CAREER PATHS IN A PUBLIC RELATIONS FIRM

THE DIVERSITY OF OPPORTUNITIES

At public relations firms creates a wide variety of paths for you to follow. They give you the chance to specialize or to experience a broad array of work challenges. All give you management responsibilities early in your career, and all provide excellent learning opportunities that will be invaluable, even if you eventually move to a different field or return to school for post-graduate studies.

The diversification or generalist track.

Most agency professionals choose to work on a variety of assignments for clients in different industries. They find the variety of experiences to be the best learning opportunity and the most stimulating intellectual challenge. A generalist works with all stakeholders and influencers, whether they are employees or customers, interest groups or investors. They become experts in every type of media — TV, radio, print and Internet. Generalists are called on for all kinds of communications and research assignments — researching the competitors in a client’s industry, drafting a company brochure, preparing presentations at town meetings or tracking specific industry blogs.

And generalists get to learn firsthand the full range of global industries, from telecommunications to toys, energy to entertainment. Perhaps the greatest benefit of choosing a generalist track is the chance it provides to discover one’s special talents and interests and to guide you for future assignments in specialty fields or in agency management. The hot specialties track. Some professionals prefer to focus right away in an area like high tech, healthcare or consumer products and services. You’ll find yourself becoming an authority on the issues of that field, getting to know personally its opinion leaders, analysts, bloggers and media, and understanding the business strategies and market dynamics of the industry and its companies. While you will be developing your professional skills by attending conferences and other educational forums, your greatest learning opportunity will be in working alongside bright, experienced colleagues in tackling challenging assignments for your clients.

C A R E E R S I N P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S

If, for example, your interest is biology or health sciences, you could be helping a biotech company launching a new drug: training experts to be spokespeople; educating opinion leaders and groups with a special interest in the drug; obtaining FDA approval; building acceptance among physicians; educating patients about health management issues; and maintaining investor confidence in the company’s strategy for the product.

Those in high-tech specialties find a similarly rich diversity of assignments as the Internet continues to create new opportunities for the practice of public relations. Clients cover the spectrum from major infrastructure companies like Cisco, Oracle and Microsoft to fledgling startups hoping to be the next Google or eBay. Newer Internet platforms — blogging, podcasts and wikis, to name a few — have added to the tools that PR pros need to understand and master. Whatever the specialty, you will be communicating and establishing relationships with the trusted opinion leaders, analysts and media that cover those fields. Perhaps the world of consumer products and services is what captivates your interest.

New Horizons – New Sectors

Two popular and growing sectors in PR are fashion and sports marketing. Although the two are seemingly on opposite ends of the consumer spectrum, you will find that many of the skills required to succeed are similar. High profile clients “ whether a major designer or a professional sports franchise will draw upon”

Your skills to promote their interests to their respective stakeholders in a variety of ways. Skilled specialists have an important role in most public relations firms, providing vital support to clients in many different ways. Event planners, for example, are indispensable when it comes time to organize and manage a client’s event. Their talents might be applied to produce a modest ribbon-cutting ceremony or a global event such as the Olympics or the Academy Awards. When a client’s CEO is addressing



“Tremendous opportunities exist for people
looking to gain experience that comes from
working with a cross-section of clients on
a variety of timely issues.”

JAYA BHUMITRA, Associate, APCO Worldwide

C A R E E R I N P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S

C A R E E R S I N P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S

Public Relations Defined

HELPING AN ORGANIZATION tell its story, building good will and understanding, forging and nurturing strong bonds with the public and those who influence the public … that’s what public relations does.

Who is the public?

The “public” could be anyone — or all — of the many groups that have a mutual stake in an organization’s future. Those stakeholders could be a company’s customers, distributors or suppliers. They usually are its employees and investors, but they also could be government officials who regulate the company’s industry and interest groups who seek greater regulation. A university’s stakeholders are its faculty, students and their families, its contributors, and its prospective students.

Who are influencers?

“Influencers” are third parties who have an impact on stakeholders. For a university they could be high school teachers and guidance counselors. For a company they could be stock analysts who advise investors, union leaders who represent employees, customers and consultants who comment publicly on products and services, government officials and opinion leaders who affect public policy. The ultimate influencers are the media who report on and interpret an organization for stakeholders and third parties alike.

What’s the media’s role?

Public relations seeks to earn the endorsement or support of respected third parties and to ensure the media presents the organization’s story accurately. Because there is no control over those endorsements and the media is independent in its reporting, successful public relations creates far more credibility than advertising. Very simply, advertising is purchased media; public relations is earned media.

Credibility is the ultimate PR goal.

