Life after School

It's been one of those nights where I have so much on my mind that I can't sleep. Even though school is over for the semester, I still have a lot of work and things that are going to affect my near future.

For example, tomorrow I'll be working in the Saginaw Spirit office all day. It'll be a taste of a true 8 hour day in the office. I'll be working on my game, which is themed "Bad Gift Exchange." I'll have to work hard finding a solution for the actual gift exchange, I'll have to make some flyers and promo pieces, I'll have to think of actual things that will go on during the game, I'll get my budget and so on and so forth. After all that, I get to write the news release for the Spirit's away game tomorrow night. (I'll make sure to post it later.)

Another example, I have an interview this Thursday for a public relations internship at Habitat for Humanity of Michigan in Lansing. I'm excited and nervous, as expected. The only real interview experience I've had is for Sam's Club. It's experience I suppose and it's not so bad talking about myself. Once I get going I get more comfortable. It seems like a good fit for me and I hope I make a good first impression. I know it'll be great experience for me if I can get it.

But all of this, in some way, when it's lumped together, will affect my future. My experience will affect what kind of job I get after graduation, which by the way is only a year and a half away. Most likely I will have to get a paid internship before I get an actual job. That seems to be the trend. That is, IF I find someone to hire me with the economy.

It'll affect where I live and what kind of apartment/house/whatever I can afford. And of course, we all like to keep this tucked away and not talk about it sometimes, but there are relationship committments. I have a suspicion that it won't be easy to move somewhere totally new without my best friends and boyfriend. I'll have to though. I will be a peice of fluff, floating wherever the wind blows me.

Then I realized that my time will not be restricted by semesters or sports. I will still have a strict schedule, but my time will be more free. It's not a bad thing and I'm not complaining. I just know there are about to be some major changes in my life. I'm not scared, but it's a lot to think about and I just had to write it down somewhere.

SONG OF THE DAY: Britney Spears - Circus
Today's Scripture: ”And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness…” (Romans 8:26)

*imastar*

PR Agency Tours

On Dec. 5, some members of the Dr. Diane S. Krider chapter of PRSSA and I went to the Detroit area for two public relations agency tours. We went to Franco Public Relations in Detroit in the Renaissance Center and John Bailey & Associates in Troy, Mich.

I enjoyed these tours a lot and I highly recommend going on agency tours if you're still trying to figure out where you want to go with your PR career.

I definitely liked one better than the other. It wasn't because one agency was better than the other; it is purely my own personal reasons and I have nothing against either agency. They are both respectable and do the best work.

However, the agency I preferred had younger employees. They seemed really into the social media and emphasized it on our tour. The atmosphere was more "homey." The work spaces are open so everyone can collaborate and help each other without having to yell or get up and walk somewhere. Everyone in general seemed nicer too. I also prefer the clients they have to the other agency's clients.

A common trend I noticed was that the employees at both places said they got an internship at the agency before they were hired. I guess this is pure common sense because they want to see if you'll fit in with their company and if you're a good worker. One of them said, "It's the longest interview you'll ever have."

In general, going to both places made me so excited to get a job! I love this work and definitely have a deep passion for it. I still have a lot to learn, but I'm excited for that too.

SONG OF THE DAY: Kanye West - I Wonder
Today's Scripture: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:5,8)

*imastar*

Life Tips

I had my last public relations writing class today and my professor left our class with some tips about the real world. I'm certainly glad he did and I've briefly thought of these things before, but it was still an eye opener.


Most PR practitioners right out of college have a starting salary of $25,000. Our teacher used that number and started subtracting from it everything we will need to pay for when we're out on our own. It's not discouraging, but it was sad to see how poor I will be.



Other valuable tips he gave included:

• Make sure you follow what a possible employer wants when you send a resume and cover letter whether it be copy and pasted into an e-mail or attached as a Word document.


