Will I be employable afterwards?

I hope so. I can’t say “yes” from personal experience, because I haven’t got there yet, and I don’t know what will happen when I do.

Maybe talk to some former politicians about their experiences. There are all sorts of factors that might make a difference to how easily you move on to the next stage in your career – whether your retirement from the States was planned (which means you might have had longer to look for another job), or whether you stood but were not re-elected; whether you had continued with some part-time employment throughout the term, and so on.

If you can afford to do so, it is wise to try and save – even just a little – every month, so that you create a bit of a buffer fund for yourself and your family, in case the transition from politics into other work takes a little longer than you’d hoped.  

I’m sure we have all made a few enemies in this job. It shows up our weaknesses like nothing else, because it forces us to make so many decisions on things outside our usual comfort zone, within an endless public spotlight. That doesn’t look flattering on anyone – whether they are the most experienced and expert people within their field, or whether they are just starting out.

But if you gain enemies, you also gain admirers. Don’t forget that. There are people who will have watched your work during your time in the States, who will recognise you as a real asset to the community and will be excited to work with you.

And finally, when the time comes to look for new work, don’t under-sell what you have learnt and done during your time in the States. You will just have spent four years (or more) doing challenging work, managing absurd deadlines, gaining new skills and making connections you’ve never had before. If you can offer all that to a workplace, you’re going to be an asset. Good luck.

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Do I know enough?

The honest answer is: “No, but that’s all right.”

You might want to start by looking at some of the recent papers that the States has considered. You will find these online at gov.gg/StatesMeetings. (The collection of papers for a meeting is called a Billet d’Etat – the first word is pronounced like the letters BA, and the whole thing simply means ‘States papers’.)

You can see that each paper has a set of recommendations for States Members to vote on. (Everything has its own name in the States! The recommendations presented to the States are called Propositions. If anybody wants to change one of those recommendations, they need to bring an Amendment. If you want to know more about those, I’ll try to cover it in my sections on life in the States.)

Here’s an example, taken at random – the Billet d’Etat from July 2018, two years ago. The topics on that are so wide-ranging: from custom duties in a post-Brexit world, to how we manage our Island’s waste; from the question of open skies or air route licensing, to the future of the Island’s housing market.

How can any one person know enough to make a sensible decision on all those things?

The answer is, of course – no one can. It is simply not possible for one person to be an expert on everything a government has to do. That’s why we have Committees who develop their expertise in certain areas; why we have supporting reports and civil servants who can offer advice; and it’s why we have 38 Deputies in the States … because one person alone can’t ever know enough, but the blend of different experiences and expertise we bring can help us all make better decisions.

You can’t know it all. There’s never going to be a point where your knowledge is ‘finished’ and you feel ready. But that’s OK. If you can ask good questions; if you’re willing to learn; if you recognise quality and integrity when you see it – then you’re as well-prepared for this job as anyone can be. Don’t let lack of knowledge put you off, because nobody on earth will ever know enough. The work won’t wait for you to catch up – you’re going to have to learn as you go along, and that’s all right. Everyone else is in the same boat too.

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Have I got the skills?

Yes! There is no job description or recommended skill set for being a Deputy. Your ‘CV’ is your manifesto, and anything else you use to persuade people to elect you. The election period is your job interview. You will soon find that people across the Island have very different expectations of what they’d like from their States Members, and you won’t please everyone – but that’s okay.

Of course, there are some skills it’s very helpful to have, from public speaking to using a computer… You’ll find that some training is offered in the pre-Election period, and more training will be available once you are elected.

You will also be able to ask for help when you need it. So don’t be put off by thinking you lack an essential skill – there’s always a way to learn it. Mostly, practice helps – and you’ll get a lot of practice over the next four years!

Don’t be afraid to ask a more experienced States Member for advice. Most people would be delighted to be asked, and would try and help you fairly, even if they disagree with you politically. But if that’s a big deal for you, there are many retired Deputies who still play an active role in Guernsey community life – you could try approaching them instead, and I’m sure many would be glad to help.

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