The juice was definitely worth the squeeze

Kim Morrison

As I stood there in the middle of FedExForum about this time last year with my fellow University of Memphis undergrads and we all moved our tassels from the right to the left side of our caps, my eyes started to well up with tears and it hit me, “This is it!”

The road to that point was filled with oh so many obstacles for me. I chose to return to school as an older, non-traditional student. I quit a good-paying job to return to school to end up job searching for a year longer than I banked on. My father suffered a debilitating stroke. I experienced being cheated on for the first time. I had my own health issues by breaking one ankle, having a stroke, then breaking the other ankle, all in the name of roller derby. I moved three times. And, I went through it all while balancing work, school, the rebuilding of our PRSSA chapter and the joys of life in general.

All through this though, I kept my eye on the prize. I didn’t initiate this life path to be thrown off or get distracted by something else! I was ready to get my bachelor’s degree. That’s what I set out to do, and I was bound and determined to make it happen one way or another!

I wasn’t a perfect student. I worked hard, but of course, I had moments where I slacked off or I simply got overwhelmed and something had to give. However, I made sure my work and grades were in order before making such a decision.

And at the end of it all, I was so beyond stoked to be at that point, to look behind at the past several years and be able to say, “I dealt with that; I survived that; and despite life’s best efforts, I made it through.”

So, the lessons I took away from all that was: (1) Regardless of the situation, you always have a choice; (2) With perseverance, you can make it through any situation; and (3) College is hard, but in the end, it’s totally worth it!

After a year in the workforce, I look back on what I’ve accomplished and all of the wonderful clients I’ve worked with over the past year. I’ve promoted large and small scale shows; garnered morning show appearances; seen my photos appear in numerous local publications; arranged features for clients in TV, print and online outlets; and managed meetings with the heads of some of Memphis’ well-known companies and nonprofits. And, it’s all thanks in part to the degree I worked so hard for. So, I claimed it a year ago, and I’ll say it again today, the juice was definitely worth the squeeze!

History lesson: The first news release published

Tiffany Cunningham

On Oct. 28, 1906 (108 years ago), public relations expert Ivy Lee wrote the first news release to journalists about a tragic train accident that happened on the Pennsylvania Railroad. Fifty passengers were killed when a three-car train of the Pennsylvania Railroad's new electric service jumped a trestle at Atlantic City, N.J., and plunged into the Thoroughfare creek.

According to About.com, Lee convinced the railroad company to release the news to journalists before any rumors were spread or reported on about the accident. The New York Times printed the news release, word-for-word, on Oct. 29, 1906. 

On the left is an image of the printed version of the news release in The New York Times. Since 1906, there have been two major changes to news releases: distribution and multimedia platforms. Distribution methods evolved along with technology. Today, there are four main points of distribution: email, wire service, post on website, and social media platforms. There are many things added to the distribution of a news release, i.e. SEO keywords, videos, photos and links to websites, but the core messaging in a news release have not changed that much over time. Technology has helped news releases to transition as a modern tool while still maintaining its original roots. 

News releases are simply written public relations announcements made to draw media attention to a specific event or product launch that is newsworthy for readers and viewers of various outlets. Never forget your “five W’s” for a release and always research the writer, editor or blogger you would like to send the release to before actually clicking send in your email box. 

Have a question about news releases or insight into writing a great release? Comment below!

Conscious Capitalism: Have you heard of it?

Crissy Lintner

I’m fascinated by a movement happening in the business world right now. It’s called Conscious Capitalism. Ever heard of it? Many of you likely have heard of or read the book, “Conscious Capitalism,” by Whole Foods founder John Mackey and Raj Sisodia. The movement is gaining momentum in the corporate landscape with companies like The Container Store, Whole Foods, Southwest Airlines and Interstate Batteries at the forefront. 

I recently had the opportunity to meet with the culture ambassador from Interstate Batteries. Yes, that’s right – culture ambassador. Cool, huh? Jennifer Bowes’ career is focused on building a corporate culture centered around a purpose statement that is crystal clear: “To glorify God and enrich lives as we deliver the most trustworthy source of power to the world.” 

