An interview with John Bridgeland
November 14, 2011
John Bridgeland is the CEO of Civic Enterprises and former Assistant to President George W. Bush, Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, and Director of USA Freedom Corps. He chairs NCoC’s National Board of Advisors and is author of a new book, ~1@BODYURL[id=114kcurl323]@ NCoC Executive Director David B. Smith recently caught up with him about the book, and asked a few questions about how Bridgeland found his calling and would encourage today’s young leaders to do the same.
David B. Smith: Bridge, thank you very much for writing this book. I have considered you a mentor of mine for years, and I’m delighted for others to now have the ability to learn from your wisdom. I’d especially like to focus my questions on themes highlighted in your chapter entitled, “Finding Your Calling.” You started your career in the corporate sector at a law firm where you describe many amazing experiences, most with very emotionally fulfilling outcomes. How did you know that something was missing for you and you were being called to public service?
John Bridgeland: My interest in public service began as a young boy – I was always running for something or involved in a volunteer project. In looking at the careers of those Americans that I admired, I noticed that many had gone to law school before their public service careers. I went for that reason, was then recruited by a New York law firm that said public service was central to its work, and found that other than some pro bono cases, most of my work was in complex corporate transactions. The skills I honed were useful – analyzing issues, writing careful documents, and negotiating with lawyers and business leaders all over the world – but the work wasn’t really resonating with me. I wrote Ted Sorensen a note saying, “I find myself reading books on the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, not Anatomy of a Merger and the Securities Law Reporters.” He got it instantly and encouraged me to pursue a career in public service.
DBS: It’s clear that so many people have invested in you over the course of your career. If you could identify the three people who have been most instrumental in getting you to where you are, who would they be and why?
JB: My Dad, who has always talked with me and informed our discussions with a wealth of learning from literature and life; my family, who has made these decisions even possible by taking care of things on the home front; and members of my Policy Council, such as John DiIulio, who is like the brother I never had.
DBS: What do you think this means about the importance of mentorship, particularly as it relates to careers in nonprofit and public service?
JB: Ultimately, you have to take your journey alone and be responsible for the choices you make, but there are a lot of helping hands along the way. Don’t do it alone. Reach out to people who have mentored you in life – parents, siblings, spouses, thesis advisors, professors, work colleagues, best friends, college roommates – and seek their advice during periods of transition. People who know you well will reflect back on your thought process and help to guide your decision. Public service is particularly like this – in that the whole goal is to foster a sense of connection to one another, our communities and country. Most of the mentors I reached out to during my own transition from the White House to the private sector ended up serving on my company’s policy council, so I don’t do things alone any more – they are there to work with me.
DBS: My Independent Sector NGen Fellows class just ~1@BODYURL[id=114kcurl324]@ in the social sector. What do you think the most important things individuals, organizations, funders, and the sector can do to invest in and develop the next generation of public leaders?
JB: There is no substitute for a world-class education and providing equal access to such an education to children from disadvantaged circumstances. I also think we need to invest far more in what happens in classrooms and schools – we built schools for an industrial society and they are too much like factories. We need to create more personalized learning environments in which children can learn to think, analyze issues, marshal facts, and find their own voice. We need the next generation of innovators who will invent and create. This requires a whole new way of thinking about education than we had a century ago in an industrial economy. We also need to awaken students and next generation leaders to their civic duties – not just in communities, but in the workplace.
DBS: You speak of the sometimes-constant need to shift your priorities—how do you think young leaders can best develop this flexible and adaptable work ethic?
JB: I think the core priorities remain the same – family, commitment to hard work, and having compassion for others, however that is expressed through faith, service, or other ways. Remaining flexible, however, in terms of how you think about problems, putting aside your reflexive stereotypes or ideologies, and being open to other approaches all seem essential to me in terms of effectiveness.
DBS: You say that “discovering your passion is a fundamental need in life” and that people should look for the signposts. With all the causes, information, and choices out there, how do you know the signpost when you see it? If you’ve really found it, can your signpost ever change?
JB: You have to find a place of quiet every day or at least a few times a week. Reflect on those moments in life when you have lost complete track of time and place you have been so absorbed in what you were doing. Note those things – they can be anything. For me, they included that perfect tennis match, birding with my Dad in national parks, reading a great book, listening to the speeches of Martin Luther King, or giving a speech myself to inspire others. You start to see patterns. If you can bring into the world some element of what you were literally built to do, your life changes. You no longer work, you have missions. The dark cloud of Sunday night disappears as you return for another work week, and you are thrilled to be doing those things that inspire and motivate you. For me, my signposts have remained consistent, but the work that has emerged has been varied and interesting.
DBS: One thing that seems to be recurrent between your positions and experiences is your desire to bring people together—particularly those who are not like you and with whom you may not agree—to find compromise. How did you learn to do this well? Why do you think more people don’t do this?
JB: People of different perspectives, backgrounds, cultures, religions, political persuasions, and countries can teach one another so much – if we are just willing to listen. I have a fundamental belief that each person is good – in fact, each person has the spark of divinity. In India, there is the tradition of greeting someone with palms together and acknowledging the God within the other person. Not to get too heavy here, but I really believe that. Everyone has that spark and our job is to help ignite it. I also believe we are better together – that the better solutions are the result of people of different perspectives grinding it out with one another when presented with facts. It all begins with getting the facts, seeing what the merits of different approaches are in response to the facts, and then bringing people with different perspectives together to discuss those responses. More people don’t do this because they are afraid to open up, test their assumptions, and approach things in a way that involves taking risks.
DBS: My generation, the Millennials, is sometimes called the “9/11 Generation” and is characterized as more civically engaged that many previous generations. Having worked in the Bush Administration on September 11, how have you witnessed this civic spirit develop, and what do you think it means for the future of this generation and our country?
JB: Yes, we have the data to prove it. Volunteering climbed not just right after 9/11, but through the end of 2005. As importantly, the Millennials aren’t just asking where they should serve, but are working to create their own solutions, non-profits and other responses to tough challenges. The civic spirit is alive and well. About 36 million Americans are our “civic core” – they volunteer, vote, work on community projects and are engage civically more than others. Our work involves helping more people come to the realization that such civic connectedness is not only good for the country, it’s good for them – they are happier and healthier in deep and fundamental ways when they are civically active. The future of our country – through education, creating a productive society with social mobility, and vibrant communities that help neighbors in need – depends on it.