It’s been a tumultuous year for politics. The upside of the chaos is that many young people feel galvanized to engage politically in a way they haven’t before. That’s great news, but if you’re like me, you don’t know how to participate outside of voting. Some of my friends from college have experience working in government offices both inside and outside of Washington, DC. They've convinced me that there’s still power in calling your elected officials.

That said, I had some odd ideas about how that process worked, and some information I found on the internet turned out to be inaccurate. Avoiding these mistakes will make your call go more smoothly and ensure that your views are counted.

1. I don’t like this bill, I should call its sponsor

Representatives of various jurisdictions around the country make decisions that affect every American. This is a reality of our federal system. Aides and officials know that their policies will affect millions of Americans, not just their constituents. They care about the impact their policies will have on everyone, but ultimately, the constitutional duty of an elected official is to represent and consider the interests of their district first and foremost.

What that means is that your time is better spent calling your own elected officials rather than someone else’s. Ultimately, your officials will vote for or against the bill in question, so it is important that they hear your viewpoint. Begin the call with your location (city, state, and zip code), otherwise, the aide will ask you for it later. If you’re on voicemail, remember to leave that information. It won’t be used to identify you, just to verify that you’re a constituent.

If you absolutely must contact a specific official who doesn’t represent you, find a friend who is in their constituency and encourage them to call.

2. Getting angry will help convince my official to act

Politics brings out the worst in people. I sincerely hope nobody reading this actually thinks yelling at an aide over the phone is the way to get things done, but there are definitely issues that bring out intense emotions. The desire to be heard on an issue can be intense but remember the people answering the phones are human beings like you, not mindless robots actively working to dismantle the nation.

This is a personal request, from someone with a few friends working phones in government offices: please be nice. The aides answering phones aren’t the ones who decide policy. In fact, they may not agree with every political view communicated by their elected official (not that they can or will share those personal views with you).

Regardless, indiscriminately yelling at people who disagree with us is what’s gotten us into this mess in the first place. Aides are happy to speak with polite callers, whether they agree with your views or not. Aides also sympathize with a constituent’s desire to feel heard. But getting angry means that you are less likely to be listened to, not more.

3. I need to speak to the aide who is “informed” about my issue

You might encounter this if, like me, your first instinct was to Google something like “tips for calling your senator.” Some websites will advise that you ask to be transferred to the policy aide on a given issue; that probably isn’t going to happen.

There’s no reason to be transferred: whoever’s answering the phone has been trained to take notes on any issue. They aren’t there to debate you, so they don’t need to know every detail. Aides are there to make sure your voice is heard, not to analyze your arguments.

In the same vein, feel free to mention multiple issues at once. You don’t need to call in just to talk about one issue at a time. But do keep it brief. It’s important that aides get to as many calls as possible, and remember that they aren’t there to be convinced by your airtight arguments, just to take note of your position.

4. I should use my vote as leverage

Aides will care what you have to say and consider your concerns regardless of whether you threaten them with your vote or not. It’s needlessly aggressive. This misconception may have come out of a piece of legitimate advice, however.

It is important to be specific when you call, the more specific the better. Saying “I want Congressman Smith to vote for the bill about stopping at railroad crossings” is more effective than blanket statements about how important climate change is or that life begins at conception.

But you don’t need to say “Congressman Smith needs to vote for the railroad crossing bill, or I’m not voting for him” to get the aide to listen to you. It’s their constitutional duty to note down what you have to say, a duty that aides take very seriously. Including your voting plans won’t help one way or the other.

Don’t let any of this intimidate you: calling your representatives matters too much to let the details get in the way. Just remember to be polite, professional, and brief, and whoever picks up the phone is sure to be grateful.