Tammy Pickering Barnett

Tammy (Barnett) Pickering volunteered for several state-wide campaigns and chaired her party's Get-Out-The-Vote efforts in Southwestern Indiana before running for county council. When running her own campaign, she searched for a book of tips for local elected office. There were books for national and state office, but few mentioned local campaigns. With her background as a corporate trainer and business writer, she began collecting tips and learnings along the way. Her journal and notes and interviews with numerous local political leaders became the foundation for this guide.

Running for office can be expensive and time consuming, so much so that many would-be candidates are kept away from the process. Pickering is passionate about helping those servant leaders with the knowledge she gained. Her hope is that people who want to make a difference in their communities will be encouraged and shown the ropes so they can choose the best race to enter and can launch their campaigns without going into debt.

Pickering is president of T.R. Pickering and Associates, Inc., a training consulting company that helps organizations develop employees' leadership and communication skills. She develops curriculum and teaches leadership and business writing courses for the University of Southern Indiana.