• If you get hired and the company gives you a cell phone and/or a laptop, it is for WORK PURPOSES only. You don't own that property and if you do inappropriate things with those items, it is grounds to be fired.


• Employees should only write e-mails that they feel comfortable disclosing to the public. Dow recently fired 30 employees because of a wraunchy e-mail that had been forwarded around the company. E-mails, texts, phone calls, etc. are public records.


• He highly recommended taking a $25,000 salary with health benefits over a $30,000 salary with no health benefits. You never know when something could happen to you.


• Rule of thumb is to spend 25 percent of your income for living expenses.


• Start a deferred income plan as soon as possible


• Find a reputable financial planner to help you.


• If you don't care who gets the credit than you'll accomplish a lot. Getting the work done is more important and while it may be hard to let someone else take credit for all the hard work you've done, don't let it consume you. There's more to life.

SONG OF THE DAY: Jason Mraz - I'm Yours

Today's Scripture: “…your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over” (1 Peter 3:1)


*imastar*

Isn't Life Grand?

Have you ever been really interested in something or been really excited, but thought twice about it because there were a few things that could hold you back? Well I do all the time.

For example, I just got an e-mail about a public relations internship opportunity for Michigan's Adventure. The person they're looking for fits me almost to a "T" and I feel like I could complete the tasks they need the inten to do.

However, Muskegon is about three hours away from my hometown. I lived away from home last summer and was miserable. I don't know if I could do it again.

Another thing that is holding me back is the internship goes until September. Our soccer season starts at the beginning of August. I don't know if I would be able to do both.

So as I was thinking of all these negatives, I got an e-mail from Joel Osteen, who is a preacher, and his daily newsletter always gives a passage from the Bible. Well the passage today was absolutely perfect and told me exactly what I should do. (Read "Today's Scripture" below to find out what I'm going to do!)

SONG OF THE DAY: Rascal Flatts - The Day Before You
Today's Scripture: “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close” (Revelation 3:8)

*imastar*

No such thing as "To-Do" Lists in PR

One thing that has been surprising to me through my public relations studies is there is no such thing as a "to-do" list.

Every piece of advice I've gotten is while you may have a "to-do" list for the day, you probably will not accomplish more than 50 percent of what's on it.

I am an extremely organized person and I like to have my day planned. I am worried I may struggle with this and that it may cause a lot of stress.

However, I'm going to have to come to grips with this. In Robert Kornecki's book How To Thrive in the Public Relations Business: 35 Practical Tips from a 35-Year Veteran, he says, "Despite your best efforts to prioritize projects and accomplish things on that list, don't be surprised if your day becomes a blur of un-planned and unexpected activities, meetings and events. While unsettling to some, those kinds of days are more common than not...In my experience, there has been no typical day. You never know what new challenge may lie around the corner."

In my public relations writing class, we've had two speakers come, Kasey Anderson, Creative Services Specialist at Citizens Bank and Tony Cervone, GM Communications - Global Strategy and Operations. They both mentioned this topic as well and how one of the most frequent questions from students is "What is a typical day?" and their answer is always, "There is no such thing."

SONG OF THE DAY: Taylor Swift - Hey Stephen
Today's Scripture: “Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains” (Colossians 4:3)

*imastar*

New School Year

Today is the first official day of classes. I am not as excited as I have been in the past and it's just because I know how much work I have ahead of me. I will be VERY busy this semester. For one, soccer takes up a lot of my time. We have practices every morning until about 10:30a.m. and we travel for half of our games, meaning we leave Thursday afternoons and don't get back until Sunday night. It's a lot of doing homework on the bus and in the hotel while trying to rest after just playing a grueling 90 minute game. But hey, I love the life of a student-athlete. I wouldn't want it any other way.

