A question for my Fall 2013 Public Relations Writing students

You have heard me talk a great deal about my Communication/PR colleagues and friends who I consider to be true professionals. What does being a Communication/PR professional mean to you? How do you become a true professional in Communication/PR?

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Questions for my Spring 2013 semester Public Relations Writing students

What are the most important skills/abilities necessary for success in the Public Relations career you envision as being perfect for you? How will you demonstrate to potential employers that you have those necessary skills/abilities? How will you continually improve your skills/abilities after you graduate?

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With IABC’s many changes comes an obligation to communicate better with its members

I have been a loyal and enthusiastic member and supporter of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) for over four decades. But lately, IABC is instituting so many changes that I hardly recognize my beloved professional association.

With any change initiative, frequent, honest, two-way communication is an absolute must. IABC has sponsored untold professional development offerings over the years to tell members that.  But is IABC doing what it says its members should do? Simply put, is IABC walking the talk?

My colleague and friend, Sue Horner, Ontario-based writer and long-time IABC member, recently posted an insightful discussion of the IABC situation. I suggest that anyone interested in IABC read her thoughtful observations. You can find it at Sue’s blog, The Red Jacket Dairies.

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A question for my summer 2012 Public Relations Writing students

Now that you have had this Public Relations Writing course, what will you do going forward to continually improve your writing skills and abilities?

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The More With Les commencement address for graduating college students

If I were asked to give a college’s commencement address (fat chance), here is what I would tell the graduates:

1.  Lose the narcissism. Wellesley High School English teacher David McCullough Jr., recently covered this better than I ever could, and I agree with McCullough; I would tell graduating college students that “you are not all that special”, even though, as members of the Millennial Generation, you have been told that you are all of your lives. The difference here is that McCullough was addressing high school seniors. My commencement speech is to college students, whose egos, by this time, have been knocked down a peg of two. But the point is still important — you are not the center of the universe, so get over your self-importance. In the grand scheme of things, you are just one among many out there scratching to make it. That simply means that you are not entitled to a high starting salary or the job of your dreams immediately. You will have to earn what you get, beginning with an entry level job and working your way up.

2.  Work means work.  When you take a job, you are expected to earn your keep. Being hired is not a license to coast. You must work to prove yourself every day, with every task, and on every assignment. You are being paid to do a job. Do it to the best of your ability, and then improve on your performance continually.

3.  Results are the only thing that matters. I love my Millennial Generation college students, but I get sick of hearing this excuse for a bad grade: “But I worked so hard on that!” Who cares that you worked hard? You are supposed to work hard. Do not ever tell an employer who critiques your poor performance that you tried really hard. The implication is, as it is with my students, that you should get some sort of credit for your effort. No way. You are supposed to give every task, every assignment, and every project your 100 percent effort. That is merely an entry fee. Results are all that matters. Yoda said it best: “Do, or do not. There is no try.”

4. The Golden Rule is the only thing you ever need to know about diversity.  Simply treat people like you want to be treated. The Golden Rule is the golden key to living a successful, meaningful, and productive life in harmony with other people.

5. As members of the Millennial Generation, you must deal effectively with other generations in the work place. Learn to understand and respect Baby Boomers and Generation Xers. They got there first. They have paid their dues (if they are still employed there with you). Respect them. Help them. Learn from them.

6. You can’t text your way into super-stardom. You are not inherently smarter than the Boomers and Xers  just because you “grew up digital”. Just because you can text and Tweet and Facebook and email and surf Websites, often all at the same time, does not mean you are smarter than they are. They can do these things, too.  Being adept at Web 2.0-enabled social media, a hallmark of the Millennial Generation, is of small advantage in the face of the incredible life experience that these older generations have on you.

7. Never drink too much at an office social function. That is a career-limiting move for sure.

8. Happen to things; don’t let things happen to you. That was important advice from one of my mentors, David Hogan. When I went to him for advice about how to do a difficult project, he advised me to “go make something happen.” In other words, he advised me to figure it out. That is what he was paying me for anyway.

9. Accept the guidance of a mentor. Like David Hogan, and David Wesley before him (See my blog post below dated October 21, 2011), my mentors have been invaluable to my career success. You will find them, too, or they will find you. The is much truth to the old Zen proverb, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”

10. You, and you alone, must find your own way. And here is the good news — you will. I know you will, and it will all be okay.

Good luck.

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Communication/PR professionals need printers’ ink in the blood

Robert Holland’s comment to my post, In Praise of Bookstores, made me think of how much I owe my career success to having spent a great deal of time in print shops.

I believe that to be a true communication/PR professional, you must have a thorough knowledge of and experience with the printing process. You have to get some printers’ ink into your bloodstream.

I began my career journey in a humble manner. In college, I cleaned the presses for each run of our student newspaper.

In my first job after graduation, I was editor of a U.S. Army publication in Germany while stationed there with the 32d Army Air Defense Command in Kaiserslautern. My newspaper was printed at a German print shop in the small town of Otterbach. I loved spending time there while the newspaper was prepared and printed. It was my first professional opportunity to work with a printer, and I learned so much from the staff there. I even learned all my type fonts and sizes in German to be able to communicate with the staff.

My second job after being discharged from the army was as managing editor of an award-winning weekly newspaper. The newspaper was printed in a print shop 60 miles north of the city it served. I loved going there each week to supervise the press run. I became good friends with the owner of the print shop, and he gave me the run of the place. His name was W. C. (“Dub”) Shoemaker, and he became a dear friend and mentor to me.

There is something magical and fulfilling about watching your hard work come off the press. I was allowed to work with Shoemaker’s staff in every department as my page proofs worked their way through the printing process. Then, standing at the end of the huge offset press, grabbing a finished publication as it came out of the folder, I could, as Robert described it, hold my work in my hands, and in so doing, feel a great sense of pride and accomplishment.

