Unique PRoportions

So since I’ve completely fallen off the face of the earth in the blogosphere, I’ve decided to write another post. Here’s a recap of my summer: I got home from school, had a week to myself, and then began working at my internship, which I LOVE. Fast forward two months, and that’s about it. Though I love my internship, I’m happy to have the next week off to go the beach with my family, begin planning the PR Advanced conference, and of course, write on my blog again! 

This post will be a first in a series of internship lessons that I’ve been learning while at Mastro. I’ve finally been able to immerse myself in the world of PR and have humorously learned some valuable lessons. 

1. Take small sips of coffee in your cubicle. Though you may want to gulp down your oversized mug of coffee, DON’T. As much as you want that rush of caffeine through your veins, you can only swallow so much at a time. Last time I did this, coffee went down the wrong pipe into my lungs and I proceeded to burp/cough up coffee for the next ten minutes alone in my cubicle. This will not be a pleasant sound for you or your coworkers, who may assume that you are throwing up in your work area. Most likely they will be silent and pretend nothing happened, but truly be grossed out. Two words: small sips.

2. Black is just as good as Hunter Green. When going out to purchase items, make sure to know the backup plan. For instance, if your boss asks for three hunter green table cloths, find out what other color may work so you don’t spend 3 hours driving around to every Bed Bath & Beyond, Target, Walmart, Kmart, and Marshall’s in a 30-mile radius, only to find out that black was acceptable. Ask before you go, and save yourself from a foul mood a half-empty gas tank. 

3. Your boss has a point. Even if it’s something simple, always do what your boss tells you. Don’t try to take things into your own hands, because for all you know, your task could be the starting point for saving the world. Even though researching every sports store in a 30 mile radius can be tedious, that information is the backbone of the strategy later on. Listen, and if you don’t understand why, ask. 

So after my week of relaxation (and more blog posts!), I’ll be posting more about this series. Have any horror stories or funny lessons from your own internships or interns? I and the rest of the world would love to hear about them! Whoever has the most creative (but still true) story will win a special prize to be divulged later. So get posting!

I’ve done some thinking since my last post, which isn’t hard because it was almost a month ago. (Sorry!)

I always thought that fake it until you make it was sound advice until I began blogging: It’s really hard to write about what you just don’t know. So I’m taking a break from trying to write about social media because frankly I just don’t have enough experience yet.

So, what will I write about then?

Luckily, I was able to land an amazing internship with Mastro Communications, and I’ve been able to do some awesome and funny things there. Because I spend 40 hours of my week there, I will probably write something about it.

I also have another blog in the works. It isn’t about social media (surprise!) and it should be pretty cool. I’ll keep you updated about when it will be ready.

Until then, enjoy the musings of a lowly intern.

After sweating for hours on the treadmill and gluing my eyes to my computer screen (not simultaneously), I’ve come to the conclusion that social media and exercise are more similar than I originally thought.Though I hate the days when I feel like curling up and watching reruns of House rather than exercising, I know I must do it anyway to keep my body healthy. Though I hate the days where my Google Reader exceeds 400 documents, I know that I must trudge through my account to keep my mind healthy. Though at first glance these interests have nothing in common, they overlap in four very important areas.

(Taking a page out of Jackson Wightman’s recent post in his blog, PRoper PRopaganda, I have a handy list for all of you Gen-Yers who cannot read long paragraphs.)

In order for you to be successful in exercise or social media, you must possess:

1. Self-awareness: Know what you’re good at and what you can’t stand. If you can’t run, DO SOMETHING ELSE. If you can’t edit video clips, DO SOMETHING ELSE. While learning is valuable experience, stick with what you’re good at until you feel more comfortable to expand your horizons. Don’t feel bound by that treadmill in the basement: go outside and use your ten-year-old bike. If you feel bound by a blog format that is boring, switch to one with crazy new colors and offers photo options. With the ever-expanding worlds of exercising and social media, there is always room to explore.
2. Constant attention: In both social media and exercise, attention is key. You have to pay attention while you are bench pressing, or gravity will play a cruel trick on you. With social media, you are constantly connected to Twitter and Facebook while keeping track of the blogs you follow daily. In either activity, you must follow the current trends and be aware of what you are doing.
3. Never-ending passion: Without a drive to master exercising or social media, you will never do it. If I don’t want to go on a bike ride every day, I don’t have to. In social media, if I don’t feel like updating my blog every day/week, I won’t. Both of these disciplines require my desire to do them. 
4. Hard work: For me, it’s not easy work peddling up hill after hill in my rural New Jersey town. (Thank God for the downhills, because otherwise I would just give up.) In the same way, social media is also not easy. Though it is intuitive, you must actively seek or create great content to share with those who follow you.

