If you don’t love PR

It’s surprising what you can learn about yourself from unintentional observations your friends make.

Last week I was talking with one of my old friends in this business. He said to me:

You just love PR, period, and that drives you to be the best you can be at it.

He went on to describe how his relationship with PR is different (more on that in a minute). But I was struck by the figurative mirror he had just held up to me.

And I realized, he’s right! I fell in love with PR, and more specifically, media relations. It started when that guest speaker showed up in my Comms 101 class my first semester at college. I was hooked and commenced PR nerdship. Internships, news writing jobs, and a master’s thesis on “The Gatekeeping Function of the Mass Media” all followed before my career really took off.

But that’s just me. What if you don’t inherently love PR? What if you’re like my friend, who went on to say:

I’m more neutral toward PR as a discipline. But I just love the institution I represent, so I want to learn how to do that as best I can.

Or maybe this is you:

Things are changing so fast! Digital, social, content, search — whatever I end up doing, I want to take with me the key lessons and principles of PR, so I’m committed to learning them now.  

Or even:

I’ve got specific goals to move on from PR. But I know I’ll be best positioned to fulfill those goals when I take a track record of proven results with me. So I’m focused on being the best PR pro I can until I make that move.

Any one of those attitudes is GREAT! So are lots of others. You just need your own “why.”

I study and learn PR because I love it. My friend loves his institution. What’s your “why”?

That’s what will drive you to strive to be a Media Relations Master. Happy people seek excellence in whatever they do.

The only attitude toward PR that will fail you is this one:

It’s just a job. Hopefully I’ll find something better soon.

If you’re stuck with that perspective, nothing I have to offer you will help. You don’t have to share my innate love for this field, but you do need a “why” that powers your drive for continuous learning.

That’s the common attribute I’ve observed among all the successful PR pros I’ve worked with.

And if you’re still reading my posts, I’ll know you’ve got it, too :).