I left the weekly newspaper editor’s job to join my first corporate communication department. Among other duties, I was managing editor of a large monthly publication, that was, fortunately enough for me, printed at Shoemaker’s shop. I usually spent a couple of days there getting that  publication out each month. I did that for years, and I never got tired of it. I leaned so much about the printing process and how to make the most of it. I think every communicator/PR professional should have such knowledge. It adds a wider dimension to your professional skills.

Plus, the printing process is quite interesting if you are a serious communication/PR professional. Every top communicator I ever looked up to had printers’ ink in the bloood. It completes your work and brings a satisfying conclusion to your projects. It is much more satisfying to be part of the printing process, too, in addition to all the development, writing, and design of any given project.

I left that organization, and sadly, Shoemaker’s beloved print shop, and moved on to other corporate communication management positions in different cities. I still dealt with printers on a regular basis, as is necessary to be successful in this business. I was thankful  to have had such a good grounding in the printing process. It helped me tremendously.

Today’s communication/PR students may never need to enter a print shop. For a very long time now, it has been easy to send complete layouts to the print shop online and never set foot in the shop itself. That is remarkable progress and very efficient, but it also lacks soul. Like Robert said, the smell and feel of printers’ ink gets in your nose and on your hands, but it also gets into your heart/blood stream. I miss that experience.

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When the student is ready, the teacher will appear: The importance of having a mentor

A mentor is a trusted guide, a teacher, a coach, a person who provides us with wise counsel in our career development. I encourage all who read this, especially my beloved students at Towson University, to seek a mentor when you enter the world of work.

The term comes from Greek mythology. A friend of Odysseus, Mentor, was trusted with the education of Odysseus’ son Telemachus. Mentor’s name echos through history as an affirmation of the experienced person helping the less experienced to learn and grow.

There is a Zen saying that applies here: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” Be open to those who would mentor you, for they will come to you, perhaps when you need them the most.

My first mentor, David Wesley

My first mentor was David Wesley, who sadly, died of cancer. I met David (pictured here in my home in Hohenecken, Germany, in 1972) when I was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army after graduating from college in 1970. David was a staff sergeant in the Public Information office in which I was assigned.

David was an extremely talented communicator, proficient as a writer, editor, photographer, designer, and manager. He spoke fluent German. He was well-read and had traveled extensively. He was a connoisseur of fine wines, gourmet food, and classical music. He was intelligent, erudite, accomplished, and personable.

In short, David Wesley was everything I was not. I was an immature and undisciplined young writer/editor trying to become a successful communication professional. David taught me how to do it, and in the process, showed me how to become a better man.

I will never forget one simple piece of advice he gave me early on. I asked him, as student to Zen master, “David, oh wise one, how can I become a better writer?”

He looked haughtily down his nose at me, took another puff of one of the ever-present cigarettes that would eventually kill him, and said: “Well, for starters, you can stop reading only those car magazines and start reading some good literature.” I took this advice. Now, thousands of books later, I see so clearly how right he was.

In addition to helping me with career skills, David also introduced me to the music of Beethoven, his favorite, a gift made more memorable because of Beethoven’s German roots. I was blessed to be able to live and travel in Europe to places where so much of my favorite music was written, all the while under the mentorship of a knowledgeable person like David. I treasure this period of my life, for I was introduced through David to so much that was enriching and beautiful and lasting.

David also gave me my first (and to date, my only) birthday party. Since I share Beethoven’s birthday, December 16, David and his wife Reggie, hosted what they billed as a “Beethoven Birthday Party”, but in truth, it was for me. Good German wine flowed freely, and we laughed and talked away the night listening to the beautiful and powerful music of Beethoven.

I learned so much from David that my writing skill could never do his memory justice. I have not yet mastered writing well enough to be able to do that. From editing my copy, to introducing me to fine dining from Bonn to Bavaria, to taking me to my first German wine tasting, I learned so much from this talented and generous mentor.

David Wesley gave the term “mentor” a greater dimension of substance and value, for he epitomized what the term stands for in its highest sense. I am eternally in his debt for taking a crude young communicator and trying to work some magic. I fear the magic was all mine, for I could never give to him equally what he gave to me.

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IABC World Conference: the best of professional development, networking, and fellowship

The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), my most beloved professional organization, begins its annual world conference this weekend.

But I won’t be attending.

Since I began my organizational communication career way back in 1973, I have rarely missed an IABC World Conference. But things change. Careers take new directions.

Presently, I am completing work on a doctorate in Instructional Technology at Towson University. I have finished my course work and now am taking a series of six comprehensive exams, one a month for a half-year. I have a demanding one this month, so here I am.

I’d normally be on a plane right now headed to San Diego, but I am in my home office reviewing the research foundations of instructional technology to prepare for this month’s comp exam. I will miss the professional development, networking, fellowship, and sheer stimulation of the world conference, but I cannot justify the time away. My priority right now is to successfully complete these comp exams so I can finish my dissertation and my doctorate. Three comp exams down, and three to go.

IABC has been my “graduate school” for most of my career. When I wanted to learn and grow, IABC was there for me. I could always find what I needed or make a contact that could help me. As a source of professional development, IABC is unmatched. I can honestly say that I owe any success I’ve had in my career to IABC.

IABC has given me professional development, a large network of contacts/colleagues, and the best of friends, all very important aspects of my life. Now, as a senior lecturer in the PR Track of Towson’s Mass Comm. department, I try to introduce my students to the value of professional association membership. I believe it is the single most rewarding investment a person can make in his or her career. I hope they will join, stay active, and benefit as greatly as I have.

I miss being a part of the world conference, but I am there in spirit.

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