Your Career and You: “The Positiveness of Optimism”

I have good weeks in my multiple roles of public relations
professional, public relations professor, and public relations

mentor. And I have not-so-good weeks.

This one…so far…has been nothing short of amazing.

Here in balmy New England, we’re finally emerging from the aftermath of a blizzard that gave me two unplanned days off… “found time” in which I managed to write and submit a book review, schedule two speaking engagements, and get a boatload of badly-needed sleep.

So, after not having my “normal” set of four classes on Monday, I meandered down on Tuesday to Curry College, where I ride herd over the Communication Department’s Public Relations Concentration and teach most of the PR courses, for my one evening class…“Crisis Communication Management.”

Didn’t really have a lot scheduled…planned to catch up on paperwork and grab some time with a couple of colleagues who I don’t often have a chance to see.

I opened my office door, unloaded my stuff, sat down, and it started…a steady procession of students, all eager to talk about their forays into the world of public relations.

• One has scored an informational interview with a very cool entertainment/music promotion company. She loves music. Her Dad is a musician. It’s in her DNA.
• Another is weighing the benefits of a couple of internships that will allow him to make use of his passion for social media communication.
• The third wanted to update me on her current internship and all she has learned. I was blown away by her obvious excitement…and by what she has done.

I found myself feeling like a kid in a candy store as I talked with each. I was having serious flashbacks to my own experiences as a Public Affairs Intern for the US Army’s Training and Doctrine Command down in Virginia…the excitement of the unknown.

What I realized as I talked with these future PR professionals was that a willingness to dive into the deep end of the pool…not really knowing what’s going to happen but open to the idea that it might be fun…is so very important.

• How many different materials did Thomas Edison try before hitting on the one that produced the electric light bulb?
• Where did Christopher Columbus wind up when he set out looking for a “shortcut” to India?

The thing I’ve come to recognize after a “few” years in the working world is that nothing new happens unless you’re open to the idea of trying unknown or different things for the sake of just trying them.

As I say time and again, sometimes things blow up or don’t work. So be it. Worst case scenario…you don’t do that again.

As a kid, I stuck a metal nail file in a wall socket to see what would happen. Found out fast. Blew out the house’s electrical system and apparently turned a marvelous shade of blue myself. Lesson learned!

But, as I have come to recognize, you learn from these experiences. And, if you’re truly adventurous…or curious…you’ll try things again, just in a different way.

And you learn more…you gain more experience and knowledge.

But it all comes from your belief that it can be done…you just have to figure out how.

Internships are a way to experiment with your professional future. At this point as a student, you don’t really know what it is that’s going to make you jump out of bed in the morning eager to get to work and make a difference in some way.

So you try new things…internships, for example…to see how they “feel.” You gain new experience. And you learn a LOT about yourself in the process that you can now apply to your slowly-developing “life plan.”

And it’s all thanks to the “positiveness of optimism.”

"The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true." - James Branch Cabell, "The Silver Stallion" [1926], ch. 26

Your Career and You: "Falling in Love"

Then...

It all started with a chance encounter...we were introduced by a trusted advisor.

We both thought it would be a short-lived experience...we could only meet once a week in the evening. How could it possibly work out?

But we were wrong...I was hooked from the first...loved the talk of "relationships" and "mutual understanding." This was a commitment I was ready for.

And I was right! We've now been a "team" for more than 40 years...

And now...

I just received a "Google Alerts" notice that the second of two guest blog posts I wrote for two friends, Shonali Burke and Larry Thomas, had been published.

Got a rush kind of like when I used to, as a kid on Christmas morning, sneak into the living room to see what Santa had left under the tree!

Yeah...there's an ego-trip-py feeling to it. But more important, in my mind, it's a reminder of why I wandered like a nomad into...and earned my citizenship in...public relations.

I absolutely love being able to use words and actions to deliver messages, spark interest, and generate reaction.

Not everyone agrees with what I say. I've been called some pretty neat things..."dilletante" is my all-time favorite!

