Posting this right at the end so I'd collect my thoughts on this experience. It has been great stepping out of class and going into the real world. The concrete jungle is not as scary after all! It was a great before graduation.
I remember, before going into university, I said I wanted to do PR because I love events and I do not want to be confined to an office job. A PR practitioner then responded that I could not be any more surprised it is exactly that. I looked at him in confusion and disbelief then but it all connects now. BUT it's not all that bad either. Most of my tasks were generated looking at this view with my laptop and using the internet. It is not glamorous and PR is not a glamorous field BUT when it all comes together at the end, it sure is exciting. Seeing my designs go live on the project website was great.
I remember, before going into university, I said I wanted to do PR because I love events and I do not want to be confined to an office job. A PR practitioner then responded that I could not be any more surprised it is exactly that. I looked at him in confusion and disbelief then but it all connects now. BUT it's not all that bad either. Most of my tasks were generated looking at this view with my laptop and using the internet. It is not glamorous and PR is not a glamorous field BUT when it all comes together at the end, it sure is exciting. Seeing my designs go live on the project website was great.
Although we learnt different aspects of PR in class, I still personally had a very strong customer focused approach to PR. I had a very focused customer-appeal approach carrying out my tasks. Reflecting on my internship, a question always comes to mind - "do I want to pursue a career in PR?" To answer that, I then had to figure out where do I fit within the world of PR. And it suddenly hit me
PR is all around us.
In the midst of everything, I forgot how dynamic PR is.
This photo above perfectly says what I now think about PR and my experience, while the photo below is a representation of how my experience looked like. Public Relations is more than client engagement. A conversation in the office between the directors and myself were PR too! Internal relations. Daphne, from the Miri campus (blog linked here) mentioned that good PR should be practiced by everyone and I could not agree more. Good PR can be practiced in all aspects even as simple as maintaining good conversational skills. (personal branding)
Overall, it's a reminder that the world is changing and so is PR. As a PR student, I am reminded how vital it is to keep an open mind and to absorb everything like a sponge. Creativity and adaptability is a key attribute in the industry. It's an exciting time for PR and for us, soon-to-be graduates!
Writing my closing blog post next.
Till then,
Quin
1 comment:
Hi Quinn,
I couldnt agree more with you - everything now is PR! Every photos you scroll on social media, every conversations, every intentions, can be (personal) branding.
I feel amazed by how we are all supposed to be monitoring ourselves, to curate our personality and interest, fearing that we would be dull and outdated if we don't keep the track of everyy single trend.
I feels its a shitty time to be alive, because we all loved to go out, plan parties and events, but we all ended up working in front of a screen. The best part of it is when you start to actually liking it, because, who knows, you could have end up working at the nearest KFC, or call center, or hotel, for whatever western need they ask us to satisfy.
I just had a huge wake up call guys, colonialism is like super alive and super healthy in 2016, in Mauritius. Corporate world is like modern complex legal form of slavery.
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