Credibility is why public relations plays such a valuable strategic role in today’s businesses and other organizations. And it is why public relations is such an intellectually challenging and professionally rewarding career. C A R E E R S I N P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S


Is PR a Good Fit for You?

THE PUBLIC RELATIONS INDUSTRY offers many career opportunities with corporations, agencies or consultancies, not-for-profit organizations, the public sector and academia. The skills described below are necessary for a career in any one of these areas.

Writing, Writing, Writing … and other Communications skills.

The ability to write well is probably the most important of all public relations skills. You don’t need to be a creative writer; rather you must be able to express yourself clearly, concisely and coherently. You’ll be drafting business memos, news releases, fact sheets, interview guidelines, Web site content, speeches, brochures, newsletters and dozens of other kinds of written communications. Listening and speaking are also very important. You will be the eyes, ears and voice of your organization or your clients.

Relationship-focus.

Whether we refer to publics, stakeholders, third-party influencers or the media, we’re talking about people. Successful public relations professionals are curious about what motivates human behavior, they like to build relationships, and they enjoyed their humanities and social sciences courses.

Issues-oriented.

Public relations professionals craft and execute campaigns for social issues like the war on drugs and smoking, and they sometimes help organizations take positions that are unpopular with some audiences. During major changes like company restructurings and mergers, and in times of crisis, public relations professionals are — like the Marines — the first in and the last out. Successful public relations professionals have the strong intellect, sense of urgency and cool-headedness to address the most complex situations under tremendous pressure. That’s why former government officials, attorneys and management consultants thrive in public relations.

Strength of character.

Public relations professionals are often the company’s face to the outside world. Because their character becomes the most visible representation of their organizations’ values and credibility, their integrity must be unquestioned. Often in the probing eye of the media, they have the personal courage to tell the truth, to avoid spin and evasiveness. C A R E E R S I N P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S Throughout this book, there will be an emphasis on attracting the best and brightest to the public relations industry. That includes attracting a more diverse workforce, because having a wide variety of perspectives and talents in the workforce is imperative for doing business in today’s highly competitive and increasingly global marketplace.

Entrepreneurial.

A career at a public relations firm requires management skills for running accounts and counseling clients; in essence you will be running a business. At a public relations firm, virtually every successful professional is an entrepreneur. While you serve your clients, your time and efforts represent revenue for the firm; when you serve them well, you inevitably create new revenue sources from pleased clients. It doesn’t take long for a capable professional to rise to managing an account, with responsibilities for controlling costs, building revenue, and contributing to the bottom-line profits of the firm. Whether managing an account, an office or an entire firm, business-savvy professionals will find the ideal entrepreneurial opportunity in the public relations industry.

“A public relations professional is part business manager,
part sociologist, part cheerleader, part confessor and
part pit bull. The trick to being successful is to be prepared
for anything. And you can always count on the fact that tomorrow will bring new and exciting challenges.”
SARA HARMS, Account Executive, Waggener Edstrom, New York

NERVOUSNESS—CAUSE AND CURE

Nervousness—Cause and Cure
Circa 1927
Nervousness is a malady that can be overcome by a specific medicine: calmness. The disturbance of mental equilibrium, which results in nervous disorders, is caused by continuous states of excitement or excessive stimulation of the senses. Indulgence in constant thoughts of fear, anger, melancholy, remorse, envy, sorrow, hatred, discontent, or worry; and lack of the necessities for normal and happy living, such as right food, proper exercise, fresh air, sunshine, agreeable work and a purpose in life, all are causes of nervous disease.

Any violent or persistent mental, emotional, or physical excitement greatly disturbs and unbalances the flow of life force throughout the sensory-motor mechanism and the lamps of the senses. If we connect a fifty-watt bulb with a two-thousand-volt source, it would burst out the bulb. Similarly, the nervous system was not made to withstand the destructive force of intense emotion or persistent negative thoughts and feelings.

Far-Reaching Effects of Nervousness
Nervousness is no simple problem; it is a deadly enemy with far-reaching effects. Physically, it is difficult to heal any disease so long as it is aggravated by nervousness. Spiritually, an imbalance of life force in the body makes it extremely hard for the devotee to concentrate or meditate deeply enough to acquire peace and wisdom. But nervousness can be cured. The sufferer must be willing to analyze his condition and remove the disintegrating emotions and negative thoughts that are little by little destroying him. Objective analysis of one's problems, and maintaining calmness in all situations of life will heal the most persistent case of nervousness.

