Getting Unstuck

A Local Leader Lab Q&A with Julie

“It feels really big to want to change the world. But it helps to divide it into smaller pieces. Those small wins can snowball, and down the road, you accomplish the big goal.”

What’s driving you to take action in your community and step into civic leadership?

I want people to understand that people who live in our country’s capital don’t get a say in how they’re tax dollars are spent, how our kids are being raised in school, what healthcare looks like in our city, and so many other daily decisions.

Was there a turning point in the Local Leader Lab when your vision started to feel possible?

The turning point for me was in one of my small group discussions, when we were mapping out who has decisions over what you care about. Congress has ultimate decision-making authority here, and it just seems so big and so overwhelming. I felt like I hit a wall. But then I started talking about what our kids are learning in the classroom. I felt like they could be the future voters in DC who actually stand up for representation. I want the kids in our community to realize that it doesn’t have to be this way, and that they can actually do quite a bit to make their voices heard.

When things feel big and overwhelming, how do you approach it?

It feels really, really big to want to change the world, but it helps to divide it into smaller pieces. Maybe the ultimate goal is that I want DC to have statehood, but if I think about my kids being in these teachers’ classrooms, I break it into digestible pieces. Ideally, those small wins would snowball and down the road, we actually get to accomplish the big goal of DC statehood.

How has the Local Leader Lab impacted you personally?

Participation in the lab has made me remind myself that we can actually control pieces of what democracy means to us. It helps when I’m feeling overwhelmed (and honestly, depressed) about the political landscape to remind myself that we do have agency in our immediate communities, too.

Being part of the Local Leader Lab really helped me break big issues down into small pieces, and learn to take strength and build power from small wins. That’s the kind of energy that we need to keep on moving towards that ultimate big goal.