Let's talk about working in DC while I take these hair rollers out. I currently work at a big law firm, but I'm not an attorney. I'm planning to take the LSAT and go to law school, but I'm currently a health policy analyst, which means that I do a lot of research on different payment rules out of Medicare and Medicaid, and I also take meetings on the Hill on behalf of clients. Say there's a bill that is very relevant to one of our clients and they've worked on, we'll go talk about the bill with health staffers or the member themselves, which is really fun. And it's really fun to learn about different issues. I work on anything from the medical device space to cancer to women's health, and it's just very fun. How did I get here? I started as a political appointee in the Biden-Harris administration, and I got that job through a Puerto Rican networking group called Grupo 21, but that all started when I was in undergrad. In undergrad, I connected with this group and it connected me with an internship in my home state, Puerto Rico's Resident Commissioner's office, so it wasn't your typical congressional internship because the Resident Commissioner does not get to vote. Through that, I started networking, you go to events as much as you can, you meet people. Everyone on the Hill, you kind of grow within the Hill, so someone who's a staff assistant now might end up being a chief of staff a few years down the line, and you all meet and kind of grow up together, and that's how you build a network. Once I graduated from my master's degree, that's when my Grupo 21 connection helped me get that political appointment. I remember flying to DC to just do a bunch of different coffee chats, and I understand that not everyone has that opportunity. You can do that virtually if you can. Do it in whatever field you're interested in. It is so helpful to just get in front of someone's face and talk about who you are and just, honestly, listen to them talk. Maybe nothing comes out of that coffee chat, you're not going to get a job offer from that, but you might learn a little bit about a path that you're interested in and how that person got to the position they're in today. I submitted my resume through the White House application portal, and through Grupo 21 I met someone who was a White House liaison and was able to push my resume to the front of the pile. And that basically just lets you be pinged for any jobs that you might be qualified for. Eventually, I got a ping to be a special assistant for the former Deputy Secretary of HHS, which was a huge, huge opportunity. That is essentially the number two at the agency, and being able to work directly with her gave me a lot of invaluable experience. I go into this job and I do the exact same thing. I'm networking with people within the agency, I'm networking with people in my office, and you just have to get to know as many people as possible because you're always on the move. You can't just sit still. Once we lost the election, that meant I have to find a new job. I think I ended up applying for five jobs throughout, I think it was two months of unemployment. I was very proactive about getting coffee chats with people, to learning how my experiences would be aligned with DC jobs because I knew that if I did not get a job in DC, I would have to move out. I'm only here to work. Eventually, someone from my previous job sent out the listing for my current position, and a few people from my immediate office sent it to me and told me that I should apply and that if I did, that they would help me get a phone call with the person who already worked there. And that's exactly what I did. I applied, I called the person, I let them know that I was very interested. Now seeing the hiring process from the other side, that is immensely helpful. If you can, just put yourself out there. I've had people cold email me and I'm always happy to talk to people. Speak to people in your network. Like if you did activities in college and you see that someone's living in the city you're interested in or living in DC, go get some coffee with them. You never know who they know. During my job search experience, I was looking at jobs like the one I have now and I was looking at consulting firms, and through my sorority sisters was able to get coffee chats with people who work at the consulting firms that I was interested in, and while that didn't end up being my path, it was super helpful to just hear what skills they saw in me that I should be putting forward in interviews or what should I be mentioning about myself that I wouldn't have otherwise known that was an asset. Also, just be kind to yourself. I feel like living in DC, people are constantly around success. It can make you feel like you're not doing that much, and I know like whenever I go visit my friends in a different state, they're like, oh wow, that job's so cool, or even when I post a video on here, people are very interested to hear what you're up to. So just be kind to yourself. I'm only 23, so I have a long way to go to get to where I want to be. I do try to recognize the small wins. It was not easy to get here, it takes a lot of work. Also, keep in mind that people are showing the best parts of themselves online, and it can be a lot of long hours. It can be stressful, and I'm still trying to figure out how to find that work-life balance where I can have a fulfilling social life and still be successful and on at my job. It'll all come with time. If you want me to dive into any of these subjects more, like how to network in DC, what I found helpful, how to do a cold email, or even just health policy, please let me know. I'm happy to talk more about it.
