Today I realized how much time has passed since I was a greenhorn in public relations. It was never an easy climb for me. I began in PR after I was unceremoniously rejected from my initial stint in media production. Three months into my employment at a leading production house in the country, my boss fired me because she didn't feel I was up for the position because - hilariously - she thought I acted like I belonged in front of the camera rather than behind it. 😜 Back then, it was a dark moment in my life. Back in college, I had narrowed my options down to two things - either I take up law, or become a journalist. I thought that getting accepted in this prod company was my break. When they let me go, I thought my career was over! I traveled aimlessly from one job to the next before I got this one, and I didn't know where to go next. Then this ad came out for an account management position in a public relations agency. I looked into their website and what struck me was the background of the company heads, which was mostly in international relations. Having majored in consular and diplomatic studies, I felt like I would somehow fit into this organization. I applied, got interviewed and was accepted. Never mind that I had absolutely no idea what public relations was all about. It sounded like a promising job that used all those big words I heard and spoke during my International Relations courses. 😊 When I joined the company, it was like the mother ship had called me home. I was in my element! I realized that with the right organization and the right managment, I could be really good at what I do. And what I did was build relationships, link our clients to their audiences so that they have the opportunity to tell their stories, become a conduit to changing perceptions. It was perfect. I loved every minute of it, even the times I hated it for keeping me at the office way later than office hours, & for keeping me awake nights thinking about tasks unfinished left at the office. I worked so hard, I rarely saw my family! Seriously, I was so obsessed with effectively servicing my clients, it became the core reason of my existence. Not that I didn't get to enjoy. I partied hard too. But it was always around people I worked with. They became good friends, heck, even family, my lifeline, my link to the world out there. My work was my companion, my refuge, my biggest critic, my boyfriend! It all seems like a blur now, the things that happened next. I left this job, moved on to another stint and then still another, but always in communications. But that's another story I will tell on another day. The point is that wherever else I went, I brought with me this certainty that I have the ability to create things, to move things, to change things. I can be an integral part of the right organization. when I joined that first company, I was lost. It was with its help that I was able to find myself, my true north, who I really am. And I think all young ones looking for their first real jobs need to find this place, this haven that will have them saying, 'Eureka! This has been what I'm all about all along!' Not everyone is as lucky as me in this respect. I know several people whose experiences with work so early in their careers have been marred by disappointment and disillusionment, with managers & companies who didn't give a damn about their employees' sense of fulfillment, just their targets and profits. Young people deserve to find their true worth in their careers, so that they can spend long and fruitful lives believing in what they can do, that they can be part of something bigger than themselves. I have put up my own little firm since, and I hope that in my own way, I am able to inspire the people I work with. I want to create a culture and an environment that will make employees feel they are working for something worthwhile, that they can be part of something great. It's not always easy. I can be disillusioned, disappointed, sometimes, even just plain tired of working. I am so far from perfect. But I'm trying! And maybe, in the course of my life with this company I now call home, we can help people realize they can be awesome. 😊
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