But on top of all that this semester, not only am I taking two 400 level classes, but I am also a student-athlete on-call tutor and I recently got an internship with the Saginaw Spirit! I cannot begin to describe how excited I am for that. Their internship program is well-known as one of the best around and has been for the past seven years. It hasn't started yet, but it will soon. Orientation is Aug. 29th, which I unfortunately cannot make (we will be in Oklahoma playing the Sooners!!), but the "make-up" orientation should be soon after that. Hockey games start in September. My position is game day operations, but I will also be working a little in other types of positions as well.

So keep reading for updates on my internship and what I'm doing with that and how it's going. It will be awesome and hopefully I will have more information on that soon! I'll also be talking about my classes and what types of projects and assignments we have. That should be interesting as well. I have State and Local Government (I had to take it as a general education class...yuck!), Intro to Multimedia Design, Public Relations Writing, and Recreation Programming. As I've said before, I'm majoring in public relations and minoring in public affairs and events management. But I'll keep you posted on everything!

Song of the Day: Jack Johnson - Upside Down
Today's Scripture: “I will give you thanks in the great assembly; I will praise you among a mighty throng” (Psalm 35:18)

*imastar*

Press Release Tips

Press releases are obviously a huge part of public relations. However, when journalists see press releases as more of a pain in the ass than a saving grace for their media, there is a problem. I was looking around and I found some interesting links to help make your press releases better and hopefully readable.

http://www.pressreleasegrader.com/

http://www.mpdailyfix.com/2007/04/six_telltale_signs_that_a_pres.html
**(Make sure you read the comments after this article. There are more tips there that are very useful too.)**

*imastar*

Love, Life, and Computers

Imagine if our world suddenly had no computers, no Internet. What would we do? So many things would be affected. Communication would become much slower, news would travel at snail pace, newspapers would start to dominate again; we would be unable to access the ominous information library, no blogging, no emails, no Twitter or Facebook; people would actually have to pick up a phone and talk to each other, or heaven forbid, talk to one another in person; everything would have to be handwritten, designs would have to be drawn out, taxes would have to be done the old-fashioned way, no hearts or solitary or Second Life; kids would actually have to start finding other things to do, like maybe play outside for once. PR would become a whole new game. We would have to rethink a lot. But, it would come down to our world drastically changing in an instant. It's scary that we rely on computers for so much.

That's why I haven't been able to post for 2 weeks. My laptop unfortunately crashed and I was unable to fix it until now. I had to wait until I came home so my computer genious mother could get her hands on it. Luckily, she was able to fix it period. So I am back up and running!

More posts later! Hope you continue to read my blog and enjoy it!

SONG OF THE DAY: Akon ft. Luda - Buck in Here
Today's Scripture: "My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness." Isaiah 26:9

*imastar*

More PR in NC

Like I said, I would do some more research on internships available in the great state of North Carolina. I came across a few that sound pretty interesting. They are smaller internships that would be great building blocks to a successful start in PR. Like I said, everyone has to start somewhere and I will take whatever I can get my hands on. It makes me excited, but at the same time so frusterated because I still have school left to finish in Michigan. Blah! But I can't just drop what I'm doing and frolic off to NC. Here's what I found....

1. North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences: "Public Relations/Communications Interns may gain experience in writing, media relations, marketing and publication design. Interns may participate in grant-writing projects; Must be currently enrolled in an undergraduate program and have completed four semesters of coursework. Graduate students may also apply. Experience and/or knowledge of field of internship. Grade point average of at least B. Enthusiasm/strong interest in learning about science education, environmental science, museum studies, research, etc."

