You Got This

A letter to those working to protect the integrity of the U.S. election

This is becoming an annual tradition. Last year, I wrote a pep talk for trust and safety workers after a challenging year for the profession. Today, I want to write one for everyone working on this U.S. election.

It’s hard to believe we are only weeks away from Election Day, but we all know this will go through the Inauguration. For some of you, it’s been a grueling year with major elections around the globe with no breaks. You’ve had to miss holidays and family events. Every day, people wonder if you are doing enough. They publicly question you but have no idea what you do every day.

Some of us aren’t at a company for the first time in many election cycles, and we’re having a bit of FOMO. We’re trying to make our way as consultants, vendors, and researchers, helping where possible. It’s a grind. It’s hard being on your own. It’s hard being on the outside.

Some of you have to plan for your and your family’s safety while ensuring people can vote. You are short-staffed, and people are scared to be poll workers. You pray for high turnout and high margins but are preparing for razor-thin margins and challenges from various groups.

Others are trying to ensure that everyone who can legally vote and wants to is able to. Some are trying to study the rapidly changing information environment, which has less transparency from the platforms and the possibility that you might have to testify to Congress about your work when it’s all done. 

Reporters, influencers, and analysts are trying to cover it all while figuring out what is going on and producing it in written, audio, and video formats—vertical and horizontal, short form and long form. AI helps, but it’s exhausting. 

Those on the campaigns work 18-hour days managing thousands of volunteers doing GOTV and phone banking. They crisscross the country from rally to rally, waking up in a different bed every morning.

Every single one of us has a role to play. We choose whether or not to vote, who to vote for, where we go for information, and what information we share with others. 

There’s a lot at stake. It’s intense. No one is sure how it’s all going to turn out. 

But, you got this. We got this.

I’m inspired every day by watching and talking to all of you. You are choosing to be in the arena, standing for your values, trying to do your best, and taking the next best step forward even when you aren’t sure what the right choice should be.

There are plenty of headlines telling you how bad everything is out there. You will make mistakes. Things are complicated, hard, and challenging, but there is hope. Things will be okay. We will figure this out.

Think about all that you’ve accomplished thus far. All of the policies you’ve written, products you’ve built, networks of foreign adversaries you’ve disrupted, stories and white papers you’ve created, and doors you’ve knocked on. When you take a moment to step back, you see just how much you have done. 

We’re at that point where you’ve done all the training and preparation. Now it’s time for execution. You’re going to learn so much.

Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Get sleep. Drink water. Touch grass. Eat. You are no good to anyone if you are starved and exhausted.

Make plans for after the election. Have something to look forward to. It could be a vacation, or it could be just a weekend where you sleep. But have something. I used to keep a list of all the things I would do when I had more time after the election.

It may not feel like it now, but at some point, this sprint will be over. Elections are like driving 100 mph towards a brick wall. You know the wall is there, but you can’t slow down. You think you’re prepared for when you hit it, but the experience is a totally different thing. It’s disorienting to go from doing all the things to nothing.

Say thank you to your colleagues and others who are doing this work. It’s incredible how far a simple thank you can go. It’s ok to employ gallows humor if that’s your thing. Whatever it takes to get through. 

I’ve posted the Man in the Arena quote before, and it continues to be my favorite one to send to people during times like this.

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.

I’m proud and grateful for you.

You got this.

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