How to navigate politics

When analyzing the political situation, knowledge from courses in geography, international macroeconomics, psychology, history, jurisprudence, and other sciences will be useful. This is due to the fact that a specific event on the world stage or within the country must be compared with something, given the context. Then you can make objective judgments and make predictions.

Instruction manual

Since politics is closely related to economics and finance, learn the meaning of basic economic terms. The balance of payments of the country shows how foreign exchange reserves for the period under consideration change. This document indicates the sources of foreign currency and how it is used. The exchange rate shows how much one currency is in units of another. Rate fluctuations are affected by: inflation relative to other countries, the demand for foreign currency for conducting foreign trade, for investments in other countries, and for the creation of inviolable reserves.

Learn the methodology of country analysis - this will help to make forecasts regarding the future of a country. First, analyze the indicators of past years: balance of payments, exchange rates, GNP, inflation, employment, interest rates, income distribution, population growth, education, etc. Define the strategic goals of the country in financial matters. Examine the context: country size, population, geography, type of government, leaders, stability and corruption, business, religion, agriculture; the role of family, culture, state, individualism; trade advantages and competitiveness in the international arena. Based on the information gathered, make a forecast for the future. Make a scenario analysis - several forecast options in case of changes in certain indicators.

Understand the terms of political strategy. The main goal of politicians at this level is to manage relations with external structures, which also compete with each other. This is due to missed opportunities and numerous threats. When analyzing a specific political situation, make a list of potentially affected parties. For each of them write all the benefits and types of damage caused by the action of one of the participants. Also identify the rights and obligations of each party in terms of international law or domestic laws. Determine the relative strength of each player and identify some of the most significant. Assess the impact of their actions in the short and long term. Make possible action plans for each participant in any of the alternative scenarios. Make a judgment about your assessment of the situation.

Useful advice

Learn the history of different countries and read biographies of political leaders. This will provide more useful food for thought than news reports treating events from a certain point of view.