The Informed Activist

In a recent blog post, Alexandra Rampy comes to the proud realization that she is an activist and that the key ingredient to being an activist is to “act.”

I agree wholeheartedly, but I also think that we need to apply Seth Godin’s advice in his blog post on the dangers of asking for something before we know what we actually want and before we have a sense of how our prospect will react to our request.

I recently had a conversation with a colleague about how exciting it is to work with senior high school and undergraduate university students on social issues. As a rule, these audiences are excitable, energetic, and full of idealism and (often) excellent ideas. Their excitement is infectious. Then, once they get supercharged on an issue, they have the time and enthusiasm to really do something: to really ACT.

…and act quickly, as they rarely have jobs/children/mortgages to temper their daily routines.

This haste and passion can quickly generate a room full of headless chickens.

To be clear…that isn’t good.

“Nobody can be so amusingly arrogant as a young man who has just discovered an old idea and thinks that it is his own.”--Sydney J. Harris.

In fact, wanton action is not only "amusingly arrogant," but is often counter productive to the social cause. Too many of the new recruits will re-invent the wheel and then feel frustrated as they watch it spin without traction.

When I first started my own company, I wanted to go out and conquer the world (and my fears!) with great social change brought about by skill and informed investment. However, the first step I took was to take it slow. I read widely about social marketing, re-affirming my knowledge and offering me new insights. I looked for competitors and collaborators, and then researched each of them before calling them. I went to job interviews, in part to practice my ability to pitch myself, and my services. I reflected on what I wanted to keep as my focus in the business, and in my life.

My personal reflection leads me to propose that before becoming a social activist, there are several important preparatory steps to take:

1. Research the history of your cause. Here is where the Internet makes a month of research possible in a few days (or weeks, once you find out how interesting social change can be!). Know at least a little about major milestones, current challenges, and a little bit about “the competing views” so that you can prepare your thoughts, arguments, and position. This also will identify opportunities for you to fill voids in the actions currently underway.

2. Know the lexicon. Labels, language and jargon are regrettably part of every field, cause or movement. In order to understand the issues, speak to your audience, or to colleagues, you will need a firm grasp about the words being used to describe theories, actions, and ideas.

3. Forget the lexicon. Once you know the jargon, try NOT to use it. This advice sounds argumentative, but your key public audiences will likely not have a glossary of terms to which they can refer when they hear about your action.

4. Research the experts. Learn about the leaders and key players in the field, if any, and know their interests. Contact them directly, if you feel that you have something to share with them, or if you feel they can help propel your ideas forward.

5. Start in a minor role. Don’t assume that you’ll be the champion of the movement right away. Chances are that there are many capable minds who have considered this cause their own for years. As a minor player, you can have a voice, and you can learn from the mentors in the field. It also makes the new activist credible.

6. THEN ACT.

Of course, many great activists have expedited this process, often out of necessity. For some, their gender or their ethnicity, or their social status or place in history allowed them to have implicit knowledge—or even personal experience—about the cause, the language and the relevant supporters, peers, or adversaries.

However, I contend that all successful activists will have considered, either implicitly or explicitly, the necessary preparation before they became truly useful to their chosen cause.

In the example of working with youth, then, the challenge is to bridle their enthusiasm with knowledge without extinguishing their flame; this is the only way for the new wave of activist to successfully guide their roles in social change.