When it comes to picking a career you should always lean towards one which perfectly plays into your own strengths. We all have different natural abilities and skills, and for me, this is why I chose to work in the industry of public relations. I began working for Interdependence PR firm around 5 years ago and I have little doubt that I made the right choice. Everything that this job calls for is what I already naturally have, and whilst of course I have still has to work extremely hard to make sure that I am good enough to deliver the job, I already had many of the skills and characteristics which this job in particular called for. If you have ben thinking abut a career in PR, here are the skills and attributes which you are going to need.
Creativity
No matter what your individual job role is within public relations one thing you are most certainly going to need is high amounts of creativity. This is a job where you have to constantly push the envelope and try and come up with new and exciting ways to help your clients. Given that those clients could be from any type of business sector, your creativity is really going to be pushed.
Team Working
Everything that we do at Interdependence PR is about the team and I have no doubt that any other business within public relations is going to be exactly the same. You must be able play different roles within the team dynamic and you must also be able to get along with and work in perfect synergy with those around you. There will be of course be times where you are working on your own, but ultimately this is a team sport and you win and lose together.
Communication
The heart of everything that we do in the business is about communication and you must have a a natural flair for being able to speak with people across many industries with comfort. The idea of PR is to create a message for you client, and in order to do that you need to understand perfectly how to communicate with people, and that means listening as well as being able to speak.
Drive
You could argue that being driven is a prerequisite for many job roles but I haven’t seen a more driven and fast paced industry as this one. I have seen some come into the job who couldn’t hack it and this is because of the energy levels that you need to survive and thrive in the world of public relations. There is always a crisis, always something to work for, always a project ongoing and always a client to deliver for. If you aren’t driven and committed then this isn’t the industry for you.
What do you think, do you have what it takes to forge a career in public relations?