I’ll let that sink in because it is powerful. The complementing values are just as impressive – and the process by which Jennifer and her team gathered insight and developed this list of values made this PR nerd want to jump up and down in excitement. The focus groups, surveys and interviews gave such amazing insight into what employees thought about the brand; what customers thought or how they perceived the brand; and where they wanted to see the company go in the future. 

I’ve been spending my personal time reading “Conscious Capitalism.” I’ve attended an event hosted by the Conscious Capitalism Dallas Chapter and Social Venture Partners Dallas Chapter that discussed the movement. I’ve also been working with a nonprofit organization in planning our fall speaker series focused on – you guessed it – Conscious Capitalism! In Dallas, this movement seems to be digging its claws into my circles. People like Jennifer and Interstate Batteries CEO Scott Miller are taking the leap to unapologetically reinvent their culture to become one that is focused on a higher purpose, incorporates insight from their stakeholders (employees, customers) and that encourages conscious leadership and an overall conscious culture – the four pillars of Conscious Capitalism. 

If you haven’t read the book, I recommend it. I will likely write more on this topic in the coming year ahead, but for now, I just wanted to encourage you to dive in because this movement may just be the saving grace of American business and for our culture as a whole. 

You can learn more about the movement at www.consciouscapitalism.org and find a local chapter to get involved with in your city. 

Wake up call for work: How to spring ahead without losing sleep

Tiffany Cunningham

In the wonderful/crazy world of public relations, the spring forward a couple of weekends ago has really thrown me for a loop. I’m not able to go to bed until after midnight; the sun’s not rising until 7:40 a.m. doesn’t help with my morning schedule before work; and I’m exhausted by 5 p.m. every day, so far. 

The real issue isn’t daylight saving time; the issue is my sleep habits. In fact, up to 40 percent of Americans don’t have healthy sleep habits, which cause some symptoms of insomnia – not being able to fall asleep easily, or daytime drowsiness. For me, daylight saving time makes my poor sleep even worse, and I want to share a few sleeping tips I read recently on Medical Daily online to help smooth the transition for any others out there who are still feeling the effect.

Soak up the sun during waking hours: 

One of the best ways to reset your internal clock is to soak up the sun during the day. Next week, I’ll be making small outings at lunch to help suppress my sleep-inducing hormone known as melatonin.

Take a low dose of melatonin:
I don’t have an issue falling asleep when I hit the pillow, but on nights that I feel extra energized, taking less than 0.3 milligrams of melatonin in the late afternoons on the weekends will aid in falling asleep faster or staying asleep longer. The National Sleep Foundation says that it’s inactive during the day, but it is “turned on” by the supra-chiasmatic nucleus at night.

Exercise in the sunlight before 5 p.m. – daily:
Luckily, one of the benefits of daylight saving time is that the sun is out when I get home from work. A lot of my workouts have been on nearby trails or walking my dog around the neighborhood when the sun is still shining. Sunlight and exercise can boost serotonin production, and its release in the brain, which can offset the effects of daylight saving time.

Avoid caffeine after noon and avoid alcohol consumption after dinner:
Although this week I’ve felt like grabbing something caffeinated several times in the afternoon I keep sticking to the water to help push me through the day. A study by the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that 400 milligrams of caffeine consumption even six hours before bedtime can disrupt your sleep cycle. It takes one hour per drink to process alcohol and is recommended that if you want to drink, you should do it one hour before sleeping.

Follow a consistent bedtime schedule, even on the weekends: 

This is impossible for me, but I will try to make my sleeping hours as consistent as possible to help get over the hurdle of sleep deprivation I’m causing myself. An interesting fact I learned was that our internal body clocks adjust to time and schedule changes slowly. At least there’s one excuse for being a little slower this week. 

It’s important to take care of your health, even when the weather is perfect and the sun is out until 8 p.m. – just remember sleep is important and vital for productivity in the work place. 

