One thing I always remember about my first ever PR unit is that my tutor said to us, "If you think this degree is going to be anything like Samantha Jones from Sex and the City, you might as well leave now". Wow was she correct! As fun as partying it up with celebrities in NYC sounds, there is a whole lot more to PR, and I have quickly discovered that being at my internship.
I always imagined there were going be
times where things didn’t go smoothly and events did not go to plan. Today was
the perfect example of that!
I have always had an interest in events and thought I
understood roughly how event management worked. However, after today my views
have changed completely and I praise those who manage to keep their sanity
while planning for an event!
I was told to meet at the Perth convention centre an 9.00am
on Wednesday morning to help set up and prepare for an event that was taking
place and due for a 10am start.
When arriving at the location I called my supervisor to
organise a meeting place like we had planned. From that moment on it was manic!
She was stressed, exhausted, out of breath and overall drained. Everything that
needed to be done before 10am wasn’t even close to being finished. People were
arriving early, and there was nowhere for them to go besides hanging around the
foyer area while the rest of us franticly set up the conference area. As if
things weren’t stressful enough, one of the colleagues who had volunteered her
time to help with the event slipped and fell down the stairs. Thankfully she
was ok but she had to be rushed to the hospital as she is 20 weeks
pregnant- so you can imagine the thoughts that were running through everyone's heads.
Things were a bit out of control as we had to manage those
arriving early, those complaining about the temperature of the heat in the
room, organise each person a conference badge, all while being still being worried
and anxious from the previous accident that had just occurred.
Needless to say, my supervisor was close to tears as
everyone counted on her for a successful event. Thankfully by 10 o’clock the
hall was set up, the guests were enjoying tea and coffee in the foyer and
everyone was ready to enjoy a successful conference!
If I’ve learnt anything from this experience, it that, you
can prepare as much as possible, but there will always be a time when things
don’t go to plan. And that’s ok! The most important part is that you stay calm,
stay focused, and keep smiling so that everyone thinks things are ok! (even if
they’re not).
It’s given me a lot to think about as I feel event planning
may be an area I would like to dig deeper into.
Minus the stresses and unplanned injuries, the event was a success and
the feeling of accomplishment makes you feel like all the hard work was worth
it!
And while I do admit, I still enjoy indulging in episodes of Sex and the city, I am also grateful that PR is nothing like that of Samantha Jones career. I am learning so much more then I ever imagined and look forward to where my future is headed.
I am hoping to volunteer outside of my internship at other
events to get a greater feel of the environment! Who knows, maybe this could be
a new pathway for me!
