The Contemporary Presidency: The Pressures of White House Work Life: “Naked in a Glass House”

Abstract

The White House is a place where the work load is heavy, the hours are long, the pressures are great, and the benefits are manyfold. As hard as people say the work is, few would trade the time they spent working in the White House; nor is there a shortage of people wanting to work there. The pressures of White House work life relate to the volume and variety of the assignments, the heavy commitment of hours and days, the generous amount of criticism directed toward the president and individual White House staff members, and the narrow margin of error allowed to those working for the president. Although less numerous than the pressures, the benefits are an important component of White House work life. They revolve around the importance of the decisions made in a White House, the interesting people and situations one confronts when working in a White House, the increased likelihood of having an interesting and lucrative career after having the White House, and having a part in history as it is made.