There’s a ‘line’ for a reason…

Crissy Lintner

Social media has created a conundrum for businesses. Where is the line when it comes to an employee’s professional life and personal life? How can an employer protect its image when an employee uses poor judgment on Facebook, Twitter or another social media venue? And, is it an employer’s right to dictate what an employee says – or posts – on a personal, yet public venue? 

Case in point – recently, NBC News featured a pretty darn bad military faux pas from some National Guardsmen at a fallen soldier’s funeral. Now, I’m not really sure why any of these individuals would think it OK to silly-pose with an empty, flag-draped casket then post to social media, but they did. And, one took it to an extreme in her post saying, “We put the FUN in funeral.” ::jaw dropped, shaking head in dismay:: 

This is a case that was clearly an “on the job” moment, and I’m sure correct funeral protocol and behavior was taught in training – but was etiquette for selfies and social media included? And, can you account for immaturity of these members of our military? Unfortunately, no. The National Guard took immediate action to reprimand those involved, which was the correct move to make.  

Regardless of what employers want when it comes to employees’ personal social media use or whether employees prefer employers to stay out of their business, there is a line that exists between appropriate and inappropriate commentary on social media. Where crossing that line becomes a problem for both parties is when it reflects poorly on the employer. Otherwise, most employees don’t run into issues for complaining about a bad day at work, a difficult client or an off-color remark. 

In today’s example, I have no explanation as to why a member of the U.S. military would ever feel she could freely dishonor a sacred, important duty like serving at the funeral of a fallen comrade. To quote Forest Gump, “Stupid is as stupid does.” But, companies should clearly outline policies regarding social media and train their employees – department by department, person by person – on what is considered unacceptable and what could negatively impact their careers. 

Here again, the question arises: where’s the privacy line? Well, maybe it’s not about the line. Maybe it’s about an employer taking that extra step to acknowledge, “We know you have a personal life outside of work, and that is fine. But as a general life rule, think twice or three times before you post because social media is never 100 percent private, and you cannot guarantee what will and won’t be shared beyond your circle of trust.” 

So, my quick tips to employers: 

• Be clear about your expectations when it comes to social media use. Create a policy regarding both the company’s and its employees’ social media usage.
• Specifically outline at what point or why an employee’s personal social media activity could be detrimental to his/her career and what action will be taken.
• Acknowledge your dedication to maintaining privacy of your employees with regard to social media, and offer them guidance on what they should do with regard to social media as it relates to their employer. 
• Consider a social media etiquette workshop that is applicable to both the professional and personal sides of life.
• If deemed appropriate, require a statement to be included prominently in the “About” section of their social media pages. We suggest something to the effect of “Opinions are my own and do not reflect that of my employer.” 
• Remind employees that if they want to ensure their social media use is mostly private, be sure to engage higher privacy settings and be cognizant of what is publicly posted. This doesn’t always mean that something they post on Facebook wouldn’t be shared with the employer by a “friend,” but it makes the probability less likely.
• For businesses whose employees may frequently connect with clients, media or other external audiences through their personal outlets, remind them that they can set privacy settings to only show some posts to certain people and always be cognizant of their audience if they choose not to use these restrictions. 

What are your tips for employers when it comes to social media policies? featured a pretty darn bad military faux pas

Public Relations or Protector of Reputations?

Bianca Gordon

The term “public relations” holds various meanings for those in this industry. There are times that “PR” becomes synonymous with “Protector of Reputations.” In honor of President’s Day and Abraham Lincoln’s birthday approaching, I want to reference one of Honest Abe’s adages:

"Perhaps a man's character was like a tree, and his reputation like its shadow; the shadow is what we think of it, the tree is the real thing."

