On the morning of July 12, 2022, I woke up and got ready for the Capitol Summit. It took me less than 20 minutes to get to the airport by car. When I got there, I was the only one there since I arrived first, so I waited for the rest of my cohort members. Later, all of my cohort members arrived, and we boarded on the airplane to leave for Sacramento. This would be my first time going to Sacramento, so I was very excited.
On the airplane, I talked with my colleagues about the adventures that awaited us when we landed. Finally, we arrived in Sacramento and the first thing we did was fill our tummies with yummy food from Koja Kitchen. Afterwards, we went to tour the Capitol with the help of Erika Ngo, a Legislative Director and alumni of the CLA program. The tour was very educational and fun as we got to see different sides of the Capitol.
In fact, what I remember the most from the Capitol Summit was the Chief of Staff Panel. In this panel, two chiefs of staff were invited - Jessica Duong from the Office of California State Assemblymember Phil Ting and Sophia Kwong Kim from the Office of California State Assemblymember Mike Fong. When asked how they got into their specific career paths, both had similar and different answers. For Jessica, it was her burning passion in campaign work and communications related tasks. For Sophia, it was her long-standing commitment to lobbying work and education related tasks. Although both had different starts in their career, one thing stood out – community. Both wanted to bring change to their community, whether that was more resources, prosperity, etc.
At the same time, they provided valuable advice to those navigating their career path. For example, Sophia stated, “if this is what you want to do then don’t give up.” In other words, do not be afraid to try something new and know what your likes are, as well as dislikes. Once you know what you like, it becomes so much easier for you to look for what you want in a career. Likewise, both expressed the importance of work ethics and willingness to work with one another. This is important because if one has good work ethics and is a team player then they will be more successful in their workplace.
Eventually, the panel ended, and they left on a note stating that if there are people interested in their career path then they should be prepared to be as concise as possible. To illustrate, there is not much time to write and read a 5-6 paper on a policy. What you will learn to do is condense everything down into one sentence. This one sentence will summarize everything about that particular policy.
Ultimately, my experience in Sacramento was great as I got to explore the place and listen to guest speakers. I am very happy that I got to partake in the Summit Capitol and look forward to also being a part of the Capitol one day as a staffer or representative. Until then, peace out!