NERVOUSNESS—CAUSE AND CURE
Realization that all power to think, speak, feel, and act comes from God, and that He is ever with us, inspiring and guiding us, brings an instant freedom from nervousness. Flashes of divine joy will come with this realization; sometimes a deep illumination will pervade one's being, banishing the very concept of fear. Like an ocean, the power of God sweeps in, surging through the heart in a cleansing flood, removing all obstructions of delusive doubt, nervousness, and fear. The delusion of matter, the consciousness of being only a mortal body, is overcome by contacting the sweet serenity of Spirit, attainable by daily meditation. Then you know that the body is a little bubble of energy in His cosmic sea.

The victim of nervousness must understand his case, and must reflect on those continual mistakes of thinking which are responsible for his maladjustment to life. When the nervous man once admits to himself that his disease is not mysterious in its cause, but the logical outcome of his own habits, he is already half cured.

The Nervous System
The nervous system is the telephonic outlet and inlet of die body, providing man with his response to outer and inner stimuli. Excitement upsets the nervous balance, sending too much energy to some parts and depriving others of their normal share. This lack of proper distribution of nerve force is the sole cause of nervousness. The calm man—he who avoids excitement because he is not overly attached to his ego and is aware that God, and not he, is running this universe—is always able to meet any situation in life because his nerve force is equilibrated. Lord Krishna said: "With unwavering discrimination, free from delusion, neither jubilant at pleasant experiences nor downcast by unpleasant experiences, the sage be-comes established in God."* This is the goal we must strive for and attain.
The nervous system supplies life current to the brain, heart, and other parts of the body. It distributes energy to the five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. Nerves are our medium of contact with the outer world and the' Bhagavad-Gita V:20.

source of all our sensory reactions. How important it is, therefore, to keep the nerves in a state of perfect balance, not shocking one part of the body with too much energy and consequently limiting the supply to other regions. Not by restlessness or emotional reactions, hut by calmness, by deep trust in God, we reach the yogic state of an equilibrated being.

The yogis have special techniques by which one can revive tissues burned out by nervousness, by sending life energy into nerves partially destroyed by mistreatment. Each cell and tissue in the nervous system is a living, intelligent structure. Life energy can always renew it.

Overcome Nervousness by Good Company Nervousness is of two kinds—psychological and mechanical, or superficial and organic. The psychological or most common variety is due to mind excitement. This condition, long continued in, and accompanied by association with uninspiring people and wrong diet and health habits, causes the chronic or organic manifestations of nervous diseases.
The diet should be simple, balanced, and not too plentiful. Exercise should be regular. Too much sleep drugs the nerves, and too little sleep is hurtful to them. But all-important is the choice of company. Tell me what kind of friends a man has and I will tell you what he is. Flatterers do not help us. We should seek the society of superior men—those who tell us the truth and help us to improve ourselves. He is our best friend who humbly suggests how we may benefit our life by worthwhile changes.

Strong criticism, delivered in a mean or heartless way, is like hitting a man on the head with a hammer. The power of love is infinitely more effective. Kind suggestions, given with love and understanding, can accomplish wonders; mere faultfinding accomplishes nothing. One is fit to judge others only after he has perfected his own nature. Till then, judging oneself is the only profitable analysis.

Association with calm, wise people is one of the quickest ways to banish nervousness and realize our innate divinity. Nervous people should stay away from those suffering from similar troubles.

Calmness Is the Best Cure
The best cure for nervousness is the cultivation of calmness. One who is naturally calm does not lose his sense of reason, justice, or humor under any circumstances. He can always separate sentiment or wishful thinking from fact. He is not led astray by the honeyed tongues of dishonest men with improbable schemes for acquiring unearned wealth. He does not poison his bodily tissues with anger or fear, which adversely affect circulation. It is a well-proven fact that the milk of an angry mother can have a harmful effect on her child. What more striking proof can we ask for, that violent emotions will finally reduce the body to an ignominious wreck?

Poise is a beautiful quality. We should pattern our life by a triangular guide: calmness and sweetness are the two sides; the base is happiness. Every day, one should remind himself: "I am a prince of peace, sitting on the throne of poise, directing ray kingdom of activity." Whether one acts quickly or slowly, in solitude or in the busy marts of men, his center should be peaceful, poised. Christ is an example of the ideal. Everywhere, he demonstrated peace. He passed through every conceivable test without losing his poise.

Harmony Thoughts
God is everywhere, controlling planets, galaxies; yet He is not disturbed. Though He is in this world, yet He is above this world. We must reflect His image and likeness. We must meditate often and hold on to the peaceful aftereffects. We must send out thoughts of love, goodwill, harmony. In the temple of meditation, with the light of intuition burning on the altar, there is no restlessness, no nervous striving or searching. Man is truly home at last, in a sanctuary not made with hands, but with God-peace.