After the Election, Our Work May Be More Difficult For a Time

A note from Builders CEO Tom Fishman:  

No matter who wins the upcoming election, many people are likely to feel anger and fear, especially if the results are highly contested or delayed. This means that, at least for a time, it may be harder than ever for our families, friends, and fellow citizens to hear our message and practice the 4Cs — curiosity, compassion, courage, and creativity — in how we approach conflict, and harder to build from our common ground and choose solutions over sides.

As we often emphasize, our work equips us to address conflict constructively in every arena, from culture to policy, but this movement transcends political beliefs. During the tension surrounding election results, it will be our shared calling as Builders to step out of our comfort zones and be more active and vocal than usual: alongside advocating passionately for our views, we must maintain that treating each other with contempt and holding a binary, zero-sum, us-versus-them mindset is a lose-lose for all of us.

Here’s our ask to you: email or text this article to five people you know, ideally with mixed political beliefs, and encourage them to sign up for our newsletter. Let that group email or text form your group of mutual “spotters” (like a spotter who assists you and holds you accountable at the gym). Within that group, commit to sharing information, concerns, and ideas for local solutions (our tools can help!) through the election and beyond. Exercise the muscle you’ve been building as a member of the Builders movement by balancing your passionately held convictions with the 4Cs and by digging beyond simplistic partisan narratives — which we will surely see amplified by media and politicians who remain incentivized to do so. (As you know, we’re working on that too.)

When you invite people to join us, let them know: the Builders movement includes Americans across the political spectrum, and we welcome the 87% of Americans striving to be flexible thinkers and constructive problem-solvers who recognize the dignity of all people.

Thank you,

Tom Fishman
Builders CEO 

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