But I know, from the comments I get on my blog and other places, that I've caused someone to stop...to read...to think...and to react.

If I've accomplished what I intended, people have acted.

They joined the Army when I worked as a Public Affairs Specialist for the US Army Boston District Recruiting Command (now New England Army Recruiting Battalion).

They gave lifesaving blood when I worked as Communications Services Director for the Blood Bank of Hawaii.

And they get interested in and study public relations in my current role as Associate Professor of Communication at Curry College, where I teach undergrad PR courses and constantly tweak the PR concentration to ensure that our students are fully prepared for "life after graduation."

I didn't start out this way, though.

The story...

Thought I wanted to be a civil engineer building highways and bridges. Discovered you actually had to be able to draw straight lines! Bummer.

Wound up as an English major with a focus on 18th-century British lit.

A few twists and turns, two more degrees (in business management), eight years active duty in the Air Force...and a public affairs  internship with the Army's Training and Doctrine Command. The rest, so they say, is history.

"Love" struck with an elective I took for my undergraduate business degree..."Introduction to Public Relations."

The course put a name on stuff I had been doing when I was in the Air Force...working with community groups, publicizing activities my unit was involved in, writing promotional pieces for the base newspaper.

Until I took the course, I honestly had no idea what I was doing...I just knew I loved doing it!

Jumping ahead to the present, I've had a very cool, if somewhat zigzagging, career. Made a difference to some important organizations.

Loved every minute of it...and still do!

And that's the point of this chat today...

When you discover what it is that you really enjoy doing, it turns into a love affair that lasts forever. You can't wait to get to it when you wake up in the morning...and you're reluctant to leave it at the end of the day.

"To business that we love we rise betime,
And go to 't with delight."
William Shakespeare, "Antony and Cleopatra," IV, iv, 20

Your Career and You: "Three Little Birds"

Ok, I'm in my Bob Marley mood today. Just finished ironing a pile of clothes, which always leaves me with the satisfaction of having actually accomplished something! Beautiful day; gorgeous weather. What more could you want?

Well, based on a couple of online conversations I've had recently with newly-hatched college grads...a job seems to be high on the "want" list.

Can't say that I blame them. Four years of tears, tests, teachers, and textbooks. And a substantial chunk of change invested.

And what for? A non-response to a letter of application for a job. A "thanks; no thanks" letter following an interview. As an old (really old) song said, "Just sittin' and waitin' gets so aggravatin', so ring, telephone ring."

One thing I try to communicate when I run into a situation like this is the need for patience. The fact that you have graduated and want a job yesterday is a bare blip on my radar screen as a hiring manager. The heat is on for me to find a more senior communicator to fill a higher-level and potentially more productive position; entry-level gets done whenever.

My undergraduate advisees at Curry College as well as my graduate students at Regis College hear variations of this message constantly when we're talking about "life after graduation." I try to help them understand that expectations (theirs) have to be tempered to meet realities (the hiring companies').

The main thing to remember, in my opinion, is that you will find a job. It may not be exactly what you dreamed about every night at school after cramming for tomorrow's exam, but it will be a job that launches you into the professional working world.

I've said at least a zillion times that my first full-time job after graduating from college was as a short-order cook in my Father's soda shop in my hometown of Dublin, Georgia. I wasn't called on to make use of the knowledge I had gained studying 18th century British lit at the University of Georgia. But I made one heck of a hamburger and a world-class chocolate milk shake!

And I discovered my nascent public relations abilities...built an awesome following of high school students who flocked to the soda shop after school and on Saturdays to munch on my burgers and slurp my shakes... business flourished, my Dad was happy...and I got a raise.

Later on, I took a job as a record salesman (you do remember records, don't you?!?) and learned the value of primary and secondary research (talked to customers and friends about what their favorite current songs were and diligently combed Billboard for clues to future hits) in helping me make sure I had what customers wanted today...not tomorrow.