2. North Carolina Special Olympics: "As a communications intern, you will gain experience in the following: Building relationships with the media, Writing, editing, proofing, Reporting/interviewing, Desktop publishing, Analytical thinking, Working with various computer software packages (Microsoft Word, Publisher, PowerPoint, Access), Operating in a business environment,
Nonprofit management Duties/Responsibilities: Keep current and accurate media database, Maintain photo files, Maintain statewide news clippings, Write press releases as assigned, Assemble press kits, Attend state-level events and interact with the media as assigned, Write articles for monthly and quarterly newsletters as assigned, Write athlete and volunteer profiles/ Web spotlights, Assist in implementation of national public education campaign as assigned,
Other duties as assigned by the vice president of communications
Qualifications: Good oral and written communication skills, Good organizational and analytical skills; attention to detail, Strong interpersonal skills, Good editing skills and knowledge of language, grammar, punctuation and style

3. North Carolina Aquariums: "Special Events, Public Relations and Visitor Services provide opportunities for qualified interns to gain valuable experience in the unique aquarium setting. Supervisors with extensive experience in their respective fields oversee each of these departments. Interns in these areas are expected to be meticulous and professional. Creativity is a must. A four-month commitment is required, Qualified individuals are assigned to specific projects working along side experienced aquarium staff"

4. North Carolina MADD: "General Office Intern: General Description: This position will assist the State Office with various programming and fundraising efforts, as well as special event planning. Duties may include contacting volunteers and sponsors, as well as dissemination of program materials.
Marketing/Public Relations Intern: General Description : This position will assist the state offfice in coordinating our marketing and public relations programs. It will assist us in implementing our PR efforts through working with local and statewide media, schools, law enforcement and community partners. This position will also assist us in marketing our programs, core events, assisting with newsletter writing and production."

I really think the Special Olympics one sounds the most interesting and I would love to do something like that. I should really look into my school's Special Olympics program and see if I can land myself an internship there before heading out to my dream state.

SONG OF THE DAY: Relient K-Gibberish
Today's Scripture: "If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land" (Isaiah 1:19).
*imastar*

PR in NC

It's ALWAYS been my dream to live in NORTH CAROLINA some day. I've been to Caro, NC before and I went in December and it was beautiful there. It was still in the 50s and 60s and there was blue sky and sun! I'm sick of the long winters and unpredictable, crappy weather in Michigan. I also heard that NC was the top state to find jobs in. That was a few years ago so I don't know if that's still true, but I don't really care. The economy there has to be better than Michigan's anyway. Michigan is going down the tubes.

Anyway, I started doing some research on some firms in North Carolina and I came across many!

• carolinapr - "one of the oldest, most established public relations and marketing communications firms operating in the Carolinas; a mid-sized agency; employees contribute their time and energy to further the success of more than 50 local, regional and national civic, and professional organizations"
• fama pr - "only PR firm named to the Boston Business Journal's "Best Places to Work" in 2007 and 2008; partners with technology companies to provide excellence in corporate communications and public relations; Our client base is broad, from stealth startups to publicly-traded companies"
• HiTechPR - "extensive expertise in business to business marketing communications for the electronics, telecommunications and computer industries has set us apart from other companies; multidimensional approach to marketing communications; wins five international public relations awards for the successful launch of Herzlia-Based Genoa Color"
• Hill & Knowlton Inc. - "leading international communications consultancy, providing services to local, multinational and global clients; part of WPP, one of the world's largest communications services groups
• Weber Shandwick Worldwide - "PRSA awarded Weber Shandwick three Silver Anvil Awards, two Silver Anvil Awards of Excellence, three Bronze Anvil Awards and six Bronze Anvil Awards of Commendation at the recent North American awards ceremony; a global public relations and communications leader; a unit of The Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG), which is one of the world's leading organizations of advertising agencies and marketing services companies"

These are just some of the big time firms and agencies. These are the serious ones that you need lots of experience in PR to get a job there. However, everyone has to start somewhere and I believe I will make it there some day! I will move to North Carolina and happily work and live there. I don't know if it will be at one of those places, but I am going to do some more research and see if I can find internships there. I will keep updating on what I find.

In the mean time, if anyone has any suggestions or input or has anything to say about North Carolina in general, please do so! I appreciate any and all comments! I'm sure anything will help me out right now. :) Thanks!

SONG OF THE DAY: Britney Spears-Toxic

Today's Scripture: "Great peace have those who love Your law and nothing shall make them stumble" (Psalm 119:65).

