Hey all,
Having been there and done that as an intern, there were
many times that thoughts of “I wish the school taught me this…” came to me. I
believe we have all had our fair share of boo-boos at work and would like to
bury our head into the ground every time that happens.
As I mark my last post on this blog, I would like to share
the 10 “I wish they taught me…” that went through my head at work in my three
months with Touch Communications. Who knows? Maybe one of the lecturers might
catch upon this and make it a point to kindly share these trade secrets for potential
PR393 interns before they dash off into the real world.
1.
I wish they taught me what a media drop is.
2.
I wish they taught me how to reject cordially.
3.
I wish they taught me when the deadlines for
SPH, Mediacorp and other media outlets are
4.
I wish they taught me when the media centres
published their publications
5.
I wish they taught me how to squirm out of a
tight situation
6.
I wish they taught me how to make intelligent
conversations
7.
I wish they taught me how to hold those conversations
8.
I wish they taught me how to introduce myself
without a namecard
9.
I wish they taught me the different ways to
network during a social event
10.
I wish they taught me how to cope with difficult
situations (e.g. low event RSVP even as event is nearing, zero turnout for
press conferences, etc.)
Personally, I feel that the theory we learnt in school
(except for techniques) is not as useful for the internship as compared to if the
lecturers took time to share with us on more practical examples such as the 10
listed above. It would help to ease transition between school and work,
especially for an intern in a fast-paced industry where time waits for no man.
While I eventually managed to find out how to deal with the
above, it is not without hard lessons. If I had the slightest inkling of what
to expect, it could have been better handled and consequences may be less dire!
Signing off,
Grace Ong
15230928
Curtin Singapore
Grace Ong
15230928
Curtin Singapore
5 comments:
Dear Grace
Thanks for sharing your 10 wishes. I know how you feel! There are so many things on which I feel really useless about since doing my internship placement. There are so many things that school just never seems to teach.
I guess this is why we need this module, so that we can have a real hands-on experience before moving into the corporate world.
Good luck for your future endeavours!
With love,
Magdalene, Curtin Singapore
15096324
Love the 10 things you wished for, I really do but if you think about it how can someone really teach you those things?
Sounds like stuff you get from hands on experience as opposed to reading books and theories. It's just as Magdalene says.
Good Luck to you Grace.
Hi Grace,
Great post! I think most of us have felt that gap between school and work. It really isn't as easy a transition as commonly thought.
One thing I wished our PR modules had covered is the skill of drafting e-mails. Professional, well-written e-mails to the media pitching a new product, an e-mail media invite to an event, or a follow-up thank you note after an event etc. In the real world, a 'thank you' note is rarely just a 'thank you' note - it's also an opportunity for PR people to 1. re-establish contact, 2. send more press materials (b-roll, press materials, etc.) I wish I'd knew all that!
I knew, of course, never to ask outright a journalist when the coverage is going to appear because PR isn't a paid channel, and it's rude to expect the coverage. So how do you ask them subtly, politely, so they barely notice?
In a world where almost every office worker communicates through e-mail, the skill of drafting good, concise e-mails is still lost amongst many of us. School lays the foundation for the real world, and it would be helpful for our classes to cover this topic.
What do you think?
Good luck as always, and all the best!
Cheers,
Cheryl
Hello Grace,
I completely share your sentiments on this post!
Another thing that I would like to add on to list is that I wish they've taught me how to establish a good relationship with a journalist. Having a media list as our 'Bibles' may not be enough for a PR practitioner.Throughout my internship experience, I realized that having a good relationship with the media serves as a huge advantage which would make one's live much easier.
Although personal skills and interactive skills may play a part, I hope that there are tips for me on how to improve on it.
What say you? :)
Best of luck and keep in touch Grace!
With love,
Justine Lai
15215640
Curtin Singapore
Hi Grace!
An interesting read, but I guess education just cannot cover all aspects! ;) It's the experience that counts after all, and I guess that is what PR 393 is about, helping us learn about real world application as well as interpersonal skills and so much more!
Regards
Dawn Ng
Post a Comment