A Lunch with Mr. Jay Aronowitz

Today, I was able to follow up on our initial trip to the Pentagon and visit with Mr. Jay Aronowitz to have a deeper conversation with him on his experiences and his advice for getting to the SES-level. Our meeting occurred at noon today at the Executive Officer Dining Room. First of all, I must say that the Dining Room is a special place, like a mini-restaurant within the Pentagon. And, the food was pretty good (I had a Caesar Salad and a Club Sandwich). Mr. Aronowitz, despite his pretty hectic day, was seemingly excited to speak with me, which helped put me at ease. I can tell that he is not jaded like some other Washington officials that I have encountered or met during my time here. He really seems to understand the reality of Washington, while working there.

Our discussion centered around his experience in the Presidential Management Fellowship program. He reiterated that this experience helped put him on the right path towards policy and public service work. It also helped him decide to go to the Defense department over the Justice Department. He emphasized that in order o advance, YOU MUST DISTINGUISH YOURSELF from the others. He recommended furthering your education and distinguishing yourself that way instead of entering a weary job market. Also, I asked him about race and how being an African-American in a high-level position adds more pressure and we shared similar experiences on trying to make race a non-issue in our experiences. We both believe that merit over time will overshadow race, but there is and always will be that initial pushback or weariness from others as to the merits of Blacks to attain a higher level of employment. I ended our conversation with my standard question of how do you know that you have reached a job that makes you happy , and he replied with not being happy, per se, with his current job but is glad to be able to help others and see generally positive results for the people that he serves. He is looking forward to retirement, where he can do volunteer work with children and animals that can make him happy.

Today's meeting was successful and enjoyable. I seem to relate a lot with him, because he has a similar standing in the Defense Department that I would like to achieve one day with the State Department. This Friday, we will have a follow up meeting at 2pm (along with my 12:30pm meeting with Mr. David Morgan). I hope the next meeting will be just as good as today's. I feel like I have laid foundations for a relationship and not just a connection, which to me is vital.

KAL