Courtesy of Flickr

I’m sure you’re asking, “Trees and shadows, what the heck does that mean and how does it have anything to do with PR?” Here is how I interpret this quote and apply it in my work. A shadow, or in this case, a reputation, is something that is not consistent. Shadows change when there’s a change in the light source and its position, as well as the angle from which you are viewing the object casting said shadow. In turn, a reputation is also not consistent. It can change as a result of behavior (good or bad) and the perspective from which someone views the behavior. The tree (or character), on the other hand, never changes. The shadow of the tree is determined solely on the tree. No matter where you view the tree from, it remains the same. 

So, where am I going with all of this? Yes, as PR professionals, we truly are responsible for protecting our clients’ reputations, but the building of that reputation is dependent upon the character of the client. This is why it is so important for us to pitch media opportunities with outlets that positively portray our clients and the work on which they stand. One slip up, and we could be left with a PR mess faster than you can recite the Gettysburg Address! We wear the hat of reputation protector because without a strong image (character), we as PR professionals cannot cast a strong shadow (reputation) for our clients.

The strong bond brewed between coffee and work

Tiffany Cunningham

No matter what coffee shop I drive or walk by, Starbucks, Sip | Stir Café, etc., there are always people working, studying and conducting meetings at the coffee shop. This recently intrigued me and I stared wondering what it is that draws people to coffee shops and how they’ve turned into the modern working space even when you have an office. Not all work environments allow for working outside the office, or “coffee shop days,” but those that do may increase the creativity in their employees. Here are a few reasons why it might be great to try working at a coffee shop one or two days every month. 

Courtesy of Flickr

Change of environment = stimulates creativity. After so long in an office environment it typically becomes routine. Routine isn’t a bad thing, but creative thinking, motivation and inspiration can dwindle without someone realizing it happening. Changing your environment, even for a day, brings new types of ideas and stimulation to increase motivation and productivity. 

Fewer distractions in a bustling area. It seems strange to think that more interaction creates less distraction, but the majority of the time a quite office can be more distracting. The coffee shop environment combines the benefit of obscurity with the dull buzz of excitement and interaction. You’re able to have human interaction when you want and not when someone request it from you in the office. 

Networking possibilities. Saying hello, people watching or meeting someone new most of the time provides new ideas, a different perspective for different situations, or an interesting connection to a new person. Never hurts to hold a five-minute conversation that may lead to a story idea, published article or potential client. 

Work and coffee will always have a strong bond and if you haven’t experienced it, give it a shot – never know what ideas will come next for your clients. And, out of curiosity through my  “working in a coffee shop” research, I found an interesting website: http://coffitivity.com/. It’s actually an app that produces coffee shop sounds to boost creativity while you’re in the office – great for those who can’t leave the work space, but want to experience the “creative buzz.” 

A few more tips: 

1. Rotate coffee shops if there are a few near each other to avoid a routine. 
2. Purchase a coffee or two. The owners and employees will notice and will acknowledge you appreciate their space for your business. 
3. Make sure your computer is powered up or you have your power cord –you’ll need it if your there for half a day or longer. 

Resolve to put an end to these common grammar mistakes

Bianca Gordon

With less than 30 days of the New Year under our belts, everyone is still going strong when it comes to keeping their New Year’s resolutions. Gyms are more crowded, grocery carts are filled with more fruits and vegetables and fewer chips and cookies, and that extra “splurge” money is being put into a rainy day fund somewhere. Once the New Year doesn’t seem so new anymore, it never fails that other things take priority over the resolutions we make and vow that “this year I’m going to follow through.”

Nothing drives me more crazy than reading something and suddenly finding that I can’t understand it because the words the writer used convey a different meaning than he or she intended. Take a look at the following common grammar mistakes, and let’s resolve to say goodbye to them when we say goodbye to 2014.

1. Your vs. You’re

I can honestly say that this may be my biggest grammar pet peeve. It’s also probably the one that’s most frequently misused. To avoid error with this one, keep the following in mind: 

“Your” is a possessive pronoun, as in “your car” or “your dog.” 

“You’re” is a contraction for “you are,” as in “you’re confusing your readers using your when you really mean you are.”

