Fresh faced out of my
penultimate semester of study, you are expecting to work hard, all go all the
time. Brainstorming campaigns in the morning and writing up reports in the afternoon;
writing press releases by the press’ deadlines at 4pm, and later dashing off to
manage client events until the late hours.
A big reality check was fast coming my way working at GO Communications in Malaysia. Not everything you do is going to be interesting, creative or even overly productive work, BUT it is all still extremely necessary and your responsibility to get it done.As the new intern
there is many a menial task that gets relegated to you, because someone more
important doesn’t have the time.
From continuous
follow-up with media about the same press release you have sent them 3 times,
To endless double-checking of contact details
for the PICs (Person in Charge) that don’t want to take your call.
It’s important to
recognize where these annoyingly tedious tasks fit into an overall campaign and
understand why it may be crucial to a client’s success, or even just for your
own ease and efficiency.
Say you didn’t
relentlessly follow-up the press releases you poured your time, creativity and
sweat into, then you wouldn’t know if or when a piece might get picked up or
when to check a publication. Every piece of publicity you provide your client
needs to be found and recorded (as press clippings), as proof to your client
that you are worth every cent they are paying for your services, so knowing
when one is coming can save you a WHOLE bunch of reading around. Plus, the feeling you get
when you (eventually) hear from a media contact that they are going to publish
a piece on your client is like excitement, surprise, gratitude and joy all
rolled into one.
So yes. Being an
intern can be incredibly dull. And, yes. You will get passed all the terrible
jobs that no one else wants to do. But at the same time, once you realize the
responsibility and the necessity behind all those annoying tasks and you get to
report your successes to your boss, you will come to appreciate the work more
and more.
Of course, the odd
writing assignment and event role will keep your interest peaked and help you
get through the hours of media calls and research. The good thing about being a
PR intern is that you figure out pretty quickly if you are cut out for a career
in PR.
If the small joys of
seeing your client’s name in the paper and the energy from getting those creative
juices flowing doesn’t wake you up in the morning, then PR might not be the field
for you. Because it appears that in PR, you survive the days of tediousness to
enjoy the tasks you love.
How do you find
working in the PR field – full of excitement and ingenuity, a struggle to wade
through the deadly dullness, or a good mix of both? Let me know in the
comments.
