#ElectionTips #HowVsWhat #ElectionStrategies #PoliticalPlans
🗳️ When it comes to elections, it’s easy to get caught up in the promises of what will be done if a candidate is elected. However, it’s important to shift our focus to HOW those things will be accomplished. Let’s take a closer look at why the approach matters and how it can impact our lives and communities.
### Why Focus on HOW?
✅ Benefits to Individuals and Communities: Instead of just looking at the end goals, considering the process can help us understand how the proposed plans will directly impact our lives, families, and neighborhoods.
✅ Feasibility of Plans: Rhetoric and promises are one thing, but understanding the practicality and feasibility of the proposed strategies is crucial for making informed decisions.
✅ Evidence-Based Approaches: Are the plans rooted in evidence and data, or are they simply based on ideology? Understanding the evidence behind the proposed actions can help assess their potential for success.
### Evaluating Election Strategies
1. **Impact on Daily Life**: How will the proposed plans directly impact your daily life and the lives of those around you? Consider the immediate effects and long-term implications.
2. **Feasibility and Practicality**: Are the strategies realistic and achievable, or are they just lofty promises with no clear path to implementation?
3. **Evidence-Based Plans**: Look for evidence that supports the proposed strategies. Are they backed by research, data, and expert opinions?
4. **Risks and Harms**: Even if the plans seem beneficial on the surface, it’s important to consider any potential risks or negative implications they might have.
### Examples of How Vs. What
🏞️ **Example 1**: Candidate A promises to implement a new environmental policy to reduce carbon emissions by 50% in the next decade. How they plan to achieve this involves investing in renewable energy sources, implementing stricter regulations on emissions, and incentivizing sustainable practices in industries.
👩🏫 **Example 2**: Candidate B proposes a plan for improving education by increasing funding and introducing new teaching methods. Their approach involves consulting with education experts, investing in professional development for teachers, and conducting research on the most effective teaching techniques.
🏗️ **Example 3**: Candidate C focuses on infrastructure development, promising to revitalize roads, bridges, and public transportation systems. Their plan includes conducting thorough assessments of existing infrastructure, mobilizing resources efficiently, and prioritizing projects based on critical needs.
### Making Informed Decisions
As voters, it’s essential to consider not just the end goals presented by candidates but also the methods they plan to employ to achieve those goals. By asking critical questions and evaluating the HOW of their proposed strategies, we can make more informed decisions that align with our own values and priorities.
In the end, everyone can say “free education” or “affordable housing,” but understanding the HOW behind these promises is what truly gives them substance. Let’s focus on the practicality, feasibility, evidence, and implications of the plans presented to us during election season. After all, it’s not just about what is promised, but how it will be done that truly matters.
try explaining these to the portuguese people. I already gave up
Add-on to #4: Think through the possible unintended consequences of an otherwise good proposal, and whether any advocates are proactively addressing them or whether they’re being ignored or obfuscated. They can be disastrous.
Also when selecting candidates (especially ones with prolific media presence) pay attention to how they speak, their word choices, how they talk to and about others, how they treat people. Attacking an opponent’s record of service (things they’ve done, esp w/ receipts) is a sign of a better candidate than attacking the person’s character (things they are, a.k.a. name-calling, often without receipts); ex “my opponent doesn’t seem to understand <insert argument>” vs. “that guy is a dumdum-head idiot sandwich.” Cruelty comes in many forms and is not a desirable trait to have in a leader or someone in a position of power. Plus if your position truly is defensible/feasible/reasonable/actionable, you shouldn’t need to sling mud or play dirty to win.
When/if they smile, watch the corners of their eyes.
A genuine smile pinches the “crow’s feet” region and the temples move forward slightly, in fake smiles these parts of the face don’t move. Any day of the week, I’d recommend putting your trust in someone who never smiles over someone with a fake smile.
Lifepro tip:
5. Learn how politics actually works and not how you want it to work. Basically, learn the difference between shit and shinola.
politicians always try to sell the shinola but you also have to understand that everyone has different view points and what is going to benefit them. This is the sausage that we all have to eat in a Democracy.
so it doesnt matter what is going to benefit you or your family, doesnt matter what is feasable or rooted in evidence or the risk.
What matters is what can a politician actually accomplish in office and I can guarantee it wont measure up to the first 4 points. It never does.
Too much thinking along these lines will result in voters realizing that politicians are only in politics to serve themself and not the constituents.