2. It’s vs. Its

This is another common grammar mistake. You can follow the same rule of thumb previously mentioned and ask yourself if you intend to use a contraction or possessive. Here’s an example:

“It’s” is a contraction of “it is” or “it has.” “Its” is a possessive pronoun, as in “The juice lost its flavor.” 

3. There vs. Their

While I don’t see this one as much, unless it’s a typo, people still get tripped up occasionally. 

“There” is used many ways, including as a reference to a place (“let’s go there”) or as a pronoun (“there is no hope”). “Their” is a plural possessive pronoun, as in “their bags” or “their opinions.” Here’s a rule of thumb: Ask yourself if you are talking about more than one person and something that they possess? If so, “their” will get you there. 

4. Affect vs. Effect

This one is likely the most difficult on this list. When I’m writing, I sometimes pause and think about this one to make sure I use the correct word. 

“Affect” is a verb, as in “Your ability to communicate clearly will affect the outcome of your message.” “Effect” is a noun, as in “The effect of a bad diet and no exercise can be dangerous to your health.” 

Which of these do you struggle with in your writing? Are there any I left out that fall under your grammar pet peeves? Comment below, I’d love to hear from you. Oh, and don’t forget to share your New Year’s resolution and how well you are doing with it so far!

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too

Bianca Gordon

As public relations professionals, a great deal of our success is based on securing media hits for our clients. In turn, much of our frustration can also come when we don’t achieve media hits for a client or story we know is newsworthy. So where does it all start? I’d say with the perfect media pitch.

The perfect media pitch is a lot like the perfect cupcake. If your cupcake eating starts with the icing, there’s nothing worse than delicious icing and dry, tasteless cake. If the cake happens to be your favorite, then what’s worse than moist, delicious cake with horrible icing? Just like the cupcake has two critical components to make it just right, so does the perfect media pitch.

The media pitch is the toughest (and most important) task to master when dealing with the media relations aspect of a PR professional’s job. It’s your initial contact with the reporter, a.k.a. the gatekeeper to the door that will get your client featured. Let’s be clear – we aren’t aiming for “good” pitches. While a good pitch may certainly get you a response and is better than the ignored “bad” pitch, it’s the “perfect” pitch that gets your client in the door and seals the deal for their media coverage.

Courtesy of Flickr

So, how do you accomplish both the perfect cake and delectable icing of the media-pitching cupcake? It starts with the subject line. In an age where all pitches are delivered via email, what your reader sees in the subject line can determine whether you get that double click to open or your pitch is headed straight to the trash. At all costs, avoid “press release” or “breaking news” with a slew of exclamation points to follow. This is a sure-fire way to guarantee your pitch a one-way ticket to the trash. Keep your subject lines targeted and short. 

Now, to achieve that perfect icing on your media-pitching cupcake, you will want to understand who you are pitching to and personalize it to that reporter. Know reporters’ preferences, their work and their beats, and also be familiar with the audience they are trying to reach. Nothing comes across more haphazardly than pitching a hard news story to an entertainment or sports reporter. You wouldn’t substitute salt for the sugar in your perfect cupcake recipe, so don’t ruin your perfect pitch by being careless.

Lastly, be sure to tell the reporter why your story will interest him or her. You know your client is the greatest thing since sliced bread; now is your time to prove it.

Going on Vacation? Tips to Help Navigate Your Workload and Inbox

Kim Morrison

Although we all just returned from holiday vacations, we'll soon be looking forward to Spring Break and warm weather getaways. The most dreaded task for a vacation any size? The mountainous inbox you will return to whether it be from a short four-day weekend or **gasp** a two-week-long vacation. No worries, here are some tips before you leave, some advice while you’re gone and, of course, some help on how to tackle it upon your return.