I ultimately, after a few career twists and turns, wound up working in public relations, but it was a circuitous path that took me through eight years of the Air Force working as an English Language Instructor, then an Audiovisual Technician, and finally a Command Briefing Specialist.

The convoluted point I'm driving toward here is that everything I did along the way was beneficial experience that prepared me for immersion, thanks to the US Army's public affairs internship program, into PR and my lifetime career.

You're doing the same with your current job, whether it be full-time or part-time, and regardless of what you're actually doing. You just have to take a step back and look at what you're learning.

I did a very short...two days...stint as a package sorter for UPS down in Virginia right after I got out of the Air Force. Learned very quickly...my supervisor was not impressed...that mind-numbing, backbreaking work is not my forte'. Note to self: No more physical labor.

So...why "Three Little Birds"?

Because the song encourages you to look on the bright side of things...to not give up...to find joy in the small pleasures of life.

Not a bad way to go, is it?

Your Career and You: "Minorities, Masses and Internships"

Yep, it's that time of the year again when the soft breezes waft gently, squirrels play "chicken" with oncoming cars, and students get all googley-eyed at the thought of summer... as well as, for some, their future.

The inspiration for this week's ruminations was a chat I had with a student in my "Principles of Public Relations" class at Curry College where I oversee the COM Department's public relations concentration and teach most of the PR courses.

This particular student...a sports-enthusiast (no surprise there)...had learned of possible job openings at ComCast SportsNet in the communications area (BIG surprise there).

Why?

He's a senior. I've known him for about a year. Never a peep about interest in communications as an actual career field.

How can this be, you ask?

Easy. Not everyone who pursues a Communication major actually plans to work in communication. That's the beauty of this particular major...the knowledge and skills that you acquire in the process prepare you for an amazing variety of work environments.

You pick up, of course, writing and speaking skills. You learn the intricacies of interpersonal communication. You fine-tune your presentation skills. You learn how to communicate both in a business and a social environment.

Take all this and combine it with that particular area of professional life in which you truly have an interest...finance, education, criminal justice, you name it...and you have a leg up on your entry-level competitors who specialized in just one of these areas with no communication exposure.

But, back to my student. He indirectly was asking if I would grease the skids on his application for a marketing position reporting to a friend of mine. I didn't have a chance to grill him on his motivation, but I fully intend to do so.

Why? Because he will have zero qualifications other than a diploma and a love of sports and hasn't done anything to differentiate himself from the herd of other applicants who will be vying for this very same position.

It's a smidge late in the game to turn the clock back and start all over again. Other folks have been racking up internship after internship, homing in on their strengths, preferred work environments, areas of interest, etc.

And it's not like I haven't been yammering on and on about the importance of internships in all my classes.

That's how I got my start in public relations...as a Public Affairs Intern working for the US Army Training and Doctrine Command at Ft. Monroe, VA. Learned virtually everything there was to know about the career field. Took to it like a duck to water.

I was late to the game myself, having entered the world with an English degree and an unnerving interest in 18th century British literature.

Eight years in the Air Force had given me a chance to (accidentally, I hasten to emphasize) develop basic PR skills including writing, public speaking, event planning and management, crisis communication, and a myriad others. Thus to the Army as a civilian public affairs guy.

So, back to the student. I have to get clear in my own mind what it is he hopes to accomplish here. Does he think he is going to waltz into an interview armed with a shiny-new sheepskin and a smile and nail a coveted entry-level job?

I obviously don't have the answer to this puzzle yet, but I will have before I offer to intervene on his behalf with ComCast SportsNet.

But this episode lends even more credence to my ongoing mantra of "internship, internship, internship." Why?
> The economy is still faltering along...optimism is dawning but not fully in place.
> Competition even for entry-level jobs...especially for entry-level jobs...is brutal.
> You have to differentiate yourself from the rest of the flock.
> Successful internships make a difference...a big difference.

