Toby Ziegler, you're my hero.
Aaron Sorkin’s NBC drama, The West Wing (1999 - 2006)
A moment for The Show’s Creator
It wasn’t a perfect show. An argument can easily be made (and has been) for Aaron Sorkin’s mistreatment of women in his scripts. By even commenting on the splendor of a 15-year-past, slightly misogynistic television show, I could appear out of touch, or worse, actually be out of touch.
But I honestly don’t care. This is my ode to a show that gave me more than any combination of political science, history, or communication classes ever did. And I took plenty of those.
While most of my contemporaries found the television soundtrack of their lives in either Friends or The Office, I found my escape in The West Wing. Aaron Sorkin chartered a cast of characters who would keep me company from college midterms right through mortgage research.
Maybe I’m a zealot. Maybe I’m taking the thing too far. Judge me all you want, but at the end of the day, this show gave me the inspiration to dream big and the determination to get back up after any gaffe.
Lesson 1 | Preparation
I prepare even for meetings I don’t want to go to. I wasn’t improvising.
- Josh Lyman, Deputy Chief of Staff
Can we take a brief moment to appreciate the history showcased by this desktop computer? And I could write an entire diatribe on the carpal tunnel episode as it relates to that keyboard.
Right now, I do have to work harder as a woman. Not always, but often enough that I’ve taken note. I don’t want to waive my pink flag, but I’ve sat in rooms where men only respond to men. Where they will answer the question I asked while looking to the men in the room. Where they ask a question with a knowing look on their face - knowing they can catch me out.
Boy, have they locked horns with the wrong dame.
I come prepared to every meeting. Meetings that I don’t have time for. Meetings I don’t want to go to. Meetings that seem redundant or premature or just altogether unnecessary. I never want to be caught on my back foot, and here’s the only reason why: you don’t get to think I’m stupid. The only time Josh was ill-equipped, he lost the game. Be prepared. Come with all your ‘quip.
I could go on and on about how women are perpetually considered dumber. I have big hair and wear bright colors and have a southern accent. I’m destined to be shoved in the “bless her heart” box before you meet me. Give me ten minutes, and I will change your mind.
But I can only do that if I have my facts straight.
Lesson 2 | Evolution
We’re going to try this for a while. Let Bartlet be Bartlet.
- Leo McGarry, White House Chief of Staff
This was a pivotal scene in the early seasons. The new administration was floundering a bit - gaffs with the media, no real progress with campaign promises, getting pushed around by Congress - and everyone on staff spent their days trying not to piss anyone off. Leo comes in and declares a new plan: Let Bartlet be Bartlet.
I love this moment because it wasn’t about getting into office and making new friends. It was about taking action and getting something done. Mid game, they changed the rules, and it worked. They found their footing.
It’s so easy to fall into “this is what we do, this is how we do it.” A comfort zone is a beautiful thing. But sometimes you have to change the rules. Sometimes you have to go to the locker room mid game and throw out the old handbook because you can’t get any traction.
Evolution is hard, but it changes everything.
Lesson 3 | Charm & Diplomacy
There is no group of people this large in the world that can keep a secret. I find it comforting. It’s how I know for sure the government isn’t covering up aliens in New Mexico.
- C.J. Cregg, White House Press Secretary
When in doubt, try to make it a little funny. Tact, charm, diplomacy, gallantry: whatever you want to call it, it’s almost always best served with a little dose of humor. A client once asked me to candidly critique his logo. I likened the dated, disproportionate, gradiated disaster to the shoulder pads of branding. In its time, a sharp-shouldered masterpiece that told me you meant business. Today? Evoking the worst the early 90s had to offer and uncomfortable to come across in the wild. He was shocked, laughed, and agreed to let us redesign his logo.
The show taught me how to deal with every personality type, how to be a better boss, how to get up once you’ve fallen down, how to use historical references to liven up your pithy retorts. Talk fast, walk fast, take action.
So maybe it wasn’t the show that really taught me these things, but it definitely helped illustrate a behavioral model for success. Ambition is hard. Getting along and moving towards a goal at the same time is hard. Not losing yourself and your softness and your gumption and your ambition while marching forward is hard.
But get up. Work hard. Be prepared, be yourself, be thoughtful in your approach. But get up. All forward motion counts.
“Your whole campaign is like some Dr. Seuss nightmare - One Fish, Two Fish, Dead Fish, We Fought The Good Fight Fish.”