Pre-vacation

• Communicate to your co-workers and superiors when you’ll be gone, how long you’ll be gone and provide them some way to contact you if they absolutely must reach you in the case of an emergency.
• Establish someone to act as a point of contact for your clients while you’re away. Yes, it’s normal to take a vacation, but you also can’t leave your clients high and dry for a week either.
• Inform your clients, vendors and other day-to-day business contacts about your upcoming leave, how long you’ll be gone and whom they should contact for urgent work and emergencies.
• Set up your work email to forward to your go-to-coworker while you are away. If possible, shut off your email for that period. You’ve alerted everyone you will be gone and not receiving emails, so it is unrealistic for them to send you emails anyway and expect you to receive them after the previous warnings.

During Your Vacation

• Take your vacation! You’ve put things into place in order to take time off, relax and rejuvenate, so do it! People know how to reach you if they absolutely have to speak with you about an urgent matter (hotel room info, alternate email, contact person, etc.), so relax and attend to yourself. Most likely the company you work for was successful before you arrived, and they aren’t going to fail simply because you took some time off. Do yourself a favor and unplug. Don’t know how? Fast Company, U.S.News, LinkedIn, Forbes, and MindBodyGreen all have tips and advice for unplugging.

Post-vacation

• Reach out to your superiors, co-workers, clients and day-to-day contacts -- either in person, phone call or via email -- to let them know you’re back at work and touch base about any developments that occurred while you were away.
• If you still received a ton of emails while you were gone, turn it into manageable steps. Sort your emails by sender and delete all of the newsletters, notifications, spam, etc. These do not need your immediate attention in the grand scheme of things. Then sort by subject, and get rid of all of the forwarded and emails that aren’t important (look at this funny link, long conversation on something that isn’t relevant anymore, etc.). Quickly look over the emails you were only copied on, and trash the ones that aren’t important.
• You’re email box should now be to a manageable size. Now, respond to the emails that will take all of two minutes to read and respond to and get them out of the way. Go through the remaining emails, and add them to your list of actual work to get caught up on.
• Finally, don’t get too wrapped up in email. Chances are you knew prior to leaving for vacation what things needed to be accomplished upon your return. Which is more important -- crafting and distributing a news release for an upcoming client event or taking 20 minutes to read a brainstorm email where everyone decided the idea was a no-go at the end? This is why my first post vacation tip is key; reach out to those parties, they’ll let you know the important things, that way you can get back to getting actual work done, rather than swimming in a sea of emails.

Do you have any useful tips for preparing for, unplugging or catching up post-vacation? Share them in the comments below!

Cooking with Kim

Kim Morrison

When I have the extra time, I really enjoy cooking. No, I don’t mean whipping up a box of macaroni and cheese and thawing out a veggie burger (although that is very yummy!); I mean truly creating a meal from the ground up. This winter, my favorites have been soups, finally nailing a good veggie “meatloaf” recipe, Eggplant Parmesan and various sides with cooked, fresh vegetables.

I’ve even become one of those people that has trouble sharing or recreating a recipe due to acquiring the skill to simply throw things together in a pot or bowl and having the dish turn out fabulously. I didn’t secretly sneak in classes with one of Food Network's Iron Chefs, but I have learned to heavily lean on one fail-safe trick. It’s actually a HUGE tenet of Hell’s Kitchen’s Chef Gordon Ramsay. What is this big recipe-changing secret?

Taste what you’re cooking.

Yep, it’s that simple! Think about it; when things go wrong with a dish on Hell’s Kitchen, other than a slew of expletives, what is one of the first things Chef Ramsay shouts out to the various chefs? “TASTE IT!!!” The dish is usually either totally inedible or missing some vital ingredient, both of which could have been discovered and remedied by simply tasting the dish. Instead that person usually ends up kicked out of the kitchen and eventually off the show. You can get away without tasting when making boxed mashed potatoes or some other prepackaged food, but when you’re creating a dish from scratch, how can you possibly know it’s been seasoned properly or has been cooked just right without tasting it? Simply put, you can’t. You have to monitor the taste of the dish to make sure it’s just so when you finally serve it.