I hope I will be able to report in a future post the successful resolution of this situation. I'm not filled with great hope, but I'm also not always right. Fingers crossed on this one.

"Minorities are individuals or groups of individuals especially qualified. The masses are the collection of people not especially qualified."
Jose' Ortega y Gasset, The Revolt of the Masses [1930], prologue

Your Career and You: "Why Are You Here?"

I came up to Massachusetts in the late 70s as a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed Public Affairs intern slated to step in as Public Affairs Officer for the US Army Intelligence School, Devens.

I was at the tail end of an 18-month internship and had been through the gamut of training including the Defense Information School and a three-month assignment at Ft. Lewis, Washington. This was on top of my previous eight years in the Air Force with varying assignments and duties around the US as well as Asia.

Knew what I was doing and going to do...or so I thought!

Then I walked into the School Commander's office for my introductory interview.

The way this was going to play out (in my mind) was that he was going to welcome me, ask about my background, commend me on a decent stint in the Air Force, and send me along to do my job.

Not exactly the way it went.

I walked in, introduced myself and, after being invited to do so, sat down. He looked at me over the top of his glasses and along the length of his mile-long cigar, and asked one question: "Why are you here?"

Yowza.

Fortunately, I had arrived a couple of days before with my wife to check out the area and figure out where we were going to live. I also had some time to visit Ayer, the town adjacent to Ft. Devens, and chat with a few business owners along the main street. Got some interesting insights.

Back to the question at hand.

I looked the colonel in the eye and said, "Sir, I have had a chance to talk to some of the folks in downtown Ayer...our neighbors...and they don't seem to know who we are or what we're doing here. You have an image problem that I believe I can help fix."

Cut to the dramatic sunset and romantic music in the background...I spent the next three and a half years rebuilding our public relations program basically from the ground up.

Left with the School actively involved in post-wide activities, holding open houses that allowed our neighboring communities a glimpse at what we were doing behind the barbed wire and frosted windows, and getting regular, positive coverage in local, regional, national and international publications.

But it all started with my doing my homework. My rationale was, if I didn't know what this organization was all about and I was going to be the chief PR guy, what did our publics know?

Any time you have a reason to meet with someone, whether it be for an informational interview, an internship interview, or a job interview... do your homework.

Find out as much as you can about the organization itself and the key players within the organization. Find out what the public thinks about the organization. Find out who the competition is. And prepare your questions...write them out and refer to them during your meeting.

Why?

Because, even if the question isn't asked openly, it's sitting there beside you during your meeting, eating grapes and spitting the seeds on the floor.

"Why are you here?"

Show that you're curious...that you like having  control of the facts in a situation. Even if it's an informational interview and you're really not interested in working at this particular organization, show your research skills.

Be able to at least ask a question about a recent news item mentioning the organization or about a product that catches your attention during your research.

Why? Because you will make an impression. You will leave your interviewer with the perception that you have the makings of a professional...you know how to do your homework.

Why is that important? Because this individual just might either have an idea of a job you could apply for or might, at some point, have a conversation with a colleague who is looking for someone with your general qualifications.

Which would you rather have said?

To you: "Gee, I really don't know of anyone who's looking for someone like you."

Or to a colleague: "You know. I met a young person the other day who had really done his(her) homework before our meeting and was asking some very insightful questions. Might be worth your talking to him(her). I know I was impressed."

Do your homework. Be ready to answer the unasked question: "Why are you here?"

"Every why hath a wherefore."
William Shakespeare, "The Comedy of Errors" (act II, sc. ii, l. 45)

Your Career and You..."Take a Deep Breath...THEN Talk!"

Just when I thought life couldn't get any funner (yes, I know that's not a word...but it fits here for some reason!), Gen. McChrystal comes along with his "Rolling Stone" interview.

My mantra, both as a public relations professional and, now, as a public relations professor, has always been "If you don't want your Mother to read about it in the paper the next day, don't SAY it!"

