The Aspiring Communicator: Redux

It has now been about six months since my last post. I intended to write again, but then the weeks and months passed, and I just couldn’t find the right angle. I felt like I had exhausted all of the obvious material that schoolwork inspires, with the exception of a “pros and cons of online learning” post that I promised one of my readers (which will be forthcoming, I promise).

I think the real issue is that, in my second semester I was both bored and busy. I didn’t find the education side challenging – though it was time consuming – and I had become incredibly involved in a couple of community initiatives. Then, all of a sudden, my “student experience” was over.

In January I started an internship and helped with the marketing of a local event. At the end of my internship I was given a contract. Now I’m a professional – a new, inexperienced professional – but a professional nonetheless. I am no longer an aspiring communicator – I am just a communicator.

In the natural course of time, this space has lost its purpose.

But, now I’ve found a new purpose. I was once an aspiring communicator – now I can help a whole new generation of aspiring communicators. Beginning today, this blog transitions from being a chronicle of a career change to the infinitely more helpful and useful chronicle of random crap you don’t know about working in the communications field until you’re actually knee-deep in it.

Stay tuned, this could get interesting.

A Day in the Sun - Learning on the Job

What happens when you mix four civic-minded Londoners, a seemingly inexhaustible work ethic and a helpful local media? A good news story.

About a month ago I was lucky to be a part of a great local project - the Citizen Engagement in London Ontario (CELO) study. The purpose was to discover the different methods being used by London City Council to engage the community. Long story short, it was an amazing success.

So, what was my role? Public relations, of course. I was involved with the planning, survey preparation and delivery stages, but my major contribution was media relations. What a great introduction to both the media relations function AND London's media!

In the end, we garnered six print media impressions, nine online media impressions, two blog posts, coverage on two local radio stations and 1500 hits on the website, all in a three week period.

So how was it done?

It started with a communications plan. Using the skills I've learned in school, I developed a communications plan that would introduce the project and garner coverage for the results. The primary concern was getting local media coverage. After writing the first draft, I brought the plan to the group and was met with unanimous support.

Then, I wrote the first news release. It introduced the project to the London audience. I was lucky enough to have a couple of local outlets cover the story. It also put pressure on those councillors who had not yet completed the survey.

Once the survey closed, I got to deal with my first crisis - an angry letter by the one councillor who refused to complete the survey. He'd sent his letter to the media at almost the same instant as he sent it to me. I suspect you always remember the first time the media calls you about information you haven't seen yet. Priceless.

I let my training take over, stayed calm, and got an extra bit of coverage. The other benefit was that, if coverage immediately after the survey closed focused on this one bit of controversy, then the coverage of the actual results - which were released a full week after the survey closed - would focus on the results, and not the controversy.

The strategy worked like a charm. When the results were released, the story was the results.

I also later found out that, through dumb luck that will be locked away in my experience vault, our release date was "expert" (as characterized by one local journalist). By sending the news release on the Sunday evening of a long weekend, journalists were given the opportunity to do interviews on Monday and have articles ready for the end of embargo on Tuesday. This was an important lesson to learn.

So, what did I gain from all of this?

First, I learned that I have the skills to put together a professional communications plan - one that works.

Second, I got further experience writing news releases.

Third, I got my first real taste of media relations - making contact with media outlets, pitching stories and disseminating releases on a strategic schedule.

Finally, I got TONS of experience doing interviews with the media.

This was the best experience of my young PR life. It showed me that media relations is my calling. I love working with these wonderful people in the local media. Now is the perfect time for a shout-out: Thanks to Pat Maloney, Angela Mullins, Sean Meyer and Jane Sims, blogger Brian Gibson, and the people at CKLO 98.1FM and XFM News. You made my first major experience a good one.

This experience also showed me that a determined, though small, group of engaged citizens, with the help of the amazing Melissa Todd (another PR student, and newest addition to Flip Publicity in Toronto), can achieve anything.

I realize that this is old news for many, but I feel like I've had enough time to seriously consider the experience. For any potential employers out there - here is your proof. I'm ready.

For more information about the project, visit www.celoreport.ca.

Note: There's a ton of stuff that happened, and strategy used, that simply can't be discussed in this forum.

