If you know a bit about how public relations works in the field, you’ll know that (contrary to popular belief) a job in PR isn’t all about glitz and glamour, socialising, and organising fancy events or parties. A career in this field requires a lot of discipline, long hours, and excellent multitasking skills If you think this job might be for you (or if you’ve already stepped into a Public Relations career), these tips are sure to set you up for a successful career in this exciting field.

1. 6 TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL CAREER IN PR
WWW.OXBRIDGEACADEMY.CO.ZA

2. Ifyouknowabitabouthowpublicrelationsworksinthefield,you’ll
knowthat(contrarytopopularbelief) ajobinPRisn’tallaboutglitz
andglamour,socialising,andorganisingfancyeventsorparties.A
careerinthisfieldrequiresalotofdiscipline,longhours,and
excellentmultitaskingskills.
Ifyouthinkthisjobmightbeforyou(orifyou’vealreadysteppedinto
aPublicRelationscareer),thesetipsaresuretosetyouupfora
successfulcareerinthisexcitingfield.

3. 1) STAY UP TO DATE WITH CURRENT EVENTS

4. Aswithanycareerinmarketing,trendsinpublicrelationscanrise(andfall) inthe
blinkofaneye.Keepuptodatewiththelatestnews,industrytrendsand
technologicaldevelopmentsbyfollowingonlinenewssitesonsocialmedia
channelssuchasFacebook,Twitter,andLinkedIn.Theseplatformswillsendyou
notifications(ifyousetupyouraccounttodoso) themomentanything
newsworthyhappens,andthiswillhelpyoutostayontopofthingsastheyhappen
andwillgiveyouaheadstarttoimplementchangesinyourPRstrategyshouldthe
developmentofanycurrenteventshaveadirectinfluenceonyourcampaign.

5. 2) IMPROVE ON YOUR COMMUNICATION AND/OR WRITING SKILLS

6. AbigpartofyourresponsibilitiesasaPRprofessionalwillbetocreatecontentto
beusedacrossavarietyofplatformstopromotetheprojectsthatyouareworking
on.Inordertocreategoodcontent,itisimportantthatyourcommunicationskills
aretopnotch,andonewayofensuringthatthisisthecaseistoconstantly
improveonyourwritingskills.
Startyourownblogtoexperimentwithdifferentwritingstyles,askacolleagueor
friendtohavealookatyourworkandtomakesuggestionsonwhereyoucan
improve,oreventakeashortcoursefocusingonwritingforPR.

7. 3) KEEP YOUR PERSONAL PROFILE UPDATED & RISK FREE

8. Whenworkinginpublicrelationsyouarealmostguaranteedtomeetnewpeople
everysingleday.Makeiteasyforthesepeopletofindyouonchannelssuchas
LinkedIn,Facebook,TwitterorG+ bykeepingyourpersonalprofileupdatedwith
yourcontactdetailsandcurrentprojectsthatyouareworkingon.
Intoday’ssocialmediaageitisimportanttorememberthatwhatyouputonthe
internetcanmakeorbreaktheimpressionsothersformulateofyou– sobesureto
thinktwicebeforepostingtheweekend’swildpartyphotosonFacebook…

9. 4) FORMULATE YOUR OWN COPING MECHANISMS

10. Asmentionedatthebeginningofthisarticle,youcanbesuretoworklonghours
thatwillinevitablyleadtomanysleeplessnights.Thegoodnewsisthatit’snot
thatdifficulttoremovethesleeplessnightsfromtheequationbyinstillingcoping
mechanismsintoyourdailytasks.
Stepawayfromyourworkatafewintervalsduringtheday,takeadeepbreath,
andtakenoteofwhatyou’veaccomplishedsofarandwhatelseneedstobe
finalisedduringtherestoftheday.Getinthehabittosetupweeklyschedulesfor
yourtaskswithclearduedatesandgoalsthatneedtobemet.Thisway,youcan
preventyourselffrombeingsurroundedbyabsolutechaoswhenitcomestoyour
to-dolist,andrathertackleeachdayinawell-organisedandstructuredmanner.

11. 5) DON’T PUNISH YOURSELF WHEN YOU MAKE A MISTAKE

12. Everyonecanmakeamistake,butnoteveryonecanrecoverfromit.Slip-upswill
occuronetimeoranother,butitisimportantthatyouremindyourselfthatyou’re
notthefirstpersontogetsomethingwrong.Usethisasanopportunitytolearn
something.Haveadiscussionwithyourmentororacolleagueandaskfortheir
adviceonhowyoucouldhavepreventedtheglitch,makeamentalnoteanduseit
toimproveyourfuturedecisionmakingprocesses.

13. 6) BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN

14. AsthePRscopeisalwayschanging,itwouldbebeneficialforyoutokeepupwith
thechangesinorderforyourworktostayrelevantandup-to-date.Drinkupthe
knowledgeofotherswhenworkingwiththem,expandyourworknetworksand
nevermissanopportunitytobroadenyourskillset.Themoreyouknow,thebetter
youwillbeabletoexecuteyourjob!