The same thing goes for social media. (See what I did there?) Social media is just that, social. You can’t post a blog or something on Twitter and just walk away; it’s about interacting and becoming involved in the discussion. Are people commenting on your content, sharing your content, is it even getting any views? If the answers to these questions aren’t familiar to you, what are you doing with your social media content, and even more importantly, why are you doing it? In this day and age, social media provides a direct line to your publics and clients that’s never been available before. Grab this opportunity by the horns and become involved in the discussion, rather than halfway trying it and getting kicked out of the kitchen.

Why sitting pretty isn’t always pretty

Tiffany Cunningham

We are in a deadline-driven industry, and sometimes, that accounts for a 12-hour sitting binge. Most recently, I was working on an extensive media list for one of my clients and didn’t realize I hadn’t left my desk in five hours. Typically I wouldn’t think about it as a problem, until I saw a report about the dangers of inactivity. 

Those who spent the most time in chairs had a 147 percent increased chance of cancer, heart disease and diabetes, compared with those who sat the least, according to Richard Rosenkranz, a professor who led a sitting study at Kansas State University. The most persistent sitters also had a soaring diabetes risk and were 49 percent more likely to die earlier of many different causes. 

The thing that really made me look into this news was that my daily activity on the Katy Trail in Dallas, Texas, or taking advantage of my gym membership wasn’t enough to undo the damage. 

People with an on-the-go career – Julianne Hough (Dancing with the Stars) – do not need to be concerned. But for those of us who spend countless hours on our perches of demanding projects, there is growing evidence that sitting is the new smoking. 

Image courtesy of  - http://athingcreated.com/2012/12/04/all-dressed-up-with-places-to-go/

“Standing should be your default mode – when you’re on the phone, texting, even watching TV. The body was designed to be up and moving; our systems work best when we’re on our feet,” said James Levine, M.D., Ph.D., an obesity expert at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz. 

It’s a fact that preindustrial women probably sat half as much as our nation’s leanest people today, but no one knows whether they were more creative, cheerful, focused or slender than today’s office professionals. 

More and more people are catching on the new walk-and-talk meeting to counteract over-sitting and to improve work productivity. There are a lot of things people can do to get moving for 10 minutes every hour during the work week. When you start moving a little more, your body will thank you in more than one way. Simply standing can reactivate key cellular responses that shut off when you sit. 

Tips for Networking Introverts

Epiphany Woods

During a recent staff meeting, we were told we would be attending a networking event. Thankfully, it was on a day that I had class because I avoid networking events at all costs! Small talk has never been my forte, and being around a huge group of people makes me exhausted. #IntrovertProblems. But as a future PR professional, I have to get better at starting and building relationships. It’s an essential part of public relations.

I want to help my fellow PR introverts in being more comfortable with networking, so here are a few tips that I use when I have no other choice but to attend a networking event.

Open your mind: On your way to the event, clear your mind of every negative thought. If you go into a situation thinking it’s doomed from the beginning, then it will be. Try not to think at all. But if you must, think positive.

Be Prepared: If you didn’t clear your mind enough and still think you might freeze up, make a list of general talking points that can start a conversation. Staying current on the news is the best way to have something to say for small talk. But you already do that, right?

Courtesy of Flickr

Start small: Ease your way into the networking scene with an event with 50 companies listed (or fewer), so you won’t feel overwhelmed. If you’re a student, ask if the career center hosts a job/internship fair on campus. You will be more familiar with the area and the people around you.

Practice: The only way you’ll get better at doing absolutely anything is through practice. Go to a networking event to see how it’s done. At the next one, make a move you didn’t do at the last event. For example, if you didn’t meet a person and hold a conversation, make an attempt to do so at the next event. And always have your 30-second elevator speech about what you do perfectly rehearsed beforehand.

Always smile: With a smile, you look more approachable and friendly. People will gravitate toward that, and you won’t even have to start a conversation – just keep it going.  

There’s nothing wrong with being an introvert in the PR world. Just make sure you’re as good as those born-with-the-gift-of-gab people at networking events.