A New Semester

Already, the first week of the new semester of my PR program is over. I think it is accurate to say that the second, and final, semester is less skill-focused and more concept-focused.

What do I mean?

The first semester was all about learning the important skills associated with the PR profession – writing, research, communications planning, etc. The second semester is more concerned with management skills and actively carrying out events and communications plans. It should be interesting.

Here’s a rundown of the classes I’m taking this semester:

Media Relations (online)

Managing the PR Function

Management Skills for PR (online)

Communications in Not-For-Profit Environment

Event Management

There are two important points to make.

First, a few of these classes are going to provide an opportunity to get first-hand experience in the real world. In particular, the Event Management class includes the requirement of assisting with a large-scale event in the London, Ontario area, and the Not-For-Profit class will require students to carry out one of the communications plans they developed last semester.

Second, you’ll note that two of the classes will be online. This is apparently part of a new trend. It’s ridiculous. I’m paying well over $3000 per semester (more than most undergrad programs), and they actually want to cut back the quality of the education I’m receiving (online can’t compete with in-class, in most cases). The fact that they are forcing us to pay full tuition for the practicum in January is pretty pathetic, but cutting in-class time is insane.

Regardless, this should be an interesting semester.

Costa Concordia Crisis Communications

As promised, I'm working to get some of the work I did in my first semester of PR school online.

This first example is from a crisis communications assignment from the Introduction to Public Relations course. In short, we were asked to identify a crisis and suggest a communications strategy the included both a SWOT report (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) and a communications plan. The communications plan needed to include the eight steps of program planning.

For this assignment I partnered with Sarah Haddon, another aspiring communicator in the program. Together, we chose to address the Costa Concordia crisis. If you aren't familiar with this event, in January (2012) a cruise ship owned by Costa Cruises ran aground in the off the coast of Italy, eventually capsizing. Over thirty people died, and over 60 were injured. This wasn't a small boat - the Costa Concordia had over four thousand people on board, and is the largest passenger ship to ever sink.

Just click on this link to check out the report: COSTA CONCORDIA

It is a little barebones, but it was meant to be. In case anyone is wondering, we did VERY well on this project. I'm proud of this project for a few reasons. First, I think it is a well-reasoned plan. Second, Sarah worked incredibly well together. Finally, it gave me a chance to learn a lot about crisis communications.

Update

It has been a while since I last posted. I’ve been busy.

Within two hours of making my last post, I’d been offered a job and had a couple of other people ask for my resume. Twitter is pretty cool.

So, now I’m working with a guy to help develop his social media business. It’s pretty cool.

More than anything, I just wanted to give this quick update.

I also wanted to note that I am going to start posting samples of my work from the first semester of my graduate PR program. Some of it will have to be redacted because it references real people, organizations or businesses, so I apologize in advance for the black lines.

So, thanks for helping me out. The world can be a pretty great place sometimes.

Will Work For... (you fill in the rest)

So, I’m doing this earlier than I expected.

I am coming to the end of my first semester in the University of Western Ontario Graduate Diploma in Public Relations program. It has been a blast. One of the weird things about the program is that – between semesters – there is a full month and a half of “vacation”. I don’t get it.

I thought this could be a great opportunity to find some work, gain some experience and build a stronger network in the field. Oh, and help pay the bills.

Today, the need for income became much more urgent. I was just notified that, as of August 3^rd, I will no longer have a job.

Now, I wasn’t exactly raking in the cash. I was working for five hours a week doing some basic social media work for a former employer. But it helped pay the rent, which was nice.

I am now staring at $3000 in tuition, about $800/month in rent, a $400/month car payment and whatever my phone bill is. I know I’m going to go into debt. That isn’t the issue. But, I would like to minimize that by earning – at the very least – a little bit of cash.

As such, I am looking for work. I am not looking for a full time job, just a few hours here or there. If you have a project with a deadline and you need some help, or you just want a fresh set of eyes or you need some research done, I am available. I’m willing to consider any offer.

My preference, of course, is to work in something related to PR, marketing or communications. I am in London, but I can work anywhere in the London-Toronto corridor.