My Communication students at Curry College, especially those with a Public Relations concentration...most especially those who are taking my Crisis Communication Management course...hear this, if not daily, definitely weekly somewhere in our classroom discussions.

The cool (or sad) thing is almost always having a copy of that day's newspaper for "show 'n tell" to prove my point.

We all like to be perceived as "bright" or "witty" or "quick-with-a-quote." And that's all well and good. But a piece of advice...

THINK.

How will what you say be received or perceived!

As you are preparing for a meeting...or an interview...what points do you want to get across, and how do you want others to react to what you say?

I had a great conversation last week with a colleague who's both engaging in the tenure torture process at her university and organizing her thoughts to apply for the Public Relations Society of America's "College of Fellows." (Kind of like having a root canal and an appendectomy at the same time!)

We actually were talking about something I am preparing to do that she has already been through, and she made one comment...not an earth-shaking revelation...just a common- sense observation about her own experience with this endeavor: "I sent everyone out of the house and sat down with my list of bullet-points of things that I wanted to make sure I covered in my interview."

My immediate thought was, like Homer Simpson, "D-Oh!!" Better do that, Kirk.

So, to wrap this rambling up...sometime, somewhere in your professional life...either as you're starting out or later on when you think you know everything...you will be called on to express your thoughts: "What do you see yourself contributing to this position at XYZ PR?"..."What do you think of your boss?"

If this is the ideal situation and you've had time to prepare, refer to your bullet-point list. If this is an "out-of-the-blue" encounter, take a deep breath...THEN talk.

The little girl had the making of a poet in her who, being told to be sure of her meaning before she spoke, said, "How can I know what I think till I see what I say?"
Graham Wallas, "The Art of Thought" [1926]

Mentoring..."I Get By With a Little Help from My Friends"

I've had conversations with two different public relations professionals this week, both of whom had questions about their careers. Although this isn't unusual (either the questioning or the conversation), it did get me to thinking about my commitment to helping others.

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, I was blessed with an amazing mentor in the early days of my own career. Clinton Parks was my internship supervisor at the US Army Training and Doctrine Command's Public Affairs Office, and he went out of his way to make sure that I learned every aspect of managing a PR department's operations, including proper filing of paperwork and other seemingly mundane tasks.

When I completed my formal training, I was given several choices for a permanent assignment, from which I chose the US Army Intelligence School, Ft. Devens, Mass., where I would serve as the School's Public Affairs Officer. What a totally ego-enhancing experience that was and, for three years, I ran the entire PR operation for a major military educational institution.

More importantly, Clint kept in touch...unobtrusively...but he kept in touch. Somewhere in the phone conversation would come: "How's it going?" "What have you been learning?" "What didn't we teach you that you wish you had known?"

As he noticed that I was starting to establish my own network at the School and on the post, Clint eased up on the frequency of his contact, but he didn't stop. And I always knew that, if I had a question that I was sure no one else would have the answer for, Clint was always there in spirit... and a telephone call away.

He didn't have to do this. In fact, it was several years before I actually realized what he was doing. But he did. And I was the beneficiary of a true public relations professional's caring, concern, and commitment.

Today, some 30 years later, I understand what Clint was doing. He cared deeply about the public relations profession, and he wanted to make sure that the interns he sent out into the "real world" both knew what they were doing and, more importantly, knew that there was someone just a phone call away who could advise, suggest, or...sometimes...just listen.

At both Curry College, where I oversee the public relations concentration and teach most of the PR courses, and Regis College, where I teach graduate-level communication courses, my students know I am always just an email or phone call away...and they take advantage of the opportunity to learn from my experiences, my mistakes and...yes...my successes.

Whether you're in an academic setting as I am now, or in a practicing professional setting, I hope you will take Clint's example to heart. When someone approaches you for advice, take the time to listen. Reflect on your own experiences as you were moving up in the field. And give that individual your best advice and counsel.

When you do reflect on your own experiences, remember...we all get by with a little help from our friends...or mentors!