Name - Sandy Myo
Myint Aung
Campus - Curtin
Bentley
Placement - Map and Page
Commenced - March
7, 2012
Catch up on what went down in my previous blog posts:
The
road to hell is paved with adverbs (Wednesday, 25 April 2012)
A
moment of insight, worth a life experience (Sunday, 22 April 2012)
Hey everyone,
It’s already week 12, the ultimate week of
our internship approaches and most of us are completing our work placements
with well-respected organisations in a matter of time. I can’t wait to share my
journey so far with Map and Page, and
a wonderful piece of news that flew into my inbox a few days ago. It is
definitely the most stressful few weeks of our lives, but looking forward, I can’t wait I’ll be graduating by the end of the semester. A few
great things to look forward to in a couple of months: Ice-skiing trip to
Melbourne, my return to Singapore and seeing family and friends again, Masters
of International Business in Curtin Singapore and best of all, meeting my
6-month old baby nephew for the first time.
Hard work and dedication paid off
So are you excited to know what's the big
news that came in a few days back? The strategic PR plan that my PR
(Consultancy) team and I proposed for United Way WA has been selected as the
winning plan. We will be presenting our plans personally to the UWWA CEO Sue
Dixon next week and better yet, we will receive a certificate of appreciation
from United Way as well. I can’t wait to see how beautiful that would look on
my CV. I know this may seem off topic but if this experience has taught me one thing,
it would be about working towards a vision single-mindedly, while at the same
time directing my actions to the team towards the very same goal. I did not just
want to pass, I did not just want a High Distinction; I wanted to be dedicated
and passionate about the project and excel at it. After staying up late for weeks tweaking and
twitching the plan from scratch with a cup of coffee and panadol, (caught the
flu bug) it certainly feels rewarding to have spearheaded the team. Take-home
messages from this experience - priceless. I’ve learned that patience is what I
need most if I want to be a good leader of the team. I’ve also learned that
dedication alone doesn’t do the trick, communicating clearly and passionately
(yes, passion is contagious) helped drive this to a successful completion. Openness
and honesty are the essentials that build trust with the people you work with and this applies to every industry, not just PR.
More than just press release
With my internship and final semester approaching
to an end, I bet most of us are in the midst of chaos and deadlines.
Though, I’ve had some time to reflect on things I’ve achieved so far and things
I’ve yet to accomplish. Last week at Map was hectic with
writing pitches and press releases for one of our clients, Westpac. I really appreciate
my supervisor for setting aside some time to sit down and train me how to write up a
killer biography, how to pitch to the media and how to develop a press release
that works in the real PR world. Here’s what I love most about learning PR, I
can relate almost every assignment I’ve done in my PR classes with what I do at
work, for instance, press releases, research, media monitoring, publicity
campaigns, interview briefs, etc.
Piles of Newspapers for media monitoring
Collating entertainment shows on CDs for Channel TEN (Client of MAP)
My family often asks me what PR is and if
writing press releases is all I do at my internship. I always had a hard time
explaining to them. But after how my United Way PR Plan turned out this week and great training I've gotten from my manager, I’ve
come to realise that PR is about bridging relationships, often through a
well-sought out strategic plan, and not simply just shooting out press releases
as and when I feel like it. Like the saying by Harvey Mackay goes, “A goal is a
dream with a plan and a deadline.”
I hope all of you had (are having) a fun
and fruitful experience at your placements and all the best in your future endeavors!!!
Best wishes,
1 comment:
Dear Sandy,
Congratulations in nearly reaching your goals and thank you for commenting on my first post. I am just in day 9 of my intership here at Curtin Sarawak and after reading your past blog posts, they offer me several insights on how to proceed. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Regarding your present blog, I support what you have written. Patience is indeed important and as such it is a virtue. I would also like to add that being a good leader, one must take time to assess the qualities of their teammates in order to place them appropiately.
It reminds me of what my scout teacher once told me, "Be aware of poor leadership."
Also, you are right on the trust issue. Sometimes we have to take that leap of faith, hoping he or she would do what they are suppose to do as they work with you.
However, your words ring true and I will remember them. Dedication and passion as well as exceling in what we do.
I wish you luck and good blessings.
Smile always and have fun with your nephew. Congrats in being an aunt.
Regards,
Eugene Ng Teck Lung
Curtin Sarawak Campus
p.s: I'm an uncle to a 5 year old niece and a 3 year old nephew.
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