*imastar*

Absolutely Twitterific!

Twittering, twitterers, twitrelease, twitterstream. No, I am not crazy and these are not words I just made up. They actually have a lot to do with public relations. The online social network moves fast, but public relations pros need to move faster.

If you haven't joined Twitter or even heard of it, you are not moving fast enough. Twitter is a service that lets you see updates online from friends, family, and co-workers. Updates have to be made in 140 words or less. However, Twitter is so much more than this. It's also a marketing/public relations tool that many public relations professionals use. You can get a product or service out to the masses quickly, it's simple, and most important, FREE. For example, Verizon Wireless used Twitter to market their new service, Verizon FiOS Internet. They did this by creating "Twittering Teddy", an animatronic bear that uses text-to-speech software to read your friends', family's, and co-workers' Twitter updates aloud to you. It was auctioned off yesterday for $212.50 and the money is going to the Homeless Children's Education Fund. But you don't have to manufacture a talking teddy bear to use Twitter. Just come up with a username, sign up, and start twittering!

But not only is it a marketing tool, it is a networking service as well. Twitter lets you see what other people in your profession are doing to succeed. It may give you a good idea if your stuck on something and if not, you can always ask for advice and people will respond. It's a free help service. Plus, a lot of people will put their blog web address or websites on Twitter and let you know when it's updated. You don't even need to subscribe to their RSS. Just follow them on Twitter!

Todd Defren, in his blog "PR-Squared," even goes so far as to say that a "PR person MUST become an active Twitter user if they want to have a meaningful career." He says that Twitter helps with personal branding, knowledge, and relationships. All three of those things are important in the public relations field.

"All the world's a-twitter", are you? If you decide to join, my username is IheartPR_5. Follow me and you can see my updates on your Twitter page or you can see them right here on my blog (see below on the right). I want to be successful when I begin my public relations career and hopefully, this will help me get a leg up on my competition when I start applying for internships and jobs.

SONG OF THE DAY: Simple Plan-When I'm With You
Today's Scripture: "I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you" (Psalm 32:8).
*imastar*

PR Masters Program?

Ok here's the deal...I will graduate with a major in public relations in four years. However, I red-shirted in soccer my freshman year so I have a fifth year of eligibility. So, I want to start my masters program my fifth year. That way the NCAA will pay for my ENTIRE first year of my masters since I'll be playing soccer. The only problem is I looked at my school's masters programs and we don't have one specifically for public relations. We do have an interpersonal communications program though, which is basically the same thing.

However, I just wanted to ask and see if anyone had any suggestions on what I should do for my masters. If anyone has any advice on that I would be most appreciative! I know FOR SURE that I want to start my masters program that fifth year though and I am not going back on my word. I just don't know what I want to go into or what would be the best to go into.

SONG OF THE DAY: Lil' Wayne-Got Money
Today's Scripture: "If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light." (Luke 11:36)

*imastar*

PR Open Mic

SONG OF THE DAY: Boys Like Girls-Thunder
Today's Scripture: "How good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity...for there the Lord has commanded the blessing..." (Psalm 133:1-3).

I've been away from a computer and I am dieing! I HATE feeling like I have no connection to the world. Plus, I wanted to practice posting every day and I already ruined it. But it's only one time and it might be close to impossible to post every single day.

But for all you PR fans (including me!), I've found some good blogs for you to check out. If you're a student, faculty member, or practitioner, check out PR Open Mic. It is an awesome website that lets you interact with other PR people from all over the world! It's like Facebook meets blog meets PR news website. It's everything a PR person could want! It's a lot of fun too. You can customize your own page and there are so many discussions you can join in! In the forum, the topics include any aspect of PR you can come up with! I really advise you to check it out and join. I hope to see you there! Also, be sure to check out my feed on Twitter. My s/n is iheartPR_5. I'd love to have you follow me and I'll be happy to follow your feeds as well. :)
*imastar*