Wow my second week has flown by in the
blink of an eye and I can’t believe I’m already half way through my internship
at PPR!
This week – as expected was also busy, in
fact much busier than the last. My calendar on my desktop has quickly become my
best friend and my saving grace, reminding me of all the things I need to do
and when. This week’s tasks have primarily been public relations orientated
which has given me a well-rounded and very real insight into the various duties
that PR consultants do in their line of work.
One of these tasks was to write a profile
on a mining company for a magazine that PPR produces. As someone who has little
knowledge of and no experience in the mining industry, this was definitely a
very daunting task. However, with a little of bit of research, professional
guidance and a lot of trial and error, I managed to produce a piece of written
work that I was proud of and so was the editor at PPR who is going to publish
the article in the company’s publication. Needless to say, I was absolutely
ecstatic and when offered to write a second piece, I gladly accepted! This task
has taught me the importance of versatility in a PR consultancy as it is likely
that you will have to write pieces on certain companies, events etc that you
have little knowledge about. Research is therefore a very important factor and
one that I’m glad is emphasized in all our PR Units at university.
One area that I felt I struggled with this
week was working to a deadline. On Wednesday I was given the task of writing a
response to a year 12 student regarding the impact of FIFO on rural
communities. Again, with little existing knowledge of the industry, I
researched previous documents to gain a good perspective of the issue and then
set to work. However, because I only had a deadline of two hours to complete
the task, I felt like my mind (and more so my ability to write) completely shut
down on me under pressure. Although I did eventually get to work, what I
produced, I can’t say I was completely happy with. This ability to work to a deadline is
certainly one of the most prominent aspects of the PR industry and one that I’m
determined to tackle in the next six months before I graduate. I’ll be seeking some good advice from the PPR
team about what to do when those terrible nerves take over and how to focus
when working to such a tight deadline. What are your tips for dealing with
deadline stress?
My last major task this week was to produce a
media release for a recipient of a grant given by one of PPR’s clients. The
idea of writing my very own media release, something I’ve done many times at
Uni, really thrilled me but once again I struggled with the pressure of
producing something that I expected to be of a high standard. The media release that I produced was edited
and tweaked a little by the consultant that I was doing the work for and I
couldn’t help but feel a sense of disappointment that my media release had to
be altered a little bit to flow better.
After all the experiences I’ve had writing media releases at Uni, I felt
that I would know how to write these better than anything else – but the
reality
this week was different. Although the
consultant assured me that I’d done a great job, I just couldn’t help but a
feel that I’d let myself down.
One of the Account Managers reassured me
further by saying that most media releases, even his, often get tweaked by more
senior PR people and that it’s all part of the creative process.
Has anyone else had these experiences
before?
I think I just need to remind myself that I
am an intern and I still have a lot to learn instead of always being an over
achiever and striving for perfection – it’s simply not realistic or beneficial to my
sense of self and self worth!
Despite the sounds of it, I have still had
a great week, which has taught me just as much about myself as it has about PR
consultancy. I know now that PR is not
an industry for the faint hearted and in order to succeed, you need to stay
strong, focused and flexible to the demands of time, clients etc.
I’m grateful that I have had this insight
this week into the areas of myself that I need to work on and I am glad for
every experience that I have at PPR because it’s all part of a learning journey
that I imagine will only continue throughout the rest of my degree and my
career.
Until next time…!