I have great qualifications and, if required, some very solid references.

Here are a couple of highlights from my resume:

• Experience with social media
• Expert research skills
• Strong understanding of communication program planning and many basic functions of communications
• Solid work ethic and drive to be the best
• Former Research Associate at a not-for-profit
• Former Municipal Management Intern in the Ontario Municipal Internship Program (City of London)
• Graduate Degree in Political Science

You can check out a more detailed account at my LinkedIn profile, HERE.

If you are interested, please contact me:

Email

Twitter

Undervalued and Worthless

Arts degrees are highly undervalued and completely worthless in Canada.

Let me explain.

It is commonplace to see opinion pieces that tell us how hard it is to be a young person in the world today. Baby boomers litter the comments section with declarations that the younger generations are simply entitled babies who should suck it up and cope. They are particularly harsh on those idiots who had the audacity to get an arts degree. What a waste of time, eh?

I don’t want to offend anyone. I don’t want to point out that boomers happened upon the best-funded education system in Canadian history, the strongest economy in Canadian history and government programs funded by debt that their kids will have to deal with. I don’t want to deal with that.

What I would like to address is the argument that arts degrees are useless. In fact, they are undervalued.

The usual argument is that arts degrees don’t actually give the student any marketable skills. There is a huge disconnect between what you study and what you learn, and people just don’t get it. You don’t learn much about history in a history program. Instead, you actually develop some pretty useful skills.

Personally, I learned how to:

• conduct research
• write clearly, concisely and effectively
• organize my thoughts, words and actions
• think critically
• manage time
• give presentations
• work independently
• work in groups
• deal with stress

 This list of skills mirrors the skills needed in public relations. Why am I doing a post-grad program in PR that’s costing me $10,000 when I already have the required skills?

You used to be able to get a job with an arts degree. Were they teaching something different back then? Were they teaching inverted pyramid writing techniques in history classes? Were they teaching the RACE formula and the eight steps of program planning in psychology? Hell no.

So what happened?

First, businesses stopped hiring people for their ability. Instead, they decided to start hiring people who could demonstrate that they had checked the boxes of a hands-on program. This has condemned already indebted students to dropping an extra $10,000 on a “practical” program that will make people think they are capable of doing the job. They are capable, but only of being technicians. They aren’t necessarily critical thinkers. They aren’t necessarily leadership material.

Second, people lost faith in the arts degree. Why wouldn’t they? Our whole education system is nonsensical. Elementary and secondary schools won’t fail us. Universities now accept far more students, which lowers the standard of entry. Once in university, you have to try pretty hard to fail from an arts program. This certainly makes us appear entitled, but we didn’t make the decisions that led to this system.

As a graduate teaching assistant I was shocked, dismayed and disgusted by the near-illiteracy of students in a third-year political science course. They all passed.

When people think of incompetent and unskilled arts students, they are thinking of these people. The product of a system that makes failure impossible, values enrollment numbers over enrollment standards and measures success with graduate numbers rather than actual learning. They are educated illiterates.

A degree isn’t worth much when your peers graduated without showing up.

I’m frustrated. As I go further into this program – as I succeed wildly – I question the purpose. Oh, I understand fully that I need an education of this type to get a job. I don’t understand why I need to earn a “practical skills” diploma in a program that uses practitioners – who have never taken a similar program – as instructors. They didn’t need a “practical skills” diploma. Why do I?

More than anything, what I would like to achieve with this post is to get you thinking. How did we get to this point? How can we make this better? How can we fix this mockery known as our education system? We must find a way of remembering that arts degrees have always been, and are still, about developing skills. At the same time, we must find a way to avoid devaluing our education system by admitting subpar students and graduating educated illiterates.

I will, at the end of the day, graduate from the program I am currently taking. I will find a job. I will, hopefully, start a career. But this issue will continue to exist. The derision of our arts programs, the undervaluing of the skills learned through the arts and the production of educated illiterates will continue unabated.

Note: Nothing in this post is meant to suggest that I am exceptional, nor is it meant to deride the usefulness of my program, the abilities of my fellow students or the helpfulness of my instructors. I enjoy the content of the program. I like my classmates. I respect my instructors. I just question the system.