Part 1: You don’t know what you don’t know

The Standing Orders provide the rules of the House. There is no handbook for the politics of the House. We have to figure that out for ourselves and it is a steep learning curve.

Looking back at our legislative work through 2018, there is plenty to learn from. Many mistakes not to be made again, and missed opportunities to catch the next time around.

What you don’t know…

This is no big surprise. You don’t know what you don’t know. And, unless you pay really close attention, what you could know, is easy to miss. It’s the knowledge that makes the next time easier.

Governing is the culmination of hundreds and thousands of personal interactions. They span from the off-the-cuff banter in passing, to committee work and open debate in the main Chamber.

In many respects, politics is slow. It plods a path through time at a sloths pace. But, days move quickly. They melt into weeks, and before you know it, another session adjourns.

You need the discipline to coordinate the full spectrum of the short, medium and long-term. Thinking quickly on your feet in the heat of the debate, must be tempered with the patience needed to execute a broad vision. Investing in the words you choose, is the inheritance for another day.

Decisions made today, are set in motion months ago. One missed briefing, or a thoughtful, well-placed comment, can change the direction or strengthen the resolve.

It is all under a microscope. Everyone is always calculating, measuring, evaluating and evolving.

So, a local business leader handed me a desk top sign at a local event. It had, “you don’t know what you don’t know,” written on it. His message is welcome.

What you do, with what you know.

Mistakes happen and we can always do more, get a better result, impact fewer people, damage the environment less, and benefit more.

So, we have to develop our own handbook and best practices. We evaluate our performance and plan to do the things that work, more often, and the things that don’t, less.

As we near year’s end we reflect, and assess the knowledge that we now have that we didn’t have at the end of last year.

And, it is time to recommit to applying what we learn, to improve the outcomes next year, and lay a useful foundation for the many years that follow.

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