Rachel: Welcome to the EBC Oliver ^_^
Oliver: Thanks, glad to be here
Rachel: How are you?
Oliver: I'm well, a little bit tired, school and life are a bit exhausting, but holidays are coming up soon.
Rachel: That's true, I think all of Europeia is anticipating them!
Oliver: I know I can hardly wait
Rachel: So where do you feel you're now in your NS career?
Oliver: Well, I've been around for awhile now, over two years. I've done a lot, and I'm sort of at a slow period in my career. I'm still interested in government, but I'm slowing down, that's for sure. I'm much more interested in the community than the rest of it, I think. I'm excited to see what younger, more active members are up to, and while I think I'll be unable to avoid the allure of government entirely, I'll be pacing myself a great deal.
Rachel: What would you say is your biggest accomplishment? Your proudest moment?
Oliver: Oooh, good question, give me a second to think on that.
I think that to-date my greatest accomplishment in Europeia was the overhaul of the judiciary as Chief Justice. I'm most proud of taking what was, at the time, a reasonably minor part of Europeia and setting it on the path to being the excellent example of jurisprudential wisdom that it is today.
Rachel: Definitely a great moment. It's mid 2010 and you decided to step down as Chief Justice. Take us through that.
Oliver: Well, the time I decided to step down was a quick, though I'd hesitate to call it rash, decision. Former President PhDre and I were having a private conversation about how we felt about the candidates who were standing, and though we felt Anumia or Sopo would make fine Presidents, we felt that Sopo didn't really stand a chance, and polling was confirming that. I thought about it, and I thought I would be able to do an even better job, but at first I expressed it only as a joke, as I was Chief Justice. PhDre said that if I wanted to run, he'd run with me.
Well for the first time I was sorely tempted. We were still speaking in theoreticals, but I contacted a few other close friends, and I received largely positive support for the idea. Without having made any decision yet, PhDre and I discussed how we might distinguish ourselves from Anumia, and at the end of that conversation, I knew that whatever I had been telling myself before, I was going to run. I honestly believed I was the better man for the job, albeit barely, so I stepped down and threw myself into the ring. It was the most exciting election, no, most exciting experience of my NationStates life.
Rachel: You came really close to winning that election and ended up losing by a very slim margin. Many of us were disappointed that someone had to lose. It was really fun to watch. How do you handle that?
Oliver: Well, as much as I wanted to win, I knew that Europeia would be in good hands if I lost. I thought it would be in better hands if I won, *chuckles* but I knew it would be in good hands regardless of the outcome. At the time, though, I must admit I was refreshing the election thread every fifteen minutes or so. It was a complete nail biter, there were no real periods where it looked absolutely certain until the end, as far as I was concerned at least. It actually had a slight effect on real life, as I was packing to move house at the time, and I should have been done that packing a lot sooner than I was. Also, with Anumia's status in Europeia, I actually considered that loss a personal victory. I went up against the Great Anumia, and I lost in the closest election in Europeian history. So I think I handled the whole thing fairly well, largely because there was no bad blood between us.
Rachel: But that's really hard to deal with and is an issue that many NSers struggle with. Giving it their all, feeling they can do the best job possible and yet still fail to win. Many quit or take breaks. When their best isn't good enough. What advice would you give to them?
Oliver: Don't quit, but pace yourself. Taking over the City Council right after was a mistake, and I burned out shortly thereafter when I ran into difficult opposition. If you come off a very difficult loss, take some time to internalize it and relax. Do something that's a little lighter, a little more fun, and you won't find yourself yo-yo-ing in and out of energy. This is advice that I should take better myself, actually, and I'm aiming to do that when this term comes to its end.
Rachel: Do as I say, not as I do?
Oliver: Haha, no more in the vein that we all struggle to do what's right even when we know what it is. Myself included.
Oliver: Thanks, glad to be here
Rachel: How are you?
Oliver: I'm well, a little bit tired, school and life are a bit exhausting, but holidays are coming up soon.
Rachel: That's true, I think all of Europeia is anticipating them!
Oliver: I know I can hardly wait
Rachel: So where do you feel you're now in your NS career?
Oliver: Well, I've been around for awhile now, over two years. I've done a lot, and I'm sort of at a slow period in my career. I'm still interested in government, but I'm slowing down, that's for sure. I'm much more interested in the community than the rest of it, I think. I'm excited to see what younger, more active members are up to, and while I think I'll be unable to avoid the allure of government entirely, I'll be pacing myself a great deal.
Rachel: What would you say is your biggest accomplishment? Your proudest moment?
Oliver: Oooh, good question, give me a second to think on that.
I think that to-date my greatest accomplishment in Europeia was the overhaul of the judiciary as Chief Justice. I'm most proud of taking what was, at the time, a reasonably minor part of Europeia and setting it on the path to being the excellent example of jurisprudential wisdom that it is today.
Rachel: Definitely a great moment. It's mid 2010 and you decided to step down as Chief Justice. Take us through that.
Oliver: Well, the time I decided to step down was a quick, though I'd hesitate to call it rash, decision. Former President PhDre and I were having a private conversation about how we felt about the candidates who were standing, and though we felt Anumia or Sopo would make fine Presidents, we felt that Sopo didn't really stand a chance, and polling was confirming that. I thought about it, and I thought I would be able to do an even better job, but at first I expressed it only as a joke, as I was Chief Justice. PhDre said that if I wanted to run, he'd run with me.
Well for the first time I was sorely tempted. We were still speaking in theoreticals, but I contacted a few other close friends, and I received largely positive support for the idea. Without having made any decision yet, PhDre and I discussed how we might distinguish ourselves from Anumia, and at the end of that conversation, I knew that whatever I had been telling myself before, I was going to run. I honestly believed I was the better man for the job, albeit barely, so I stepped down and threw myself into the ring. It was the most exciting election, no, most exciting experience of my NationStates life.
Rachel: You came really close to winning that election and ended up losing by a very slim margin. Many of us were disappointed that someone had to lose. It was really fun to watch. How do you handle that?
Oliver: Well, as much as I wanted to win, I knew that Europeia would be in good hands if I lost. I thought it would be in better hands if I won, *chuckles* but I knew it would be in good hands regardless of the outcome. At the time, though, I must admit I was refreshing the election thread every fifteen minutes or so. It was a complete nail biter, there were no real periods where it looked absolutely certain until the end, as far as I was concerned at least. It actually had a slight effect on real life, as I was packing to move house at the time, and I should have been done that packing a lot sooner than I was. Also, with Anumia's status in Europeia, I actually considered that loss a personal victory. I went up against the Great Anumia, and I lost in the closest election in Europeian history. So I think I handled the whole thing fairly well, largely because there was no bad blood between us.
Rachel: But that's really hard to deal with and is an issue that many NSers struggle with. Giving it their all, feeling they can do the best job possible and yet still fail to win. Many quit or take breaks. When their best isn't good enough. What advice would you give to them?
Oliver: Don't quit, but pace yourself. Taking over the City Council right after was a mistake, and I burned out shortly thereafter when I ran into difficult opposition. If you come off a very difficult loss, take some time to internalize it and relax. Do something that's a little lighter, a little more fun, and you won't find yourself yo-yo-ing in and out of energy. This is advice that I should take better myself, actually, and I'm aiming to do that when this term comes to its end.
Rachel: Do as I say, not as I do?
Oliver: Haha, no more in the vein that we all struggle to do what's right even when we know what it is. Myself included.
