It has been reported that right now your representatives are getting about 1600 calls per minute. I would like you to think for a minute and take a guess as to how many of those calls are from people that are angry and making demands that they do something to stop Elmo and tRump. Now compare that to how many of those calls you think are thanking them for taking action and for doing a good job. I am betting that if you compare the two numbers you are going to come to the same conclusion. They are getting a lot more negative calls. As a person, as a human being, think about how that would affect you. Getting call after call from people demanding that you take action and complaining about the inaction and the current state of thing. I am pretty sure that would wear anyone down. I know that if I were in that position it would be devastating to have all that negativity coming my way.
I was a dog trainer for a long time. One of the things that I learned right from the beginning is that positive reinforcement is a much stronger tool than negative reinforcement. Having a treat, or a dogs favorite toy at the ready works so much better than the fear of not doing something that the dog is commanded to do. Dogs can learn to put up with punishment. But the excitement of getting a reward can be so much more intense that it is ultimately the best training tool. When you use positive reinforcement on a regular basis negative reinforcement becomes a much stronger tool as well. Think of it this way, how would you feel if you were the best student in a class and you are always hearing comments like good job, well done, best in the class, and then one day you hear the teacher say, wow, you just didn’t try very hard did you? A very small negative reinforcement but one that would have significant effect on you as a student. This is how you use reinforcement to teach and get the desired results that you want. When training dogs we only used negative reinforcement for serious situations, and only after using positive reinforcement for a well defined period of time. For example if a dog were to bite my hand when offered a piece of bacon, then I would grab them by the scruff of the neck, throw the dog down onto their back, stare straight into their eyes and say NO loudly and clearly. This domination of the dog and negative reinforcement would have such profound effect that the dog would never, ever bite my hand again. What I am proposing is that we as the constituents use some positive reinforcement on our representatives.
In tRumps last go around he had a social media person that would scour the internet looking for positive stories or comments to show to tRump to keep him happy. Why? Because all he was hearing was the negative stuff from staff, from pundits, from the other side of the isle. They needed to keep him happy for fear of him going off the deep end, which happened many times anyway. When our representatives hear only negative comments and demands it becomes depressing, demotivating, and disheartening. I think there is a better way.
If you are someone that is motivated to call or write your representative, then you should have the ability to do this. From now on when you are going to call your representative of write them or make contact in any form, try this. First, do a tiny bit of research and find something that your representative has done that you agreed with, were happy about, or just was in line with your feelings on the issue. That may be difficult if your representative is a republican, but even more effective if they are. It would be best if you could find something that they did that stood out for you and you were exceptionally happy about. Then when you contact them, talk about that first. Tell them how happy you were about what ever it was that they did. Let them know that as your representative, in that moment, they were representing you and you were very happy about it because it affected you in XYZ manner. If you can start off with something positive before you get to the “hey get off your ass and do something” rant, all the better. Look these people are not robots, they need some praise from time to time. They need to hear that they are doing some good too, otherwise they may feel like giving up and going home. Tell them that you support them and that you trust that they will have the strength to stand up to these bullies and do the right thing. Sure let them know that you need them to act but don’t be negative about it, try to support them so that they can have the energy to go on and do what you are asking them to do. Give them some umph, some spirit, some drive with positive words of encouragement before you make a demand for them to act.
Now more than ever those with little power need the courage to act. To be the ones to go first when others are standing back hoping for someone else to take action. Not only that but how many of the letters, the reports on calls, the random sample of communications do you think they are going to actually read? From a staffers point of view, I think they are going to pull ones that might just be uplifting, like the staffer from tRumps administration that pulled only the good ones for him to see.
In closing, try to say something that can give them some energy to go on in these trying times. Sure, make your feelings known. But try to do it in a way that gives them the something to remember as they decide what they are going to do. If your letter or call is supportive, reassures them that they matter and that they can make a difference, then when it comes time to act on your request, they may just remember your call or letter and it may help them to do the right thing.
