Motivation for Involvement

So I got a note from a gal who is wanting to get involved in politics and wasn't sure whether to get involved by running for office or by trying to influence those in office...and it got me to thinking.

I guess I've been an Indiana lobbyist for about 10 years (give or take) and have noticed that there are essentially two types of people in politics: those in it for a cause or they are in it for themselves.

Personally, I'm involved because I believe in the insurance industry in Indiana. Don't get me wrong, I get paid more doing this than I could doing most anything else, but I feel like I'm a part of doing something good for my neighbors.

As a lobbyist, I get paid pretty well considering that mine is a job based on simply having a reasonable intelligence, but more importantly, being able to work with people. That reminds me of something. I saw a story a year or two ago saying that younger folks and kids now have less social interaction as they are on the computer and don't spend as much "active" time. I don't know whether or not that is the case, but I would agree that communicating via email and texting isn't the same thing as standing in front of someone, having a conversation and reading their facial and body expressions. A good lobbyist has at least a modest ability to gauge how to handle face-to-face communications.

So back to the main point of this note: reason for involvement. You see plenty of folks who are in it for all the wrong reasons, but I suppose any business sector is like that.