So even though tackling social media and exercise seems daunting, both of these activities are extremely worthwhile in maintaining a healthy body and mind.

In the past couple of days, Facebook has made a “huge” change to its interface. Gone are the days of yore when companies generated a following through the “Become a Fan” button. All over the world, news feeds were cluttered with people becoming fans of “Chewing on Straws”, “Hugs When You Get Picked up in the Air”, and “The Death Stare”. Instead, users can now choose to connect over the “Like” button. This monumental switch has affect the millions of worldwide Facebook user and leaves many wondering, “WHY?!?” 

Facebook has the answer:

Like offers a simple, consistent way for people to connect with the things they are interested in. These lighter-weight actions mean people will make more connections across the site, including with your branded Facebook Pages. We believe this will result in brands gaining more connections to pages since our research has shown that some users would be more comfortable with the term ‘Like’. The goal is to get the most user connections so that you can have ongoing conversations in the news feeds of as many users as possible.

While the change does not seem to be drastic in the surface, there can be hidden effects to the switch. The most imposing is the impact on your personal brand. Before, as Facebook states in the message above, “Becoming a Fan” carried a larger mental weight. “Becoming a Fan” implies loyalty and ever-present devotion.

Now, the “Like” button requires only a half-hearted emotion. For example, I only like onions. I wouldn’t say that I am passionate about them in ANY dimension. Onions in no way compare to footie pajamas or Lip-Smaker Chapstick (#brandloyal). If I were to “Like” Pages that (separately) were devoted to onions, footie pajamas, or Lip Smacker Chapstick, my brand would embody all three equally. To the casual viewer, Ginny Soskey has the same amount of interest level in every one of her pages. While this incorrect perception of my brand may not be damaging in these examples, my development of my personal brand can go very awry if I am not careful of what I “Like”.

Because of the “Like” button, Facebook users, including myself, need to constantly think about what we are doing when we casually associate with Pages on Facebook. By nonchalantly “Liking” a Page called “it rough”, what message are we sending to our friends, family, and coworkers? While “becoming a fan” still carried the same consequences, the linguistics of the words make a user think twice before making such a “commitment”. Take the leap: making a commitment can help you cultivate and mange your personal brand!

Whoever thinks they can live life alone is dead wrong.

I have been thinking about how I could have gotten to where I am without the help of other people. It’s impossible. We have teachers from preschool onward who give us the information that we need to pass the SATs to get into college. We have parents who drive us to and from soccer practice every Wednesday night. We have older brothers and sisters who expect us to achieve greatness. Maybe you have one of these or all of these, but the concept holds true: we need each other.

So then what happens when we arrive in a brand new setting where we don’t have our familiar teachers, parents, friends, and siblings? (aka, College.) We adapt. We find people who can be role models and confidants for us because we, as people, need input from others.

I have felt this need for a mentor very strongly in my freshman year. Two very special people have helped me flourish from an 18-year-old college student to an 18-year-old college student with a passion. I thank the following two people for everything they have done for me.

• Eric Leist- Though we met my first semester through butv10’s Inside Boston, we didn’t start really working together until I joined PRSSA. Eric invited me to help him put together the Social Media Challenge and the #BostonCOM Tweetup. Because I was very new to PR and event planning, I naturally had tons and tons of questions to ask him. Eric never tired of my questions and always gave me positive feedback. He helped me develop my passion for PR and taught me more about social media networking than any class could. I’m going to miss his presence next year, even though he’ll still be in Boston. Keep a look out for him, he’s going to be all over the PR world in months!
• Rachel Sprung- When I was telling Michael DeFilippis about Rachel, he brought up a great insight to why she and I connected so well: Rachel looks and acts like my sister. My sister Laura is one of the most inspiring yet down-to-earth people you will ever meet, so naturally I would gravitate toward someone who is similar to she: Rachel. From the beginning, Rachel went out of her way to make me feel comfortable. She never hesitated to help me: whether it was about an issue with PRSSA or my summer internship, Rachel always would talk with me. I don’t know how she made time for me among completing her dual-degree, running for a national position, and finding a summer internship of her own, but somehow she did. Without Rachel, I would not have accomplished all of the things I have this semester. I truly thank her for reminding me of my sister: It’s helpful to have a piece of home at school.

Truly, I cannot stress how important it is to have someone show you the way. By having a mentor, you don’t have to make your own path by yourself. With some help, you can do more things than you ever thought possible. I am so grateful to have the help of Rachel and Eric. I hope to one day guide someone as they have guided me.