I received much feedback and demand for stories, narratives and testimonies about the adventures I was experiencing. TheRaconteursPost is the extension of the Obama-Kowalski Adventures.

If you are like me and didn't know the meaning of "raconteur" until a conversation over red wine with Will Gee, here is a helpful link to its wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raconteur

TheRaconteursPost will do the following:

1. Document and publish anecdotal stories from my personal experiences in politics and Washington, DC.
2. Provide images and videos highlighting those experiences.
3. Provide a steady stream of news and information about politics, technology and the Internet and how the political and government paradigm is shifting due to their interaction.
4. Have stuff

TheRaconteursPost will be, above all else, fun. Please visit when you can and add yourself as a Follower. When "follow" the blog, it will automatically upload updates to your Google Reader or whichever blog-following tool you use.

Thanks again!